Building energy codes may not be topics that come up in everyday conversations very often, but they affect our day-to-day lives. Ultimately, these codes aim to do a few things — decrease overall energy consumption, increase the amount of dollars saved in doing so, and reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions, if you’d like to try and achieve these goals yourself for your own household, have a look into the hello energy plan and see how you could benefit. The United States Department of Energy works hard to make certain these goals are met and that’s why they have created the Building Energy Codes Program or the BECP, colloquially. The BECP is the organization that is responsible for ensuring the objectives identified above are met. The BECP sets the goals and has an organization called the International Code Council (ICC) administer the code. The ICC produces a new version of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) every other year. Texas is currently using the IECC 2009 version.

The BECP has announced that the Texas energy code will be changing as a result of a bill signed into Texas law by Governor Greg Abbott in the summer of 2015. Essentially, this legislation will significantly upgrade the state’s single-family residential energy code from the 2009 version to the 2015 one. Every local entity and jurisdiction must comply with the new code by September 1, 2016. The new Texas energy code creates a fourth path to compliance called the Energy Rating Index. This path scores a home’s energy usage like “miles per gallon” is used on cars. The new law dictates that the ERI will become increasingly stringent over the next six years. The 2015 IECC also increases R-value requirements for the Prescriptive Path to code compliance and makes some items consistent between all the code paths that are mandatory. The most significant of these being that all homes must be tested for air leakage and meet certain strict maximums which vary depending on which of the two climate zones in Texas a building is constructed. The goal is to increase energy cost savings for the state of Texas by a projected $1 billion annually by 2030.

Insulation and Air Sealing are two of the main factors in a home’s energy savings. The newer code will require builders to use better products and high quality insulation installations will be required. The Department of Energy has mandated that all builders and contractors meet the 2015 IECC standards for insulation. Garland Insulating has taken the time to learn the specifics of the code change and adjusted our insulation methods accordingly. It is noteworthy that this change only affects residential properties as commercial ones fall under different code requirements. Contact us today if you need more information about how your home’s insulation will be affected by this mandate or for renovations that will allow your property to meet the new standards.