Recently Released: PATH Technology Roadmap: Energy Efficiency in Existing Homes, Volume Two: Strategies Defined

A recently released publication from the Partnership for
Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH) details the route
that housing professionals must take in order to reach
the goal of increased energy efficiency in existing
homes.

"PATH Technology Roadmap: Energy Efficiency in Existing
Homes, Volume Two: Strategies Defined" presents a vision
for the housing industry that includes improving the
energy performance of existing homes and decreasing
energy use by an average of 30 percent in at least 50
million existing homes by 2010. The publication gives an
overview of the energy use situation today, describes the
barriers to increasing energy efficiency, and offers a
roadmap to achieving PATH's vision of improved energy
efficiency.

Several barriers exist in terms of achieving increased
energy efficiency in existing homes. Lack of consumer
awareness about the long-term cost benefits of energy
efficiency, limited desire to make improvements because
of stable energy prices, and an absence of tax credits,
rebates, or other incentive programs are among the
primary barriers. In addition, home remodelers and trade
contractors tend not to advocate for new energy
efficiency technologies due to a limited amount of time
to devote to education and a preference to stay in their
'comfort zones'.  Coupled with limited availability of
information on energy-efficient products and systems,
this also creates a formidable barrier to increased
energy efficiency in existing homes. Additionally, there
is a perceived barrier to the development of retrofit
technologies and products, as well as wide differences in
the condition and configuration of the existing housing
stock that prevents broadly applicable, one-size-fits-all
retrofit solutions. Lastly, there is a lack of national-
level distribution capabilities for marketing and
delivery of some of the more promising energy-efficient
solutions.

The publication presents a technology roadmap to
accomplish the vision of increased energy efficiency. The
authors propose that there must be successful
implementation of eight key strategies:

o Strategy 1: Enable Practitioners to Deliver Energy-
Efficient Solutions -- Provide home repair and remodeling
professionals with the tools, skills, and knowledge
needed to guide homeowners to energy-efficient solutions
and to efficiently and effectively implement these
solutions.

o Strategy 2: Increase the Value Consumers Associate with
Energy Efficiency -- Deliver a consistent, coordinated
outreach message to homeowners on the value of energy-
efficient improvements. Coordinate the message among
federal, state, and local government agencies, utilities,
manufacturers, distributors, remodelers, and trade
contractors.

o Strategy 3: Improve Retrofit Building Envelope
Performance Technologies -- Provide a continual flow of
emerging and new technologies that will increase the
thermal protection of the conditioned spaces of existing
homes, resulting in decreased energy consumption and
lower operating costs.

o Strategy 4: Develop a Single Industry Protocol for
Practitioners -- Develop a single protocol - a process
and methodology - for analyzing the energy efficiency of
existing homes and helping homeowners combine sound
energy-efficient decisions with other remodeling and
renovation projects.

o Strategy 5: Motivate Practitioners to Deliver Energy-
Efficient Solutions -- Help remodelers and trade
contractors understand the economic and social benefits
of delivering energy-efficient solutions to their
customers.

o Strategy 6: Build Credibility for Service Providers --
Establish the credibility of remodelers and trade
contractors by implementing a strong, effective
certification program that includes training, testing,
and periodic review.

o Strategy 7: Provide Consumer Incentives for
Implementation -- Create a need, desire, and/or incentive
for consumers to implement energy efficient solutions.

o Strategy 8: Develop a Performance Monitoring System for
Energy-Consuming Equipment -- Develop a system that gives
homeowners the information they need to understand and
manage their energy-consuming equipment in real time and
in a consistent and easy-to-interpret form.

"PATH Technology Roadmap: Energy Efficiency in Existing
Homes, Volume Two: Strategies Defined" is available on
the web at
https://www.huduser.gov/portal/publications/DESTECH/tech_rdEnergy.html
or in printed form for a nominal charge by calling
HUD USER at 1-800-245-2691.
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HUD USER
P.O. Box 23268
Washington, DC 20026-3268
1-800-245-2691
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