Publication Date:
Fri, 2011-09-30 14:04
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1 in 4 U.S. homes were Energy Star-certified in 2010
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced that 25 percent of all single-family homes built in the United States in 2010 earned EPA’s Energy Star certification. This is up from 21 percent in 2009, according to Energy Boom. [1]
Energy Star is a joint EPA, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) program that helps consumers save money and protect the environment by using less energy. This means energy-efficient products, like refrigerators and dishwashers, and homes built to stringent energy-efficient standards that guarantee fewer kilowatt-hours of electricity used to heat and cool, and therefore lower utility bills.
New homes can earn the Energy Star label by meeting certain specific energy-efficiency mandates established by the EPA. These include:
- Effective whole-house insulation systems
- High-performance (low-e, gas-filled, double- or triple-paned) windows
- Careful construction to insure a leak- and draft-proof home
- Effective yet energy-efficient heating and cooling equipment
- Lighting and appliances that also meet Energy Star standards.
