ReNEWW House

Retrofit Net Zero: Energy. Water. Waste.

Whirlpool Corporation, along with Purdue University, has transformed an existing home near Purdue’s campus into a world class research laboratory and sustainable living showcase. ReNEWW stands for Retrofitted Net-zero Energy, Water & Waste and represents the aspirational vision for the project: to convert a home, originally built in 1928, to offset all its energy use with solar power, to only rely on locally available water sources, and to have waste handling systems in place that prevent any household waste from going to the landfill. ReNEWW House is providing valuable insights for our homebuilder collaborators and customers on technologies that enable sustainable living. We leverage the world class facilities and collaborate with Purdue researchers to accelerate the development of the next generation of ultra-high efficiency appliances that increase core performance while lowering their impact on the environment and cost to operate.

ReNEWW House in the News

Whirlpool Corporation’s KitchenAid Brand Recognized as a Forbes’ Customer Experience All-Star 2024

Whirlpool Corporation’s KitchenAid brand was named to Forbes’ Customer Experience All-Star 2024 list. The second-annual list honors brands ranking high in consumer satisfaction of products, services, and treatment of customers.  “At Whirlpool Corporation, we are in...

Manufacturing Institute Recognizes Zazueta with Women MAKE Award

The Manufacturing Institute—the workforce development and education partner of the National Association of Manufacturers—announced that Susy Zazueta of Whirlpool Corporation’s Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, operations has been recognized as a 2024 Women MAKE Awards honoree....

Whirlpool Corporation Releases 2023 Sustainability Report

The report highlights company progress against emissions reductions goals, sustainable innovation and investment in people and communities Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) released its 2023 Sustainability Report today, reinforcing the company’s commitment to...

Habitat for Humanity and Whirlpool Corporation Celebrate 25 Years of Building Thriving, Sustainable Communities Around the World

Since 1999, Habitat for Humanity and Whirlpool Corporation have worked together to help improve lives and increase access to safe, resilient and affordable homes in communities around the world. Today, Whirlpool and Habitat mark the 25th anniversary of their...

Whirlpool Corporation and BORA Introduce Revolutionary Induction Downdraft Cooktop Technology to North America

The Collaboration Will Bring Limitless Design Opportunities to JennAir and KitchenAid Cooktops in 2025 Whirlpool Corporation and BORA share the belief that the kitchen is the hub of the home and is a space that should be redesigned through a lens that pushes...

Whirlpool Corporation Welcomes Richard J. Kramer to Board of Directors

The Whirlpool Corporation board of directors has appointed Richard J. Kramer, former chairman, chief executive officer and president of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, to the board, effective February 19, 2024. Kramer will serve on the corporate governance and...

Whirlpool Foundation Supports Curious Kids’ Museum Traveling Exhibit

The exhibit will be a long term revenue generator for the museum. The Curious Kids’ Museum in St. Joseph, Michigan revealed a new exhibit at the Curious Kids’ Discovery Zone this week with an intriguing connection to Whirlpool. The exhibit, titled Secret Ingredients:...

Whirlpool Corporation Named One of World’s Most Admired Companies for Fourteenth Consecutive Year by Fortune

Whirlpool Corporation has once again been recognized by Fortune as one of the World’s Most Admired Companies. The list includes the most respected and reputable companies around the world, as ranked by peers within their respective industries. Whirlpool Corporation...

Whirlpool Certified Top Employer Europe 2024 for the Seventh Time Running and Top Employer in Italy, France, Germany, Poland and the UK

The company has been recognized among the best employers for its commitment to sustainability, work environment, inclusion and diversity practices With an outstanding score of 87.4%, Whirlpool EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) proudly announces its prestigious...

Whirlpool Corporation to Install Onsite Renewable Energy at Washing Machine and Dishwasher Plants in Ohio

Whirlpool Corporation announced today that it has entered into agreements with One Energy to add onsite wind and solar power at its Findlay and Clyde, Ohio operations. The company currently has nine onsite wind turbines at four of its Ohio plants in Findlay, Marion,...

Why Retrofit?

The average age of a single family home in the US is 34 years old, meaning that much of the existing housing stock was constructed in an era that offered both relatively inexpensive energy and did not consider carbon dioxide as a form of pollution that contributes to global warming.  Consequently, simple energy efficiency measures are sorely lacking in these homes—a problem with far reaching consequences, but also an opportunity for substantial energy savings.

The ReNEWW House retrofit sought to both preserve the historic character of the house, while also vastly improving its’ overall energy and water efficiency. The retrofit took place in 3 stages – first, a deep energy retrofit to get to Net Zero Energy. This was followed by an interior remodel and water system retrofit to achieve Net-Zero Water Usage, in which Whirlpool worked with Kohler Corporation. Finally, Ford Motor Company enabled the addition of a new garage with a Ford Focus BEV and EV Charging Station.

Before & After - Front of House

Before & After - Back of House

Before & After - Kitchen

Before & After - Central Area

Before & After - Basement

Before & After - Garage

Net Zero Energy

According to the US Department of Energy (DOE), residential housing units account for 22 percent of the total primary energy usage in the US. Over two thirds of this energy is used for HVAC, appliances, or water heating¹. Since the ReNEWW House is in a heating climate with many cloudy days, the home underwent a massive energy retrofit to address energy consumption and storage. This included new appliances, insulation, HVAC, water heater, lighting, windows, doors, siding and roofing. In addition, a drainline heat recovery system was added to recover waste energy from the shower drain and use it to heat incoming cold water. Finally, to get to Net Zero Energy, a Solar Thermal (PVT) System was added to the roof, to generate as much energy in one year as is used inside the house.

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Solar Panel – South Side

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Solar Panel – West Side

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Outside Insulation

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Siding & Windows

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Geothermal HVAC

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Water Heating

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Drain Heat Recovery

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LED Lighting

Net Zero Water

The average person in the United States uses 91 gallons of water per day. This water use translates into roughly $1000 per American family per year to pay for their water usage. Much of this water usage is potable, treated water that is flushed immediately down the drain. In phase 2 of the ReNEWW House Retrofit, the old, outdated water-using fixtures and appliances were replaced with new, water-efficient Kohler fixtures and Whirlpool appliances. In addition, rainwater harvesting and filtration was installed onsite for all potable water applications. Finally, in an effort to offset potable water usage for toilet flushing, a CleanBlu Greywater treatment system was installed onsite. After all these improvements, the residents of the house have been consuming roughly 21 gallons per person, per day… a ~75% reduction in water usage!

Have questions about the ReNEWW House?

Email Us at ReNEWWHouse@gmail.com