Thanks Texas for being our family home for over 160 years!

Gravley Enterprises designed an enclosed cover (rain tight roof/ceiling) equipped with recessed can lights, ceiling fan, wet bar, and refrigerator. We also installed a high pressure flash evaporation system capable of cooling the temperature under the cover by up to a thirty degrees during the summer. The two water features, equipped with gold fish, created the comforting background of flowing water.

We also featured a 10' projection screen TV and a 42" lcd tv suitable for the outdoor installations. All the Multimedia equipment, lights, cooling, fans and water features were controlled by a new home automation system from an iPod telephone or remote control. This is truly one of the finest outdoor kitchens in Dallas.

We do have the booth as pictured for sale at special pricing. If interested please call Gary Gravley at 972.466.3835

84% of consumers choose energy - not water or time – as most important when it comes to home appliance efficiency.
72% of consumers actively look for the Energy Star label when making purchasing decisions.
When consumers were asked what elements would be a part of their dream kitchen, eco-efficient appliances were their top choice. But consumer understanding of the benefits varies by geneder, marital statues, etc.

Married or previously married consumers seem to understand eco-efficient appliance benefits better than singles:

77% of married consumers look for the Energy Star label when appliance shopping.
59% of unmarried consumers look for Energy Star.
“This survey points to several gaps - be they marital, gender, or generational - in energy-efficiency awareness,” said Michael Todman, president, Whirlpool North America.

Who’s greener

71% of surveyed males, aged 35-44, are “more attuned” to high efficiency (HE) laundry products.
54% of females in the same age group are “more attuned” to HE laundry.
61% of married and 64% of previously married consumers said they understand what HE means in terms of laundry
51% of unmarrieds said they understand what HE laundry means.
Most in the 18-44 age group said they would have a high efficiency washer in their dream laundry room.
Among consumers aged 45+ the preference is for laundry appliances that are more ergonomically friendly.

Whirlpool points out that more appliances are being designed to cater to older users, which it sees as half the United States’ purchasing power. Pedestals raise the height for less bending, knobs are larger, and audible signals are louder.

The survey reports that 44% of consumers said they did not know if top-load washers use more energy than front-loaders, while 38% believe that they do. Whirlpool says this points to a need for clarity in communicating the benefits of HE machines to appliance buyers.

Even if half the consumer population still wants ease-of-use over efficiency, these results provide further evidence of a big shift in consumer attitudes about laundry appliances over the last 20 years.

A brief history…

Twenty years ago there weren’t a lot of high-efficiency washer options for American consumers. “High-efficiency” meant “horizontal-axis.” H-axis washers were commonplace in Europe but Americans were only used to seeing them in laundromats.

Front load washers were foreign and strange! I remember reading consumers commenting that front-loading looked “inconvenient” to use. What? It’s more convenient to take wet clothes out of a top-load washer and put them in a front-load dryer than to take the clothes out of the front of one appliance and move it directly into the front of the adjoining appliances? It never made sense to me.

It was pretty well accepted in the industry that a front-load, horizontal-axis washer was going to use a lot less water and a lot less energy than a typical, top-load washing machine. But American consumers didn’t see the POINT in paying extra for energy efficiency; laundry appliances weren’t seen as big energy hogs anyway.

And a washer wasn’t something that consumers cared about. It was one the same level as a water heater: it did its job reliably and when guests came over you shut the door to the utility room. Who cared about its energy use or, for that matter, how it looked?

Well, in fact, European consumers DID care. They often cared how it looked (laundry appliances were more often sitting out in kitchens) and how much energy it used (being greener earlier than most Americans). As a result the European consumer WAS willing to pay extra for a washing machine.

The appliance industry in the United States needed to foster the same attitude among its consumers. It took the industry a long time, but the effort was successful - helped by changing customer demographics and a global rise in overall environmental awareness.

It was a good thing to turn energy efficiency into a selling point for laundry appliances, but I never would have believed the industry could make American consumers care about how a washer LOOKS. I was wrong. Consumers gravitated to fresh laundry designs as much as to the technology.

For those users who still want a top-loading machine there are now high-efficiency washers in a top-load configuration (I still don’t get it, but hey).

A high-efficiency washer no longer means, by default, a horizontal axis washer.

Now the industry can get to work making on the lowly water heater…

If Gravley Enterprises can help you decide what appliances are right for your needs please give us a call at 972.466.3835 or Click Here and fill out our contact information form.

Thank you!

Gary R. Gravley
www.GravleyEnterprises.com
www.GravleyConstruction.com
www.GravleyRemodeling.com

Experience an endless supply of fresh hot water– for bathing, cooking, dishes, laundry, and all the other countless ways hot water enriches your life.  

With a Rinnai tankless water heater, you’ll enjoy hot water when you need it – for as long as you want it! 

Whether you’re building your new dream home-complete with luxurious spa bath and body spray system - or simply remodeling your current home, there’s a Rinnai tankless water heater ideal for your application.  And every unit comes standard with the efficiency, performance and peace of mind that makes Rinnai the #1 tankless water heater brand in the U.S. market.

For more information enter questions here, fill out our client information form or call:

Gravley Enterprises at 972.466.3835
www.GravleyEnterprises.com
www.GravleyConstruction.com
www.GravleyRemodeling.com

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 - Expanded tax credits for energy-efficient home improvements in the new economic stimulus package puts more money in consumers' pockets by providing financial incentive for home owners to go green on their renovation projects in 2009 and 2010.

While more efficient homes save on water and energy bills, these tax credits will make such home upgrades even more affordable.The Internal Revenue Code section 25C tax credit for existing homes, which had expired at the end of 2007, was reinstated as part of the economic rescue package passed by the Bush Administration last fall.

Homeowners could be rewarded for installing energy-efficient windows, doors, roofing and insulation as well as furnaces, air conditioners and heat pumps.But remodelers found that the terms of the 25C credit -- equal to only 10 percent of the cost of each product and with a lifetime cap of $500 -- weren't strong enough to push enough home owners off the fence and into action. Now, the credit rate and lifetime cap have been tripled - to 30 percent and $1,500, respectively - the list of eligible improvements expanded, and the deadline for applying has been extended through the end of 2010. Congressional estimates indicate that the new rules for the tax incentive will increase aggregate remodeling activity by more than $6 billion."

The new tax credit also aligns with industry research indicating that even the most aggressive efficiency goals for new homes won't make a dent in overall energy consumption. Instead, remodeling and retrofitting the nation's older homes is by far the more efficient solution," said NAHB Remodelers Chairman Greg Miedema, CGR, CGB, CAPS, a remodeler from Tucson, Ariz."

These new tax credits are another way that home building industry can combat the potential effects of global climate change by encouraging home owners to make energy-efficient improvements to their homes," said Miedema.A 2008 California study revealed that 70 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions related to single-family envelope energy consumption can be attributed to homes built before 1983.

The bottom line: Retrofitting existing homes with energy-efficient features is four to eight times more carbon- and cost-efficient than adding further energy-efficiency requirements to new housing, the study showed. 

This is when products or people make promises that overstate their abilities to equitably fulfill Green Initiative or your desires. There is a tremendous amount of "Green Hype" and those who spew it have one intention, "Put Your Green in Their Bank”.

Our staff constantly reviews new products and techniques used in today’s construction and remodeling projects to make sure there is legitimate return on your investment when it comes to helping you get the most out of your Green.

If you’re considering a project design, addition, remodel, or new construction project please give us a call. Gravley Enterprises would be privileged if you allowed us help find what you’re looking for in your desired Green Project. If you have any questions regarding Green Construction process or products please feel free to post your questions here or give us a call at 972.466.3835

Thank you,

Gary R. Gravley

www.GravleyEnterprises.com

www.GravleyConstruction.com

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If you have any questions regarding outdoor kitchens or outdoor living please feel free to leave questions on this blog and I will personally respond to them. This blog is for the use of clients and potential customers as well.

Thanks to everyone that helped make us a success this year!