Hubie van Meurs, Contractor Alure

Alure Home Improvements: Hubie Van Muers

AMANDA: (0:00:00) Could you tell me what Alure’s role is in the Green Levittown initiative that Tom Suozzi invoked this year?

HUBIE: (0:07:18) Well, we are a home performance contractor so we are able to go in and show people how their home is performing from energy stand point. We do various tests to come to specific numbers such as air loss and how good the insulation is in the house. And then we can make proposals as to what can be changed to makes the house perform better, reduce its energy use which then in return will reduce the carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide that’s put into the atmosphere. So it’s healthier for the planet and it’s healthier for the inhabitant, we often make the houses more comfortable. But the key factor is that we can make the home more energy efficient.

AMANDA: (0:49:14) Now have you done any of these yet in Levittown, like made anything greener?

HUBIE: (0:54:22) Yes, we’ve actually done work on three homes so far in Levittown. We’re at the very early part of the process we’re expecting that there will be many more to follow. The Citizens Campaign for the Environment is doing the door knocking and the follow up calls, so there’s a lot in the pipeline where people have professed an interest and we have yet to get out to them and do the various testing we need to do.

AMANDA: (1:19:03) Now, when you were showing me that counter, can you just talk about the materials being used, recyclables and stuff to build new interiors, exteriors?

HUBIE: (1:29:10) Well on the interior we have this green kitchen display, there are cabinets that have finished on them with low VOC, VOC is volatile organic compounds so it doesn’t pollute from that stand point. There are countertops that are 100 per cent post consumer used materials. The counter top that I was showing you inside is 93 per cent crushed concrete and 7 per cent broken glass. Basically comes in many different colors but it’s 100 per cent recycled equipment. There’s also natural materials used in there, rather than different type of laminates the floor is a ceramic even after it’s useful period is done when it goes into a landfill it is not harmful in any way shape or form that products like linoleum or plastics may be.

AMANDA: (2:24:22) Why has Alure decided to participate in this?

HUBIE: (2:28:02) Well, the green Levittown initiative, we wanted to become partners in that because 1. We do have a very strong sense of community as a company; we give back in many different ways. And we recognize, senior management does and the owners that we contribute not as a company but as people to the harmful effects that our living does to the environment and we’re in a position to be able to try and reverse some of that. And the guys, who run this company, have their heads in the right place on these types of issues. Not only can we do some good for the environment, it can also be a profitable area as well.

AMANDA: (3:13:07) So how do you feel like this is going to affect the rest of Long Island? Do you think Levittown will set an example?

HUBIE: (3:22:07) Well yes I do believe it will set an example. There are actually already some, well let’s call them copycats, there is an organization that is working to do something similar for the town of Plainview. And there are other initiatives starting up around the island. We are working to stay involved in any and all of those that we can. But we do think it is something that is going to spread.

AMANDA: (3:46:17) How important do you feel these green initiatives are, just in general as a resident?

HUBIE: (3:53:15)Well I think it’s very important. We have been contributing to the demise of the environment here on long island and that’s something that’s a national issue. Whether you're not you believe in global warming, a good number people do, many scientists do believe that and if we don’t start paying attention and making some changes and not just talking about it but actually changing our behavior we run the risk of having a serious serious issue in the future. We’re still at a point where all scientists agree, we haven’t reached a tipping point but if we don’t change behavior, we may well get there.

AMANDA: (4:32:04) Now what are the costs of some of these greener materials? Are they more expensive?

HUBIE: (3:39:07) Nah, the materials themselves if you look at materials for a kitchen are right in that competitive range. It does not add to the cost significantly, minor if at all. All the measures or remediation action that we take in your home is going to have a payback period. Some of them will pay for themselves within a few years in energy savings other ones may take 10 or more years. The bottom line though is that all these measures that we take will save energy, it’ll reduce your cost to heat and cool your home and it will pay for itself over time. So the ultimate cost, there’s none, it’s a value there’s savings involved. The upfront cost of having the work done, can run anywhere from $1,000 to depending on the size of the house or the seriousness of the issues $5,000 or $6,000 or possibly more if your going to change out your heating system, etc.

AMANDA: (5:35:15) So basically what your saying is that it might cost more upfront but in the long run it will save you money?

HUBIE: (5:40:22) Absolutely.

AMANDA: (5:43:06) With the economy the way it is right now, would you recommend that for Long Islanders, it would be more efficient to upgrade their homes to greener energy and sealing them and stuff?

HUBIE: (5:54:24) You know it’s not just the sales me in me saying this, but in each and every case the answer is yes it does make sense to do it right a way. All these items do save money in the long run; they will start saving money from the day it is done. And that’s important .You can think of it this way some people don’t want to go and spend the $9 it may be to replace a single light bulb when you buy a compact florescent to replace an old incandescent bulb. But each day that you run that incandescent bulb you’re using four to five times more energy than you need to. So the sooner you can get just get past throwing that bulb out and putting that new compact fluorescent in the sooner you start saving money.

AMANDA: (6:36:00) Do you think there are any negative effects of going greener?

HUBIE: (6:40:18) Right now I don’t see any, of course there are some issues with one thing that I just spoke about, the compact fluorescent bulb actually has mercury it, so it can’t go into the regular landfill, it needs to be collected and disposed of properly after it’s useful life. But other than that, green is something that really is a win win win, it’s a win for the environment, it’s a win for us a contractors and it’s a win for the homeowner’s budget.