If the higher cost of electricity, gas and heating oil weigh on your mind, you will be envious of Mark Hanson. This senior design engineer for Synchrony Inc., a technology company in Roanoke County, pays nothing for the energy to run his 2,000 square foot home. Not only that, he spends only pennies to run his vehicles.
Hanson has gone solar, and this “greenie weenie,” as he calls himself, would like to see others follow his lead.
To that end, he will have on display one of his electric vehicles, possibly his red electric Porsche, November 6 and 7 at the Roanoke Civic Center as part of the Green Energy and Living Expo. The Expo, which had over 2,500 visitors last year, has been helping Roanoke Valley residents learn to live a little greener for the last decade.
These days Hanson drives his electric Porsche, a motorcycle or a hybrid to his job in Salem. The weather determines which vehicle he chooses to drive. If the power is low, requiring him to access energy from the power company, he drives the hybrid.
Hanson moved to the area in 1992. After a search for unrestricted land for his solar home (one person threatened to sue him if he built a solar home next to his “McMansion”), Hanson landed a few acres in a small valley off a back road in Botetourt County.
“People will pay lip service to solar homes, but if you go in and try to put a space ship next to a nice ranch they don’t like it much,” Hanson explained. A secluded lot seemed best.
He built the house himself, using “Jimmie Carter solar house plans” that he had carried around for 20 years. The former president was an early advocate of solar power. The house has a metal roof that will last a century, solar panels, and a geothermal water heater.
Making his house energy efficient has not come cheap. Hanson has spent thousands of dollars to live mostly off-grid. “To seriously generate all of your electricity is pretty expensive,” he said. “The advantage is you’re self-sufficient and if the power goes out you don’t care.”
Making a house airtight is a big part of saving energy, and therefore, money. “If homeowners want to cut the cost of energy bills, one of the first things to do is fill the cracks and add insulation,” Hanson said. He advises people to have a foot of insulation in the attic and six inches in the wall. Additionally, folks in older homes should perform what he calls a “poor man’s blower door test” to find drafts.
To perform this test, turn on all exhaust fans and the dryer to produce a slight vacuum. Then take an incense stick and go around doors, windows and ceiling fixtures. When the smoke moves, there is a draft. Tag the cracks in those areas with a post-it note, then caulk. According to Hanson, doing this makes a difference in the heating bill.
He also suggested low-flow showerheads and faucets, not to save water, but to save on the cost of heating water. Next to the heat pump, the hot water heater is one of the biggest energy users in a home. Other easy fixes: Use fluorescent lights, install 1.6 gallon pressure flush toilets and EnergyStar appliances.
Hanson uses his technological know-how for the good of the community and serves on a number of “green” organizations, including a few for Roanoke County. He is in the process of resurrecting his own Renewable Energy and Electric Vehicle Association. The organization was very active in the Roanoke area when he originally started it in the 1990’s. This time he is establishing a “do it yourself” club where folks can meet and talk about renewable energy.
Virginia scores low on green job incentives, according to Hanson, who is a member of Roanoke County’s “RC Clear” committee, a citizen’s advisory group on green issues. He believes the state has lost many jobs to other localities because of this. Factories planning to build wind-generating turbines and other types of alternative energy are coming to this country via Europe, said Hanson, who would like to bring those jobs to Virginia.
The current green movement is “generally good,” but he believes many people do not realize how much further the country needs to go to move beyond lip service, to real energy use reduction. “If we’re really going to make a dent, we have to collectively get on board,” said Hanson.
By Anita J. Firebaugh [email protected]
