Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director The Grid Is Changing The recent fires in California have had tragic consequences. Thousands of people have lost their homes. Many have lost loved ones too. In many cases, the fires were caused by downed or damaged power lines or failed electrical distribution equipment, and the utility, PG&E, has been blamed. If PG&E is found guilty of violating mandates set by the CPUC for maintaining their equipment and clearing trees from their power
Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director Recently, I attended the 39th annual Institute of Heating and Air Conditioning Industries (IHACI) trade show in Pasadena, California, in the hopes of learning about some exciting new products and maybe a couple new technologies for the heating and cooling industries (HVACR). It’s been about four years since I was actively involved as a contractor/installer, and I was curious to see how many new solutions have been developed in my time away from
Home performance hasn’t changed much over the past 30 years. Recently though, a few big things have started to change in the world of energy. Contractors need to be aware…
Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director A few rotten apples The world is full of contractor horror stories. Over the years, contractors have lost customer trust, often for good reason. Simple mistakes like forgetting to re-install a water heater vent after a roof replacement could have drastic consequences if the exhaust fumes, and potentially carbon monoxide, were to re-enter the building. Unfortunately, this lack of confidence from the public means that gaining a customer’s trust can be a real
It’s amazing how many energy efficiency conferences and workshops have surfaced recently. The Redwood Energy Zero Net Energy Retreat, which takes place twice a year, is one of the best…
When you become a business owner you quickly learn the true cost and value of employees. Good ones are hard to find, especially in tight labor markets where there are…
When it comes to energy, society is at a crossroads. Our existing supplies are heavily based on fossil fuels, a limited and dirty solution. There are alternatives to the current…
It’s a common practice to try to encourage or change behavior with incentives. What happens when you encourage the wrong behavior?
Posted by Charley Cormany, EFCA Executive Director We’re taking a departure from the goings on at the state capital and will instead focus on some events that are occurring across the state of California. The landscape for energy efficiency incentive programs in California is changing. Late last year, a program in Southern California announced a funding cap for the year 2018. The program implementers anticipated the funds would last roughly 3 to 6 months and then be exhausted. Effectively the
In today’s world fire still provides most of the heating needs in our dwellings. Why are we still burning things at all and how can we change it? It turns…
