Improving The Efficiency Of Your Home, Part 1: Insulation & Air Sealing
Energy efficiency can help slow the rate of climate change. Learn about making your home more efficient so you can reduce carbon production and also save money.
insulation
Home Efficiency 101: Appliances, Thermal Envelope, Lighting, Plumbing, & More
Home efficiency is one of those things you may think has been done already — building code improvements surely must’ve accounted for what we’ve known about home energy use for decades now, right?
Insulated Windows 101 — Double Glazing, Triple Glazing, Thermal Performance, & Potential Problems
Double glazing. Triple glazing. Insulated windows. Double-glazed windows. Triple-glazed windows. You’ve probably heard those terms before, but if you aren’t or haven’t been involved in construction and design work, or in the retrofitting of your own house, then you may not know exactly what they mean.
Passive Solar House Design Basics — Orientation, Design Elements, & Materials
Building on our earlier Passivhaus 101 and Insulation R-Value articles, I’m now going to provide an overview here of the Passive Solar House Design — with the intent being to explain the basic principles and design elements.
Insulation R-Value — What Is It Exactly? Which Materials Are The Best Rated?
When someone is talking about the “R-value” of an insulation material, what are they talking about exactly? What does the term refer to specifically? And how does one determine what it is?
Passivhaus 101 — Passive House Definition, Explanation, & Examples
You’ve probably heard the phrase Passivhaus (which is German for “passive house”), and you have perhaps wondered what it meant exactly. So, what does the phrase actually refer to?
What About Florida? Energy Efficiency, Solar Energy, & Regulatory Backwardness In The Sunshine State —…
I’ll close the series by offering two small informational gifts to my patient readers. One is my thoughts on how the Florida Public Service Commission might provide the right signals to help us to make better progress in the Sunshine State. After all, the utilities are simply doing what they can to maximize their profits within the rules of being a regulated monopoly. The rules are the problem.
EPA’s Energy Efficiency Action Week, & New Energy Star Home Advisor
A recent press release from the EPA (the US Environmental Protection Agency) announced the start of the Energy Star Home Advisor. Americans can use this an online tool to improve energy efficiency of their homes — saving money and energy at the same time. The tool recommends, customizes, and prioritizes home-improvement … [continued]
Cut Home Energy Use, Save Money, & Help Re-Green The Earth
For Earth Day this year, Jeff Flowers of Living Direct introduced a detailed infographic showing a few things homeowners can do to cut energy use around their homes, save money, and help re-green the earth. Earth Day is essentially every day for us, so we’re just getting around to sharing … [continued]
What Is The Value Of A Well Insulated House?
Originally published on Shrink That Footprint by Lindsay Wilson The better insulated and air tight your home is, the more comfort you get from each unit of heat. In fact, homes can even be so well insulated and air tight that they only need the sun, bodies, appliances, and some … [continued]
