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It has come to my attention that there may be a building science-based conflict in the language of the 2012 International Residential Code (IRC) and 2012 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). [continue reading]
As energy auditors and raters went about their business of testing homes, performing energy audits and HVAC system inspections, they discovered and reported certain “problems” to the homeowners of Texas. For example, they reported that HVAC systems were oversized, or suffering from massive duct leakage! In late 2011, The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), which oversees the HVAC industry, started getting complaints from contractors about these new energy auditors doing work that ... [continue reading]
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s national Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Program (HPwES) released the draft Home Performance with ENERGY STAR Sponsor Guide and Reference Manual v1.5 (Sponsor Guide) for public comment on Monday, June 3, 2013. The Sponsor Guide is a technical document that outlines the requirements for Sponsors' participation in the national Program, as well as provides resources for program implementation and best practices. In response to the need for ... [continue reading]
President and founder of Chicago-based Weiss Building & Development, Brandon Weiss is a third-generation builder who credits time spent in Europe to his sustainable approach to life. [continue reading]
Yesterday, the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH) in partnership with the American Public Health Association (APHA) unveiled a new National Healthy Housing Standard. The standard is aimed at improving the health of Americans by addressing serious health and safety hazards in U.S. homes. The home is the most dangerous place for U.S. families. Roughly 30 million families live in unsafe and unhealthy housing with broken heating and plumbing, holes in walls and ... [continue reading]
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) is conducting a study to explore the efficiency of hot water distribution systems in California residences. [continue reading]
Zero Net Energy means that a home creates as much energy as it uses. This essentially takes homes off of the power grid and makes them self-sustaining. Honda is taking this concept to the University of California, Davis after the successful demonstration of a smart home in Japan in 2012. As California has plans in place for all newly constructed homes to be self-sustaining by 2020, Honda may have a solution that will make lawmakers, citizens, and ... [continue reading]
Hot water is second only to heating as the biggest energy consumer in the average household, and a German industry association claims that the use of tankless water heaters can produce some savings there. [continue reading]
Changing one’s daily routine and making big decisions about money is hard. When a home performance contractor asks a customer to consider an audit, they are asking a lot. Besides the cost of the audit and any retrofit measures the homeowner chooses to pay for, which is probably the biggest challenge, there is also the inconvenience. The audit and retrofit may require the homeowner to take time off from work. Having workers climb ... [continue reading]
Representatives David McKinley (R-WV) and Peter Welch (D-VT) re-introduced the Home Owners Managing Energy Savings (HOMES) Act, H.R. 2127, yesterday marking a step forward in bi-partisan leadership on energy policy. [continue reading]
