Opportunity for CO2 reduction:
- Steel vs Wood Framing Components
- Landfill Waste Reduction
- HVAC Energy Savings
- Solar Cladding and Roofs
Steel vs Wood Framing Members – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $1,250
By using light-gauge steel instead of traditional wood framing components (e.g. studs, tracks, joists, and rafters) for construction, Exceler doesn’t cut down trees and intern allows those trees to absorb the CO2 that is a factor of climate change.
A mature tree over its life sequesters about half a ton (.5 tons) of CO2.
An 1800 ft house made of steel studs saves about 50 trees.
Each house made with the Exceler solution will save about 25 tons of CO2.
Carbon offsets are about $50 per ton ( https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/offsetting-carbon-emissions-one-ton-time).
So, just the wood savings alone for each Exceler house would earn about $1,250 in potential CO2 Credits or Grants.
Example of financial advantage for Exceler:
For a development with 200 houses, with an on-site metal stud machine, Exceler might be able to get $250,000 in CO2 offset credits or grants. That pays for about half of Exceler’s capital investment for the Mobile Built Onsite Steel equipment. Exceler has the advantage of getting to keep using the Onsite Steel equipment for many other projects.
Support Research:
How Much Carbon Is Sequestered by a Tree? A single mature tree will sequester about 48 pounds (0.006 metric tons) of carbon dioxide per year and store 100 pounds (0.045 metric tons) over its lifetime.
Landfill Waste Reduction – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $187
With traditional construction, framing lumber is often not properly optimized arrive at the jobsite. This is a big reason why builders average a 15% waste factor on their framing jobs.
With the calculation above:
Steel vs Wood Framing Members: CO2 Credits/Grant Potential / House: $1,250
15% of $1,250 is $187 in potential CO2 Credits or Grants
One of the largest sources of waste is from the construction industry. It’s estimated that 25 to 40% of solid waste in the USA is from construction and demolition, with only 20% being recycled.
Are Landfills Running Out of Space?
Collectively, the world produces two billion metric tons of solid waste per year. Americans, for our part, rank number one in per-capita waste, producing 12% of the world’s trash despite only accounting for 4% of its population. From the same analysis, the U.S. was determined to be the only developed nation in the world where MSW generation outpaced recycling.
Framed differently, of the 96,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools Americans fill per year with MSW, we send between 136M and 150M tons of it to landfills annually instead of recycling or reusing it.
So, the elephant in the room: How long until we run out of space to bury it all? When does the New York City Metro Area, home to a population of nearly 20 million people, start to look and smell like 15th-century Paris?
The answer is complex and speculative, but largely, it depends on where you live in the country. According to a 2015 analysis conducted by Dr. Bryan Staley, CEO of the Environmental Research & Education foundation, it’s unbalanced:
“Seven states are looking at running out of landfill space in the next five years, one state will reach capacity in five to 10 years and three states have 11 to 20 years to go. But 22 states have available landfill space for decades to come.”
Nationally, that examination put us at 62 years until all of our currently operating facilities are stuffed to the gills.
Source: https://www.roadrunnerwm.com/blog/landfills-were-running-out-of-space
HVAC Energy Savings – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $41
In 2019, the average household used energy that released an estimated 17,320 lbs. of CO2. To put this number in perspective, on an annual basis the average household is responsible for releasing 70% more CO2 emissions compared to the average passenger vehicle.
Builders can change all this. Homeowners can save between 5-30% on their home energy bills by making home energy upgrades typically identified in a home-energy assessment. By reducing energy in the home, homebuilders and homeowners can meet environmental targets and be a good steward of the world we live in. Source: https://connectedworld.com/5-steps-to-reduce-your-energy-consumption/
More than half of energy use in homes is for heating and air conditioning: U.S. households need energy to power numerous home devices and equipment, but on average, more than half (51% in 2015) of a household’s annual energy consumption is for just two energy end uses: space heating and air conditioning. Source: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/use-of-energy/homes.php
Based on this data, the average US household uses 51% of its average 17,320 CO2 emissions on HVAC = 8,833 lbs.
The Exceler systems have more insulation value than the average construction and can save about 25% of the energy and intern a 25% reduction in the HVAC CO2 emissions. Average household HVAC CO2 emissions of 8,833 lbs. x .25 = 2,208 lbs. For this calculation an 1,800 sq ft home is smaller than the US average 2,400 sq ft home. The smaller size is since the average US home is (1,800/2,400 = 75%
75% of 2,208 lbs = 1,656.
1,656/2,000 lbs in a ton = 82%
Using a CO2 Credit of $50/ton, and Exceler house would yield $50 x .82 = $41 in potential CO2 Credits or Grants.
Solar Cladding and Roofs – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $217
An 1,800 sq ft house can often have enough cladding and roof area to have a 7 kilowatt Solar Photovoltaic Panel system (approx. 18 panels). With an average yield of 30 kilowatt hours per day over the course of 365 days in the year, each home generates 10,680kWh of clean energy.
For each kWh generated in the U.S., an average of 0.822 pounds of CO 2 e is released at the power plant
10,680 x 0.822 = 8,778,96 lbs of CO2 saved
8,700 lbs / 2,000 = 4.35 x $50 = $217 in potential CO2 Credits or Grants.
SUMMARY:
Steel vs Wood Framing Members – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $1,250
Landfill Waste Reduction – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $187
HVAC Energy Savings – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $41
Solar Cladding and Roofs – CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $217
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Total CO2 Credits or Grant Potential / House: $1,695