Category Archives: Home / Energy

By Carol Ann Conover

What started 30 years ago as a builder-driven effort to showcase new residential construction in Saratoga County has grown into one of the region’s most enduring fall traditions — and a window into how the craft of home building itself has changed.

The 2026 Saratoga Showcase of Homes, produced by the Saratoga Builders Association, runs Oct. 3-4 and Oct. 10-11, with 13 homes from 12 builders open for self-guided tours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Tickets are $25 and are available online, at any showcase home during tour hours and at area locations including all Adirondack Trust branches, Arrow Bank on South Broadway in Saratoga Springs, Curtis Lumber in Ballston Spa and Queensbury, Roohan Realty on Broadway in Saratoga Springs, Rebuilding Together ReShop in Ballston Spa and the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Fort Edward.

Barry Potoker, executive director of the Saratoga Builders Association and co-chair of the Showcase, said the event draws 3,500 to 4,000 visitors across its two weekends — homebuyers, renovation planners and curious residents alike. “People just love being able to interact with all the builders,” he said. “It’s sort of a community event.”

By Susan Elise Campbell

Thomas Pest Services is continuing to build its client base north of the Capital District with a newly opened branch office in Saratoga Springs.

According to co-owner Sarah Thomas-Clark, the company’s service area now extends from Ulster in the Hudson Valley to the Catskills and Adirondacks, and beyond Saratoga into the North Country.

“My husband, Bill, and I started the company in our basement in 2010, so it is a very full-circle moment to come back to the Saratoga market, after moving headquarters to Albany,” she said.

There is a service manager at the new branch who oversees a team of seven to 12 technicians specializing in pest control and pest prevention for residential and commercial customers.

“This is a strategic move in that the team members live in such towns as Corinth, Ballston Lake, and Sacandaga Lake region,” she said. “They won’t have to drive to Albany for their weekly meeting or to pick up supplies, so they can get to their next customer sooner.”

By Susan Elise Campbell

Compact heat pump systems are gaining popularity in the northeast as manufacturers make them increasingly efficient, and efficiency means savings on rising energy costs, said Ron LaDue, a BPI certified estimator and project manager with Jack Hall Plumbing and Heating. The family-owned company dates back to 1984 and is based in Glens Falls.

LaDue said about 20 percent of business involves the sale, installation and service of split heat pump systems for new construction, home renovations, and commercial buildings. But that percentage is “slowly increasing.”

“Five years ago very few brands of these systems ran efficiently, as far as capacity of the unit and energy usage,” he said.

Mini split systems involve wall units in selected rooms, which serve as heating and cooling zones, LaDue said. They make minimal noise and operate with a remote or smart phone.

Heat pumps pull heat from outside air to warm a residence and cold air to cool it. The system involves one or more exterior pumps that operate on electricity and have been especially efficient where weather is not extremely cold.

“Technology is getting to the point where the units are more suitable for single-digit temperatures and below,” said LaDue. “Every major brand today can run at -13 degrees and some claim as low as -22 degrees.”

By Susan Elise Campbell

When Mike Feeder of Assured Home Inspections is hired for a home inspection, he does three jobs. 

He investigates the entire structure of the house and its systems. He detects what might be missing or done improperly. And he evaluates the current and future health and safety of the home.

This will take Feeder about three hours, whereas some competitors spend one and a half. So when customers ask, “How much is this going to cost,” he says they’re asking the wrong question.

“A home is probably the biggest investment they ever make,” said Feeder. “They should be asking themselves if this is a good time to cut corners on that investment.”

“I’ve been in this business for 35 years and used to build homes,” said Feeder. “I’m doing inspections for prior clients’ kids and in some cases, their grandkids. And I just inspected one house for the fourth time over the years.”

All home inspectors have licensing and educational requirements, plus continuing education, to meet standards set by the state. This means the licensed inspector demonstrates a basic knowledge of how the underlying systems in a home work, said Feeder. 

“A home buyer or homeowner should want to know where their inspector got their training,” he said. “Was it a correspondence course, which was allowed years ago, or did they go to a school?” 

By Christine Graf

As water conservation becomes an increasingly critical concern across the country, many homeowners are discovering new ways to save on their water bills while helping the environment. From aerators that reduce faucet flow to high-efficiency toilets that use a fraction of the water, these innovations are quietly making waves in areas where every drop counts. Though such water-saving fixtures may not yet be household staples in regions like ours, experts believe it’s only a matter of time before they catch on.

“In this area, there’s still a sense that water is limitless,” said Ty Hall, co-founder and president of Jack Hall Plumbing and Heating in Glens Falls. “But that attitude might shift as people become more aware of the benefits—both environmentally and financially—of conserving water.”

With 40 years of experience, Jack Hall Plumbing and Heating is no stranger to helping homeowners save money through energy-efficient solutions. The company, founded by Hall and his father, Jack, offers much more than plumbing services. From heating and air conditioning to cutting-edge attic insulation, they’ve built a reputation for helping customers lower utility bills. Now, with water-saving fixtures gaining popularity, they’re ready to offer guidance on how small changes can lead to big savings.

For example, installing a simple faucet aerator can significantly reduce water usage, lowering flow from 2.2 gallons per minute to just 1.5—without compromising water pressure.

“Aerators are a quick, inexpensive fix,” said Hall. “You don’t need to replace your whole faucet. You just swap out the aerator, and you’ll see savings right away. Plus, you’ll still get a decent stream of water, so it doesn’t feel like a downgrade.”

By Susan Elise Campbell

As window manufacturers make strides in energy efficiency, consumers may find that even though it costs more to purchase the higher Energy Star® standard, the benefits of the investment are worth it. These may include the comfort they feel in their home or business, long-term savings on heating and air-conditioning, and protection of the environment, according to www.energystar.gov.

Ian Young is director of commercial sales for Curtis Lumber Company. While he works out of the Ballston Spa location at 885 Route 67, he oversees the commercial sales process for the company’s 21 stores in New York and the two in Vermont. Along with the company’s on-staff architectural engineer, he advises commercial builders on the best choices for windows, doors and skylights for their projects.

Young explained what makes newer windows increasingly energy efficient.

“It comes down to the glass as well as some modifications to the window frame,” said Young. 

Tickets for the area’s premiere new home tour, the 2023 Saratoga Showcase of Homes, are on sale. The event is celebrating 27 years in Saratoga County.

Tickets are available at all Adirondack Trust branch locations, Curtis Lumber in Ballston Spa and  Queensbury, Saratoga National Bank, Glens Falls National Bank and Roohan Realty on Broadway in Saratoga Springs. 

Tickets are $25 and this year’s edition has 10 locations on display. New this year are two showcase locations in Lake George.

Tickets are conveniently available at any showcase home during tour hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. or can be purchased online through  the event website at www.saratogashowcaseofhomes.com.

Each showcase ticket holder will receive a free  shoe/tote bag at the first home visited.

The 2023 Saratoga Showcase of Homes is being presented over two fall weekends—Oct. 7-8 and Oct. 14-15. 

Participating  builders in this year’s event include Belmonte Builders, DeGraff Bloom Custom Builders, DSG Construction and Remodeling, Kodiak Construction, R & M Homes, The BDC Group, Whitbeck Construction and Witt Construction. 

By Paul Post

 The sun rises and sets every day. In these times, some use it—solar energy—as a major source of power to heat homes and otherwise power utilities in the home.

The best time to buy a roof-mounted system that converts its energy to cost-saving electricity is now, say those in the industry.

 In the Northeast, solar electric systems generate about 70 percent of their energy for the entire year between April and September, so they need to be operational in March. But it takes several months to design, obtain various approvals and install them.

 “So the best time to start thinking about solar, getting quotes to make a decision so we can get a contract in place, obtain permits, secure materials, get the system inspected, permitted and turned on by a utility company, is this fall,” said Peter Kronau, senior project manager at Queensbury-based Apex Solar.

 “I always tell residents and business owners, ‘It’s not when you go solar, it’s that you go solar’,” he said. “The sun is always coming up and going down. Time is always moving. There is a ‘Goldilocks’ window to have a solar system installed, commissioned and turned on to maximize the benefit from day one. If you miss that window you’re playing catch-up until the system has been operational for 365 days because of how the offset works with net metering and the utility company.”

By Susan Elise Campbell

A home workspace that lets a person work the way they want to in surroundings they enjoy will contribute directly to an employer’s bottom line, and interior designers say there are a few recommendations for making the space successful.

“I have business people working out of their homes come into my showroom and say, ‘I don’t want my space to be more office-like, but I want it to be professional,’ which is how the term ‘resimercial’ came into the design vernacular,” said Dorothy Rogers-Bullis of drb Business Interiors.

“Workers need to mentally disconnect from the residence in the work space,” said Katelyn Moskos of Lake George Design. “The office has to flow with the home but at the same time, when you walk in you forget about any chaos and clutter behind you.” 

The office need not be a separate room. Designers are finding creative ways to repurpose part of a bedroom, take over a closet, or add a desk in an alcove or wide hallway. If it’s dedicated and professional, it can be productive.

“Most of my home office clients had been working in a building where they might have brought in a wall hanging or a box of knick-knacks,” said Moskos. “I need to remind them, you’re at home now. There are no limits.”