|
| Back to Contents Page |
Home Energy Index |
About Home Energy |
| Home Energy Home Page | Back Issues of Home Energy |
Home Energy Magazine Online September/October 1993
EDITORIAL
It's the Duct's Turn for Retrofits
Pity the poor neglected duct. Put end-to-end, there are enough of them in
American homes to reach to the moon and back. Yet for years the duct's energy
aspects have been ignored by researchers. To energy specialists, ducts simply
connected two much more technically interesting aspects of a house's heating
and cooling systems, the furnace (or air conditioner) and the building
envelope. The building envelope, with its many opportunities for retrofits,
garnered the most attention. Meanwhile, furnace and air conditioner
efficiencies have been pushed ever upwards by federal standards.
Now it's the duct's turn. Or, more accurately, now it is time for thermal
energy distribution systems to receive their share of retrofits. Part of this
issue of Home Energy is devoted to articles about improving the
distribution of heating and cooling in homes.
These articles span our knowledge of distribution systems. It will immediately
become apparent that the research is not yet complete. Indeed, even key
concepts, such as "efficiency" have not yet acquired standard definitions. This
is not surprising given the variety of diagnostics, retrofits, and buildings
examined. These articles are more snapshots of current thinking than the final
word. Still, they demonstrate that distribution systems in most American homes
are rarely working as designed and are almost always major opportunities for
energy conservation retrofits.
A house's distribution system is closely linked to unexpected activities. For
example, a leak in an air duct may cause depressurization, leading to spillage
into the house of exhaust fumes from gas appliances. In other cases, the
efficiency of the air distribution system will depend on the pattern of air
infiltration leaks in the shell.
The traditional techniques to construct and repair air distribution systems are
laughably poor. That old standby, duct tape, has been implicated as one of the
worst offenders; a more accurate name would be "temporary tape." The new
techniques, described in this issue, emphasize measurement and more quality
control. This is not surprising because an incorrect retrofit will often lead
to an even worse condition.
This special issue provides fewer final recommendations than usual.
Nevertheless, it is an opportunity to capitalize on the latest research results
and observe the work of some very creative and dedicated researchers and
practitioners.
| Back to Contents Page |
Home Energy Index |
About Home Energy |
| Home Energy Home Page | Back Issues of Home Energy |
Home Energy can be reached at: contact@homeenergy.org
Home Energy magazine -- Please read our Copyright Notice
| 
