Dan Knudsen is a local landlord and I Heart My Home CT customer. He has been working with the I Heart My Home team for over a year on projects for two properties he owns. One is his own residence and the other is a rental property.
Dan heard about Neighborhood Housing Services of New Haven (NHS) and the I Heart My Home program through advocacy projects by the New Haven Energy Task Force. He met Michael Uhl, I Heart My Home CT’s lead technical consultant, and Kathy Fay, Director of Community Sustainability, in a task force meeting.
When Dan realized his homes needed some energy system upgrades, he decided to consult a professional team. “Energy system upgrades can be a confusing process. They (I Heart My Home) – help me figure out the best route to take with all the different energy incentives out there,” Dan said.
For Dan’s home, they have already made significant progress by conducting weatherization, basement insulation, and duct sealing. “We did the house energy audit, and it greatly reduced the air loss. It was a big change,” Dan recalled. The I Heart My Home team found that one of the ducts had been disconnected. It was both blowing heat into the attic, and acting as an open vent for the attic air. “I was losing a lot of heat and getting attic air in the living space, which was not good. So that (duct repair and sealing) was a big quality of life improvement.”
The entire duct sealing project reduced 94% of air leakage from the basement supply duct and 72% of leakage from the basement return duct.
The I Heart My Home team also set up basement ceiling insulation, which Dan described as “quite a job that I didn’t want to take on myself.” The cost-effectiveness of this project surprised him. “They did the whole thing for a couple of hundred bucks. It was great.”
Dan also asked for suggestions on his garage expansion. The I Heart My Home team reviewed current technologies available, and potential integration with the existing electrical panels to consider the needs of today with the opportunities of tomorrow. Trusses with enough clearance for insulation made proper attic insulation viable. Dan gained design choices that allow for flexible use of the spaces while not compromising on comfort or capital costs.
Dan is still working with the I Heart My Home team to have a hybrid water heater installed in his home. He is more than satisfied with his healthy living space and much lower heating bills. “It’s been wonderful. I’ve been getting help navigating a pretty difficult decision-making process. They are there to make it a lot easier.”
