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The popular Energy Star energy efficiency certification program has survived many shifts in the political winds since launching in 1992, because it is, well, popular. Energy Star is a valuable marketing tool for US appliance manufacturers and builders, among other stakeholders. Whether or not it survives over the next four years is anybody’s guess, but for now, Energy Star continues to provide consumers with reliable, easy-to-understand information about energy efficient products.
Energy Star & Energy Efficiency Information
Energy Star is not one of those pesky meddling government energy efficiency mandates. Launched in 1992 during the Bush administration, Energy Star is a voluntary certification program administered jointly by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Department Energy. It is tasked with providing clear, reliable energy efficiency information to consumers.
The program certifies dozens of products, including appliances, lighting, electronics, and entire buildings and homes. It is updated regularly to accommodate new products and new technologies like EV charging stations.
Energy Star also has thousands of partner organizations including almost 40% of Fortune 500 companies. When a proposal to eliminate Energy Star surfaced back in 2017, the reaction was swift and furious. Hundreds of US manufacturers and other firms joined with environmental groups to lobby successfully against cutting the program (see lots more Energy Star background here).
Energy Efficiency Sells Well
By 2017 the program’s familiar blue and white logo had become a coveted symbol of industry excellence, a motivator of innovation, and a valuable marketing tool, which explains why manufacturers and other private sector stakeholders rose in its defense.
On February 18, the CleanTechnica inbox received a press release from the leading home builder Stone Martin Builders that illustrates why leading firms continue to pursue Energy Star certification. They recognize that home buyers value energy efficiency. Stone Martin emphasizes that angle, stating that it is “Alabama’s leading home builder offering ENERGY STAR-compliant single-family homes in the Opelika-Auburn area.”
“To celebrate its partnership with the EPA program, the Opelika home builder announced plans to construct more than 800 ENERGY STAR-certified homes across Alabama in 2025,” Stone Martin adds.
In addition saving money on utility bills, Stone Martin indicates that home buyers also value the environmental aspect of energy efficiency. The Energy Star certification “gives our homeowners confidence that they’re investing in a home built to last, with reduced environmental impact and long-term cost savings,” explains Stone Martin COO John Manasco.
So, How Energy Efficient Is An Energy Star Home?
To be clear, Energy Star certification for residential properties is not up there in the heady atmosphere of passive house construction and other hyper-efficient building systems. Still, it represents a step up from conventional construction. Energy Star homes are at least 10% more energy efficient than new homes that adhere to minimum code levels for windows, insulation, and HVAC performance.
“Homebuyers can expect benefits including improved indoor air quality, consistent temperatures throughout the home, and higher resale values,” Stone Martin notes.
The Energy Star program also emphasizes the long term value of a certified home. To achieve certification, energy efficiency must be independently verified for windows, insulation, and HVAC. “These features are carefully engineered to improve comfort and performance for the life of the home,” Energy Star adds.
Builders Love Energy Star
Stone Martin is just one example. As of 2023, Energy Star counted 2,500+ builders, developers, and manufactured housing plants on its roster, including most of the top builders nationwide.
That includes KB Home. The company celebrated a milestone in December when it announced the construction of more than 200,000 Energy Star certified homes. “This milestone highlights the company’s long-standing commitment to building highly energy-efficient new homes and further demonstrates its leadership position as the #1 energy-efficient national homebuilder,” KB stated in a press release dated December 11, 2024.
KB has surfaced on the CleanTechnica radar back in 2013 for its early-adopter approach to energy efficiency when it introduced its ZeroHouse 2.0 concept complete with rooftop solar and an EV charging station. Among other sustainability-related awards and recognitions, the company also notes that it is an award-winner in the EPA Energy Star, WaterSense, and Indoor airPLUS home builder programs.
KB based the #1 energy efficiency claim on its ranking in the Home Energy Rating System Index, a program funded by the Energy Department aimed at helping home owners, prospective buyers, and renters to compare the cost of utility expenses.
Energy Efficiency Battle Brewing For Water Heaters
Whether or not the HERS Index will be available much longer is an open question, considering the ongoing budget-cutting, personnel-shedding spree under way at the White House.
The Energy Department already threw one monkey wrench into the works on February 14, when Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced the mothballing of several new Biden-era energy efficiency standards covering central AC, clothes washers and dryers, and lightbulbs, among other appliances.
“Additionally, the Department of Energy is creating a new energy efficiency category for natural gas tankless water heaters,” the Energy Department added.
That’s…interesting. Water heaters account for 14-18% of home energy use, which means a faster payback for investing more money up front in an energy efficient model.
Tankless water heaters are expensive, but they are more efficient than conventional heaters. Tankless heaters can run on electricity or gas, though gas-fired heaters generally deliver more water than electric ones. However, the Energy Department advises that neither one is suitable for larger dwellings where multiple users can outstrip the rate of flow.
That may be a moot point, now that energy efficient electric heat pump water heaters are on the market, giving consumers another alternative.
Virtual power plants are also in the mix. Virtual power plants enable electricity ratepayers to save money by participating in load-shifting rate incentives aimed at shaving down peak demand. These incentives apply to conventional hot water heaters as well as tankless ones, but only if they use electricity.
Ratepayers with their own solar panels and energy storage can also go to the next level and earn income by selling their excess kilowatts to wholesale electricity markets.
The virtual power plant movement Energy regulators in Texas launched a solar-plus-storage virtual power plant pilot test two years ago, achieving an aggregation of 25.5 megawatts. In the latest development, the program was turned over to Texas grid management agency ERCOT, with the goal of growing the program to 80 megawatts.
If you use Energy Star products, share your thoughts about the program in the comment thread. Better yet, call your representatives in Congress.
Image: The Energy Star energy efficiency program is a valuable marketing tool for builders, appliance makers, and other stakeholders, and a reliable source of information for consumers (courtesy of Energy Star).
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