Hurricane Irene

Both our Virginia and North Carolina service territory have been heavily impacted by Hurricane Irene.

More than 6,000 people are helping restore power, including more than 2,000 workers from utilities in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina and South Carolina.

We thank customers for being so patient while we work to safely restore service.

Follow us on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/DomVAPower. 'Like' us on our Facebook page by searching, keyword: Dominion Virginia Power for additional storm-related information.

Solar Idea House

Yesterday, the Energy Conservation team was invited to the west end of Richmond to see a pretty cool green home. And it’s not just the color of the house that makes it green, it’s what’s inside.

Our friends at James River Air Conditioning have totally gutted and renovated a home at the corner of Staples Mill Road and Hungary Springs Road; the project is called the Solar Idea House.

When arriving at the home, the first thing you notice is the house is net metered with an impressive solar panel array. JRAC has set up a 2.5 kW Solar P.V. System (with Kyocera panels) on the side of the home. But these aren’t stationary panels - the system is set up to track with the sun.

So as the earth moves around the sun, the sensors in the panels track with it, maximizing the amount of sunlight it takes in, thus, creating more energy.

Throughout the inside of the house there are a number ‘truth windows’ where you can see through the interior wall via a windowpane, showcasing the insulation. The insulation is highly rated Icynene foam sprayed a few inches thick. This quality insulation helps keep the house at a comfortable temperature throughout the year. And as you know, insulation is key.

Other green home qualities include a very impressive 24 SEER rated Westinghouse heat pump system, LED lights throughout, whole-house phantom power drain kill switches, aggressive moisture control strategies, several rain water recovery systems for irrigation, and a number of other features.

The Solar Idea House also has a Google PowerMeter set up, linked to a TED Device, so you can watch the real time energy production and usage of the home on the energy efficient big screen TV in the living room.

If you haven’t picked up on it, JRAC did a fantastic job on this project and did it the right way, from start to finish. They have the badges of honor to boot:

• This house is Richmond’s first LEED Certified Platinum home;
• Earthcraft Virginia Certified Platinum;
• EPA Energy Star Certified;
• And there’s no wonder why they won the 2010 Earthcraft Single Family Project of the Year.

Nice job guys!

Check out more of the project at http://www.solarideahouse.com/

Dominion does not endorse any of the specified vendors or services.

Wait, I Don’t Need A High Heel-Shaped Tape Dispenser?

Ok, so take one look at my picture to your right, and you will likely say that I look about 16 (that is so sweet of you - thanks mom for the good genes!), BUT I actually had my very first day of elementary school 21 years ago. Shocker, I know.

Believe it or not, I was one of those nerdy and awkward kids that loved school. Well actually, to be honest, I loved the cool new stuff I got for school. Sadly, I don’t think I have changed all that much - I love getting new school, errrr, office supplies. But seriously, who doesn’t need a high heel-shaped tape dispenser?

This time of year, I remember the list of school supplies I needed. My mom and I would go out and buy each item brand new.

Today I ask myself, why did I need a new backpack when my old one worked just fine? Why did I need new pencils when my mechanical pencils just needed lead? Why did I need new notebooks when my old ones still had paper left in them? Bottom line: I liked new things. I think many people can relate to that no matter what context it is in.

But now everyone’s going green! I am absolutely amazed by some of the eco-friendly school supplies they have on the market these days:

• Backpacks made from plastic bottles
• Soy crayons
• Recycled paper and notebooks
• Biodegradable pens
• Recycled highlighters and markers
• Bamboo clothing?!

I applaud and encourage others to move forward with this way of thinking, but if it’s not for you, that doesn’t mean you can’t make some adjustments.

As I’ve said in previous posts, I think it is possible, and still beneficial, to take on some eco-friendly habits even if they aren’t to the extreme. I’m sticking with my new shopping mantra: choose quality over quantity. It may not be recycled, but you are still choosing a product that will last longer than the traditional cheap products you have to replace each year.

For school, this can be as simple as:

• Use a reusable lunch bag and containers instead of brown paper lunch bags and plastic sandwich bags. I must say, I am much more fashionable now that I have a zebra print lunch bag.
• When I was in school I got a new backpack every year until I finally asked for an L.L. Bean backpack (to match my sister’s of course) for Christmas one year. I used that backpack from 4th grade to my senior year of high school. In fact, I think I still have it.
• Use refillable pens and pencils instead of ones that run out leaving a useless plastic object you have to throw away.
• Use a sturdy canvas binder instead of a plastic one that will likely break in a month or two.
• Purchase clothes that are higher quality and ones that you can use for multiple seasons. Cardigans are a lifesaver.
• Purchase used books for your classes. I bet you can find books that look brand new.

Think about alternatives that will last longer. Buy it if you can (it can be more expensive up front but save you money in the long run), or maybe you already have it and just need to take it off the shelf and dust it off. Oh yeah, and only purchase what you need. Not only are you saving money, you’re being eco-friendly!

University of Green

Ahhhhhh, college - specifically James Madison University, the best 4 errrrrr, 5 years of my life.

I remember the day my parents dropped me off at my freshman dorm, waving goodbye while I stood in anticipation for what was about to come. While that was quite a while ago, there is a new crop of incoming students who are anxious and excited for the adventures they will encounter at college.

The first college experience many students will have is the mega shopping trip for everything they need before starting college. Things like extra long twin bed sheets, tweezers, and a few bags of coffee for those long nights of studying.

When you’re out and about, think about some of the products that are built with energy conservation in mind:

• A laptop (versus a desktop)
• Energy Star mini-fridges
• A road bike
• CFL bulbs for the study lamps (JMU will recycling your old CFL bulbs)
• Organic body wash
• Reusable coffee mugs

And those of you attending my alma mater, when you make it to Harrisonburg for 1787 Orientation, help JMU with its environmentally focused mission. You can help do things like:

• The Big Event
• Recycling your drink bottles
• Ride the HDPT to campus and leave your car at home
• Participate in No Drive Day

To all of the incoming students, have a great 4 (or 5) years! I’ll see you up there for Homecoming!

Teaching Energy Conservation

This week, and for the first time, we have a guest author writing the blog post - Lindsey Wright from OnlineSchools.org.

Teaching Energy Conservation to Students Leads to a Lifetime of Environmental Responsibility

When students are young, their minds are ripe for taking in information of all kinds. They soak up data like a sponge soaks up water, and they aren't yet set in their ways. It is at this stage that people are most receptive to learning about energy conservation and discovering all of the ways this awareness can be applied to their everyday lives.

Sometimes it helps to get students up and moving to illustrate a particularly useful point. If you’re in a classroom, ask the students to perform a physical task for thirty seconds or one minute. Perhaps they do jumping jacks or jog in place. Whatever they do, at the end of the specified time period they should be in some measure tired or worn out. This demonstrates the usage of energy and illustrates the point that our bodies are much like lamps, computers, and cars in that they require energy to run. Conserving energy saves resources, so turning off appliances, like getting a good night’s sleep, helps sustain energy supplies.

Similarly, when energy conservation learning is closely tied to the everyday lives of students, the lessons are far more meaningful. Take, for instance, a Department of Energy suggested lesson plan that leads students to compare different light bulbs. What makes this lesson plan so successful? It relates to something with which even the youngest students interact on a daily basis. They find light bulbs throughout their homes, schools, daycare facilities, and everywhere else they venture. By learning about light bulbs, and about how the use of different types affects energy consumption, children learn that the choices they make can have a direct impact on the environment. Better yet, this lesson plan also allows students to explore ways to save energy at home and everywhere else they go.

If your classroom has access to computers and the Internet, it's also a good idea to conduct a lesson where the students browse websites designed to educate them about energy conservation. The government provides a number of useful resources that are written and designed specifically to appeal to young people and the part they can play in conserving energy. Such sites provide interesting facts and statistics in ways that are accessible to young children. They also make excellent launching points for group discussions about how to cut unnecessary energy usage in the home.

Teaching energy conservation is a worthy goal for all educators. When children are in their elementary and middle school years they are generally receptive to new concepts and ideas, making this an ideal time in which to introduce the idea of green living practices. When they become familiar with such principles at so young an age, they are far more likely to make energy awareness a part of their everyday lives as adults.