Part H: Simulate the Effectiveness of the Home Over Time Choose any two features of your eco-friendly home, and simulate quantitatively how these features could save energy or reduce carbon dioxide emissions cumulatively over five years.

Get started by researching energy use data or carbon dioxide emissions savings for your specific home features. Many government agencies such as the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency have data or estimates of carbon dioxide or energy expenditures for different household devices and appliances. Manufacturers might also offer this information. Some of the online tools you’ve already used in this activity may provide information to help you make your case. Here are some examples of the type of information to research:

If you used energy-efficient light bulbs in the house, you could use this calculator to estimate how many pounds of carbon dioxide are saved each year per light bulb compared to traditional light bulbs.
If your model included a wind turbine near the home, you could research how much electricity a home turbine in your ZIP code generates and compare that amount to the average annual energy requirements for a home of that size.
Show your carbon dioxide or energy savings cumulatively. An example is shown. Be sure to include a reference section for your data. You can use the Insert Table tool to create a table in the answer space. Or you can use a spreadsheet program on your computer that can compute your data cumulatively over time. Your instructor may give you additional instructions.

Reference for Data Pounds of CO2 saved per year Pounds of CO2 saved by end of Year 1 Pounds of CO2 saved by end of Year 2 Pounds of CO2 saved by end of Year 3 Pounds of CO2 saved by end of Year 4 Pounds of CO2 saved by end of Year 5
8 energy-efficient light bulbs Environmental Protection Agency’s Carbon Footprint Calculator 145 145 290 435
580 725