I was at a meeting recently when the discussion turned to wall assemblies. One of the speakers then asked what we should do about vapor barriers. It's what everyone wants to know, right? Should I use a vapor barrier? Should…
I read a lot of stuff online about insulation and air barriers and other building science topics. I see a fair number of articles bashing certain products or materials. Sometimes it's because the author sells a competing product. Sometimes they…
"Oops! The house just had an accident. Whose turn is it to clean it up?" Yep. We're entering the season of accidental dehumidification. If you've got windows that start collecting water, like the one shown above, you're a victim of…
The world of electricity is changing quickly. With all the photovoltaic modules out there generating solar power and the advent of the smart meter, there's a revolution going on within the electric utility industry. I wrote a little bit about…
Airtightness. It's one of the key components of a house that's built well. We know that it's a myth that houses need to breathe. We know it's one of the surest ways to reduce energy bills. We know it's a…
Danny Orlando, a manager in the ENERGY STAR program at the US EPA, walks the talk. He's been steadily improving the energy efficiency of his home over the past couple of decades and also monitoring his energy use data. The…
You may think there's no more boring topic than electric utilities. Power plants. Transmission lines. Engineers with flat top haircuts and pocket protectors full of pens in their white short-sleeved shirts. Well, let me say two words that might help…
Boilers for heating homes are common in some areas. Not here in Georgia, where I live, but my friends in the colder climates have them. This type of heating equipment takes a fuel like natural gas or fuel oil, burns…
Of course, everyone knows that caulking your windows and weatherstripping your doors won't help you much. Right? Well, all the cool kids do anyway, and that includes you because you're here reading this article. A lot of the standard advice…
Caulk your windows. Weatherstrip your doors. It's that time of year again. No, I don't mean the time of year when you should do those things. I mean it's the time of year when all the news stories that include…