Hello Everyone,

This is Pablo Soto tuning in for the first time on Energy and Atmosphere.  I'll be joining Eddie and Terrill this summer at the Glass Arts Society  conference to discuss our efforts, ideas, practices, and possibilities for reducing our energy consumption. 

    I currently run my own glass studio in Penland, NC.  As we all know, it can cost a fortune to work in glass.  I was fortunate to begin my business at the Energy Exchange in Burnsville, NC. I credit this opportunity for the existence of my business. The Energy Exchange( www.energyexchange.org ) offers  residencies in glass and ceramics, and it's facilities are powered by methane gas. It was this experience that jump started my desire to build an energy efficient shop.  

     My efforts to do so came in different stages. First, was the air flow of the studio. A small space needs to breath! I'll post some photos that illustrate how I went about it. Air flow went hand in hand with the use of natural light. For most of the day, I really don't need to turn on the lights.  Another supposed "green" effort, was steel scavenging . At least sixty percent of the steel I used in my equipment is recycled steel  (I loved working at a dump).  When I designed/built my furnace I decided to incorporate a recuperating burner system built by Hugh Jenkins.  I have been very happy with my gas sipping furnace, and recently retrofitted my glory hole with the same system(more details/data to come).  All gas fired furnaces have flues/chimneys. I've been using flue exhaust to heat the H2O in our water heater which is used for radiant floor heat on my wife's side of the shop. This is done by ducting the exhaust up and through the core of the water heater.  My other efforts to make efficient equipment have been very simple. For example, tight fitting doors, and good insulation can't be beat.

    In closing, I would just say.... that as crafts people/artists it's our job to get crafty, creative, and pull out a little bit of ingenuity. I hope these ideas and descriptions come across clearly........Pablo 

         

Greetings:

A little bit about myself:
Terrill, 38 years old currently living and blowing glass in a salt box barn. Interested in energy issues (sustainability), permaculture gardening...and of course glass-blowing.
This year we heated our house off our glass studio quite well. Other sources of heat are : wood stove, passive solar, and old oil furnace. We don't have any systems intentionally installed that hold or transfer the heat, it just rises (we live above the shop). We do have a 6 inch thick cement pad that the building sits on. This acts as a great heat sink. Were we to insulate better we would get a much bigger bump off of passive solar, and nearly eliminate the use of the oil furnace completely.
We removed some walls in the front of our studio recently and took the opportunity to upgrade our insulation there to cellulose. It gets blown into the space, is non-toxic, and a great sound barrier. It is much more efficient than fiberglass.
This has been an example of how we are working when able to be less dependent on fossil fuels: approaching the issue from all angles, leveraging fastest payback on investment with the intent to reinvest the savings in further energy conscious adaptations. First and foremost (and usually overlooked) is: Conservation and intelligent use of energy. It is the fastest "payback" for your efforts. We are working on our house and living habits as a well as our studio because there are opportunities for big gains to be had from small changes throughout our life. In dealing with our house we have done alot of research into the fastest payback period on an energy efficient upgrades with the intent to reinvest the subsequent savings in further improvements . Our overall approach: go at the issue of energy conservation from all angles picking things off your list that give you the greatest savings for the least effort. Take on larger projects as you are able.
Other approaches include: Recycling, designing for resources. Buying energy from green companies (wind/solar)....
One quick thing: propane has dropped in cost recently and our electric bill accordingly...Eddie had mentioned part of his inspiration for energy and atmosphere was overall atmosphere: creative, political, etc. Since having that conversation the economy has become a big part of that enviroment: lack of industrial demand creates a surplus of energy and the prices for it drop...
Another aspect of this enviroment has become the massive tax stimulus for projects like this. Above federal tax dollars available for energy efficiency you may have significant state incentives available. Maine for instance (where i'm living) is working out a 3000.00 cash back incentive for every 10,000.00 dollars spent. That is above and beyond the federal incentives. Again check what's available in your state, for us there are great deals for new home heating furnaces and e-windows, doors and insulation.
If like myself you had a significant loss of income in the past year, and don't have a profit to write these costs off against you may consider doing it simply because of what future costs might do to your business. Ask yourself: could you do business if your energy costs were 10 x what they are now? One local friend at the mid-coast green energy collective suggested working out a contract with a local green energy co. He told me that his power comes from wind. It is provided through our local co., we are able to broker deals were we know that our power comes from wind or solar. In his case he pays 2-3 cents more now per kilo watt hour, however in the event that costs spike in the next few years he may actually be paying less than electricity created with coal because his contract hold a that price....
Hope this isnt' too jumbled! I wanted to get some conversation started..

Best,
Terrill