A few years ago, a student of mine told a funny story in a home energy rater class. He was an HVAC contractor and said he was installing a new air conditioner for an elderly woman. As he was explaining…
Every once in a while I come across someone's workmanship that leaves me in awe. I see it and realize that I am looking at something unique, a piece of work (in all senses of that phrase) so bold that…
BCAP is the Building Codes Assistance Project, the organization that provides the Online Code Environment and Advocacy Network (OCEAN). I wrote about them last year and all the great work they do, including their weekly email updates* for those who…
Windows. The bane of the building scientist's existence. As we try to control the flow of moisture, air, and heat, a lot of our problems occur at windows. If the flashing's not done properly, they leak water. If they're not…
I've seen it over and over: The central air conditioner's ceiling vents raining down onto the floor. The insulation liner on the duct in the crawl space holding a gallon or two of water. The office that has spots appearing…
Spice up your relationship with these seven sexy suggestions! Give your skin the youthful glow of radiant good health! Master that new mixer with these garden fresh recipes! Calculate the number of BTUs per hour that your home needs for…
Dry-ship R-22 air conditioners and heat pumps - A term that was new to me 10 days ago. It's a pretty big story but even the New York Times doesn't know about it yet. They just published an article about…
Mirror, mirror, on the wall, what's the greenest product of all? You can find lists of the best green building products all over the web, and many sites update them annually. When looking for hot green building products, you have…
Babies cry. Babies are messy. Babies are inefficient. Just look at that face. Yeah, he's a cute little guy with that big smile, but it looks to me like there's been a problem with the food distribution system. Is your…
This is going to be a short article, mainly just providing a quick summary and some links to the ozone depletion work of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In the article I wrote last week about dry-ship…