Soon to be Published! (Hopefully)

Seacoast companies see rare opportunity in home improvement rebates

By Jim Cavan

In these uncertain economic times, everyone is looking for ways to save money -- particularly when it comes to big-bill demands like home heating and cooling costs. Crude oil and gasoline might seem cheap now, but anyone who remembers the price roller coaster of 2008 knows low prices aren’t here to stay. Perhaps more worrisome, however, is the unpredictable cost of home heating oil, particularly in the always brutal New England winters, and particularly with drafty, old New England homes. So what do the slumping economy, volatile oil prices, and home economics have in common? In two words: tax rebates.

A major focus of President Obama’s 800 billion-plus dollar stimulus package involves tax cuts and incentives for those looking to make their homes more energy efficient, as well as the businesses supplying the equipment and labor. The rebates – which are available until December, 2010 – apply to everything from weatherization of windows to solar panels, wind or geothermal turbines, spray foam insulation, hybrid vehicles, and beyond. Simply put, each credit amounts to a 30% rebate up to $1500. When combined with other rebates and incentives, that number could be even higher. Needless to say, some Seacoast businesses – particularly in the construction and alternative energy sectors – see this is as a rare opportunity for both their bottom line as well as the overall trending towards green and sustainable energy sources happening all around them.

In March Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of Energy Steven Chu rolled out plans for the partitioning of $3.2 billion for energy efficiency programs set aside in the 2009 Economic Recovery Act (the state of New Hampshire alone secured $49 million in the package). What does this mean for Granite State taxpayers? Ask Mike Wilson, owner of MJW Drywall and Insulation in Hampton, and it means a rare opportunity for Seacoast homeowners to invest in making the “envelope” of their house more energy efficient with products and services they might otherwise not be able to afford.

Take spray-foam insulation, a specialty of Wilson’s which until recently was deemed too expensive and untested to take seriously. Most homes are insulated with either fiberglass – the pink stuff made famous by the Corning Pink Panther commercials – or, for those looking to go “green”, recycled, environmentally-friendly cellulose-based insulation. While those products have an “R” value (an industry term used to determine thermal resistance) ranging anywhere between 2.5 and 3.5, Wilson’s brand of spray foam insulation rings in at an impressive 6.0. That means more savings on heating and cooling bills in the long-term. But while the R value may be in Wilson’s favor, the unknown nature of the spray foam product has in many cases made it difficult to present as “rebate worthy”.

“Electric companies only want the rebate to apply to cellulose insulation because they know what they have to spend,” says Wilson. “But the government has mandated that, by 2010, these companies will have to look at approving new products, one of which could be spray foam. To that end, we’re currently compiling data that will prove the R value of spray foam, which will go a long way in convincing both sides that it should be considered for rebates. “

Wilson is confident that, once consumers and energy providers can be shown the tangible difference between spray-foam insulation and its outdated competitors, the rest will take care of itself. Still, beyond convincing electric companies to consider making spray-foam and other “second generation” insulation products eligible for tax rebates, Wilson has also gone a long way to convince customers themselves that, sometimes, more money up front means even more money saved down the road. “My favorite is the guy who has no problem dropping $20,000 on cabinets in the kitchen, but who scoffs at paying a few thousand extra for the spray foam,” Wilson illustrates, “even though it will clearly earn its keep within five to seven years, and probably even before that.”

Wilson claims that purchasing spray foam insulation package could actually earn you a $5,000 credit, by combining two invoices – one for the actual spray foam, and the other for the injection service. However, Wilson points out that savings on this order are much more common for contractors and businesses than for individual homeowners. Still, low-income or Section 8 residents can in many cases get multiple products and services for free if their particular property qualifies – not just for spray-foam, but for other forms of insulation, caulking, and even solar panels as well.

In the end, Wilson and others in his industry are quick to stress that no matter what the home or business, there are plenty of energy-efficient options available – from geothermal to solar, to spray-foam injection – and all of them qualify for some level of tax credit or rebate. To learn more about the different options available, and to see how certain credits and rebates will ultimately affect your next tax bill, go to www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=products.pr_tax_credits#s1.

To read more about MJW, go to http://greenalliance.biz/join_coop.html and click on his link on the Business Co-Op list, or visit www.nhfoam.com