Postretrofit News and Analysis

Our house was built in 1951, but Michele and I have been living there since 2007. I’ve met the two previous owners. One was careful about keeping the house comfortable and efficient—the other ...

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Best Practices for Sealing HVAC Systems

Author: Bruce Manclark

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May 07, 2007

Energy Star programs are requiring more expertise from HVAC crews. Here are some helpful training hints. [continue reading]

Creating EQuilibrium in Canada

Author: Elka Karl

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May 07, 2007

Twelve Canadian home builder teams were recently selected as winners of Canada Mortgage and Housng Corporation (CMHC)’s EQuilibrium sustainable housing competition. The competition was organized by CMHC to support the ... [continue reading]

Managing Moisture

Author: Allen Zimmerman

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May 06, 2007

Q I enjoyed reading your article on the home you recently built in Ohio (“Design, Construction, and Performance in Ohio,” Jan/Feb ’07, p. 36). I am an architect practicing in the Pacific Northwest (... [continue reading]

Dreaming of Windows

Author: Dariush Arasteh

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May 06, 2007

Q We are building a new passive-solar home and have had difficulty finding commercially available low-U, high solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) windows. The specs quoted for the windows in the Home ... [continue reading]

New Solar Homes Partnership

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March 20, 2007

A unique blend of energy-efficient solar homes will emerge in California’s new-home marketplace in 2007, under the California Energy Commission’s New Solar Homes Partnership. “Our program is intended to transform the ... [continue reading]

HERS Inspections of New Homes

Author: Michael E. Bachand

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March 20, 2007

The New Solar Home Partnership (NSHP) is a ten-year, $350 million program to subsidize PV systems in new homes. The NSHP, which is being implemented by the California Energy Commission (CEC), offers performance-based rebates for PV ... [continue reading]

Maximizing the Benefits of Zero-Energy Homes

Author: Mike Keesee, Rob Hammon and Ren Anderson

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March 19, 2007

There is an emerging trend in energy programs for new homes to shift from a focus on the use of individual high-performance components to a focus on overall home performance. Key examples of this trend ... [continue reading]

Energy Efficiency and Solar Electricity Go Hand in Hand

Author: Rob Hammon and Steve Vang

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March 19, 2007

While zero-energy homes (ZEHs) are still more of a goal than a reality, near-zero-energy homes—those that produce as much electricity, but not quite as much total energy, as the residents consume—are ... [continue reading]