When a light bulb goes off in Suzan Matos' head, it's likely an energy-saving compact fluorescent version.
To save energy, architect Suzan Matos has installed a green roof at her city home.
One of the quickest, easiest ways to save energy is to switch to compact fluorescent light bulbs, Suza
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To save energy, architect Suzan Matos uses thermal drapes.
Energy efficiency is Matos' mantra.
Through her Lancaster business, Reflected Energy, Matos guides homeowners on a journey of energy introspection.
Matos debuted Reflected Energy as an added service of her Architectural & Interior Design Studios (AAID) business about two months ago.
The idea is to find ways to conserve energy — and hopefully save money and preserve the environment in the process.
From insulation to windows, Matos can design a plan — an energy-efficiency upgrade of sorts — then help homeowners carry out the specifications, based on their budget.
When it comes to windows, which are among the culprits for energy loss, Matos has gone one step further than suggesting a solution.
She's designed one.
DraperEEZ, which she is in the process of patenting, is a streamlined version of a telescoping curtain rod for use with thermal draperies. Insulated drapes can minimize heat loss in winter and heat gain in summer.
"Building a new home to more energy-efficient standards is relatively easy to incorporate during the building process," she says. "However, most people are living in existing homes, on an increasingly tight budget, and not looking to build a new home."
Green ways
Matos was illuminated by the challenges of energy conservation well before the green movement in America. She recalls that when she was a student in England in the '80s, conservation was already a hot topic in a country hundreds of years our senior.
"I lived in a house that was built around 1490," she says. "Energy costs were very high already there, and the house had no central heating system. Heavy drapes were closed each evening, and furniture with high backs and casters that could be pulled up to the small coal fireplace kept the living room cozy in a house in which you could see your breath otherwise.
"The architect we lived with was using off-peak electric thermal mass heaters that would heat throughout the night, when electricity was cheaper, and then radiate throughout the day in other rooms. Watching and learning how he maintained and heated a house built so long ago made a huge impression on me."
Through her Reflected Energy role, Matos hopes to build awareness.
"The biggest thing for a lot of people is they don't know where to start," she says. "In the process of helping people, the bigger outcome is that we help the overall ecology issues."
So far, through Reflected Energy, she has offered energy-saving input on about four homes, including an old farmhouse used as a rental property.
Matos' rates vary based on the size of the property and the customer's needs, she says.
She was approached by Darlene Schrader, of Lancaster, about upgrading her 1940s home's efficiency in the long term, so she could stay in the house as she ages.
Along with putting a bathroom on the first floor, Matos added insulation to the walls and floor of the new bath, as well as to the area above Schrader's bedroom. Matos also incorporated insulated drapery and is planning on adding reflective window film.
Schrader says she is hoping the upgrades will help her save money in the future.
"This is a brick house with hardly any insulation," she says. "It should make a difference."
Bright ideas
You can spend a lot of greens to go green.
But there are ways you can conserve energy that won't break your budget.
To lower your heating/cooling bill, you can outfit your windows.
If putting in double panes isn't in your budget, consider do-it-yourself thermal window treatments and reflective filming.
"Window filming is much like putting on polarized sunglasses," Matos says. "A lot of people are concerned it's going to change the view, but actually, it makes the view crisper."
Reflective barrier insulation is becoming an industry standard and can result in savings in heating/cooling costs, Matos says. It can be added to traditional insulation.
Other options include programmable thermostats, ranging from $60 to more than $100; and specialty energy-saving "Smart" electric power strips, for under $50 to $100.
Want to make a quick difference?
Change your light bulbs to compact fluorescents.
FOR DETAILS
WHAT: Reflected Energy
WHO: Architect Suzan Matos, owner of Architectural & Interior Design Studios (AAID Studios)
CONTACT: Suzan Matos, 399-8833
CONTACT THE NEW ERA: sjurgelski@LNPnews.com or 291-8756
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