The cooling season is winding down, which means you may forget about your boiler for the next 5 or 6 months. Well, hopefully you will hire an HVAC to clean and test your boiler and you’ll re-insulate any pipes whose insulation has gotten frayed or fallen off. Good. But there is another area that is often overlooked but can lead to a major cost savings during the heating season when fuels are highest in cost: steam traps.

If you have them, steam traps represent a potential source of energy loss. Steam traps are there to keep steam in your radiators where the latent heat can effectively warm a space and prevent it from leaving and returning with condensate. If steam leaves a radiator, that is wasted heat or, to put it more accurately, wasted natural gas or oil to produce that heat and wasted expense for you. Fortunately, steam releases most of its latent heat in a radiator. But a failed steam trap can let through significant steam (say, 20% of what enters), raising your energy bill by 20% more than you are already paying.

Steam traps can fail for a variety of reasons, mainly age. After all, they are working in a very hot environment. A rule of thumb is that a steam trap is effective for about 5 years. There are many exceptions to this rule, but something to keep in mind. If your steam traps have not been tested in several years, there is a good chance that a significant percentage is not operating ideally and allowing steam to leave the radiator, and as stated above, causing you to waste energy and expense.

The problem is that one does not know which steam traps are failing because heating is a closed system. Steam traps do not “announce” themselves operating or failing! Thus, periodically it is important to test your steam traps by using an ultrasonic leak detector, which can detect and inform you of steam leaking through traps. A good leak detector will enable a user to hear the rushing sound of a leak to determine the need to replace. Testing can save significant energy costs, especially in this age of high fuel costs!

If energy cost savings is not enough to convince you to implement a steam trap testing protocol, think about safety, security, and longer lasting equipment. Steam going into the condensate can potentially shorten the life of piping and storage tanks of your system, costing quite a bit to repair or replace. And, of course, being able to use less natural gas or oil to heat your space also means lower greenhouse gas emissions.

When is a good time to perform the steam trap testing? Now or very soon, as the heating season is winding down. Inventory and test your existing steam traps while your boiler is still producing steam for space heating. After testing, you will have a list of which steam traps have passed and which have failed. Now you have the summer to properly procure and replace the failed steam traps and you are assured of a much more efficient heating system in the fall when space heating is needed again. And with fuel prices at record highs, any effort to reduce energy waste is very beneficial.

CCES has the experts to perform, recommend and/or oversee the maintenance of your boiler system, including testing and conditioning your boiler, installing new insulation, and performing steam trap testing. Now is the time to start the effort so you have an efficient system in the fall. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

New York is working to meet its aggressive Climate goals of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40% by 2030 and by 85% by 2050 from a 1990 baseline; 100% zero-emission electricity by 2040, with 70% renewable energy use by 2030. The latter is a challenge as NY State currently gets only 27% of its power from renewable sources.
To achieve these goals, New York must both manage their current energy usage and work to green the energy systems of its two major emitting sectors, buildings and transportation. This effort is being led by the NY State Energy Research & Development Agency (NYSERDA), which coordinates efforts and works with private sector firms to implement relevant projects, such as two planned pipeline projects to bring clean energy from where it is being developed, upstate NY or Canada to the area where most energy is used, the New York City area.

NYSERDA’s analysis shows that in 20 years New York’s peak energy demand will shift from the summer months (air conditioning) to the winter months, as electricity-using heat pumps are projected to replace many fossil fuel-combusting boilers. As a result, New York must increase wintertime electricity production, such as using peaker plants in the winter. New York City passed legislation, banning gas hook-ups of new buildings starting in 2026, and New York State is considering extending this as a statewide requirement. By reducing and eliminating natural gas and gasoline and replacing them (in autos and in buildings) with electrification, renewable power can supply the electricity making energy cleaner in NY State.

What is motivating New York’s move to cleaner energy? Being on the right path concerning Climate Change is certainly one factor. However, the Governor points to clean air and long-term reliability (not being dependent on oil or gas wells) as being another reason to move toward using renewable energy sources.

Something to look forward to, in terms of practices and incentives, given these policies and approaches, New York State and its utilities will offer robust incentives for projects that encourage the move away from fossil fuels toward electrification (such as heat pumps) and perhaps will emphasize less improvements in energy efficiency (such as LED lighting incentives), as any energy efficiency upgrade should pay for itself well and does not need incentives.

CCES has the experts to help you plan and succeed with an energy upgrade program (cleaner fuels, electrification, energy efficiency or a combination) that is best for your long-term operations and costs and obtain the maximum available rebates and incentives from NYSERDA and local utilities. Contact us today at 914-584-6720 or at karell@CCESworld.com.

Have an old boiler and/or AC system? Frustrated by high energy bills (who isn’t?)? Look to make an investment in a different technology that will provide reliable heating and cooling to a space and reduce energy usage, greenhouse gas emissions, and cost. I am talking about an air source heat pump. This is not an old technology; it has existed for quite awhile. Its recent step up is its ability to heat a space even in Northern climates.

An air-source heat pump system uses refrigerant to move heat across a wall. In the wintertime, it takes heat from the outside and transports it to the inside space. This seems counterintuitive. Even on a bitter cold day, the huge reservoir of cold air does contain heat. That heat warms a liquid refrigerant to a gas which through a compressor transports the refrigerant and releases the heat to the indoors. In the summertime, the reverse happens. The refrigerant takes heat from a hot room and delivers it and releases it through a coil to the already hot outside.

What makes an air source heat pump a good investment is that this can be done using less energy than other HVAC equipment. It takes less energy to move heat from one place to another compared to creating heat, such as a boiler combusting a fuel (purchase, transport of the fuel and then combustion and ensuring that heat is not lost).

Air source heat pumps can be built into walls or mounted onto the ground right outside a building or be placed on a roof. They do not take up a lot of space (compared to boiler systems), but do require some construction and, potentially, putting holes in walls.

Air source heat pumps can be controlled by any of a variety of automated controls to pre-program set points for heating and cooling or automated controls (remotes) to turn on and off such systems. Mini-split systems, packaged terminal air-source heat pumps, and single-package air-source vertical heat pumps are options for appropriate spaces.

Why you should consider air source heat pumps:

• Cost.  Air-source heat pump systems provide heating and cooling more efficiently, using electricity, rather than combusting a fuel. Such systems can reduce heating energy use by up to 50% compared to comparable technologies. One need not deal with the price surges of natural gas and oil.
• Reduced maintenance.  Such systems require less maintenance than boilers, such as the absence of fuel storage, insulation, and cleaning boiler tubes.
• More pinpoint comfort. Air source heat pumps can provide heating or cooling from room to room, rather than having to heat or cool a large space, reducing energy waste. Controls allow even better temperature and humidity control.

• Environmental upgrade. Besides the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by using electricity for energy rather than fuel oil or natural gas, heat pumps do not create onsite emissions; your employees and the public will breath cleaner air and you get all of the health and wellness benefits of this. In addition, by ridding yourself of a combustion source, you reduce the risk of fuel leaks and carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Incentives aplenty.  Many building owners hesitate to implement energy upgrades because they do not have the money on hand to purchase such systems. Air source heat pumps are being pushed strongly by a number of utilities and states nationwide, as they recognize this as a step toward meeting energy and greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. Thus, many utilities will pay you back handsomely for installing air source heat pumps, as much as 50, 60 or a higher percentage of your installed cost.

Significant, long-term energy cost savings and potentially paid for in large part by your local utility or government. In this age of skyrocketing energy costs, air-source heat pumps can provide reliable and controlled comfort at a low cost for you. Get more information on air source heat pumps from Energy Star (www.energystar.gov).

CCES experts are here to assess your building and determine whether air source heat pumps or other technologies will reduce your energy usage and costs significantly as a worthwhile investment. Contact us today at karell@CCESworld.com or 914-584-6720.

By Nicholas Zuba, Director, PACE Policy and Programs at CleanFund

The EIC Open PACE Program (C-PACE) is a financing program for energy-efficiency projects, available  in many states. A major barrier for a building owner to implement energy-saving improvements is the need for cash to cover upfront costs. C-PACE helps building owners with the financing to make these improvements – and reap the benefits – sooner. These costs are repaid over time through an assessment placed on the improved property, similar to tax assessments like water, sewer, or other special district liens. To date, many, but not all states, municipalities, and counties have opted into the C-PACE program.

Program Parameters:

The following information summarizes the program.

Category	Parameter
Eligible Property Owners	Commercial property owners including office, multifamily, non-profit, warehouses, retail, manufacturing.
Improvement Types	Energy efficiency and renewable energy
Energy Efficiency Standards	Retrofit projects must have a Cost-Benefit Ratio greater than one to be approved for financing by EIC. New Construction projects must meet or exceed specific building standards, including LEED Gold, Energy Star, Passive House, NY Stretch Code, etc. to be approved for financing
Municipal Responsibilities	Processing of liens placed on improved properties

Recent program changes and improvements to remove municipal risks:

There have been notable changes to the C-PACE program in NY, including the following:

• Municipalities are no longer required to provide a financial backstop for any delinquent C-PACE payment
• Removed the cap on C-PACE financing amount based on property value
• New construction enabled for the program to improve new builds

Program benefits for municipalities, residents, and property owners:

• Helps stabilize tax base for the municipality, because energy-saving improvements will increase property values, making property owners more inclined to keep their businesses in town rather than move to less costlier  communities
• Provides attractive financing for economic development that a municipality can use to attract new businesses,  including multi-family property developers
• Reduces energy costs for property owners, enabling them to reinvest money into their businesses or  make multifamily properties look more attractive to tenants (i.e. improve common spaces)
• Helps reduce fossil fuel consumption and by extension reduce the municipality’s greenhouse gas emissions caused by commercial properties, one of the biggest contributors to the area’s carbon footprint
• No cost to local taxpayers, as the processing costs incurred from lien filings will be offset by fees paid to the municipality.

Nicholas Zuba is the Director of PACE Policy and Programs for CleanFund, a direct lender focused exclusively on the commercial property sector. Nicholas earned his Master of Public Administration degree from Cornell University in 2015, focusing on environmental sustainability program design and management. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Ithaca College in 2006. He can be reached at nzuba25@live.com.