Down the Drain! — Heat Recovery for Your Hot Water
Do you use hot water in your home? I thought so. You have a water heater then, right? You know, one of those things that you pump money into all the time, perhaps to the tune of $300 or $400…
The Energy Vanguard Blog
A Canadian Perspective of the HERS Rating Industry
Today is the last day of the HERS rater class I'm teaching in Toronto. To date, there's just been a handful of people pushing home energy ratings in Canada and sadly, they lost one of the most passionate advocates this…
Home Builders, Rev Up Your HERS Index for the Cross Border Challenge
Home builders and HERS raters in the US have been up in arms about the new changes with Version 3 of the ENERGY STAR new homes program. Guess what? Canada thinks we're wimps. Here's why: Home builders and HERS raters…
The Most Important Lesson I Learned in Grad School
I spent seven years in graduate school studying physics to get my PhD. You might think that the most valuable lesson I got from that experience would have been about the nature of physical reality. I was studying the positions…
Batts, Blown, or Sprayed – What’s the Best Attic Insulation?
I get asked a lot of questions about windows, air conditioning, and other energy efficiency topics: What size HVAC system should I install? Is it true you can seal a house up too tight? Can I use a CFL bulb…
Has the Long Emergency Begun? Peak Oil and the Economic Downturn
Seven years ago, I became obsessed with the topic of peak oil. I had to read everything about it that I could find. I was one of the first subscribers to The Oil Drum. I went to peak oil conferences.…
An Air Conditioner Sizing Benchmark for High Performance Homes
One of the most frustrating parts of my job as a Home Energy Rating (HERS) provider is dealing with the size of air conditioners installed in ENERGY STAR homes. My frustration has spilled over here in the Energy Vanguard blog…
Why Can’t Every New Home Be a High Performance Home?
A recent discussion on LinkedIn got me thinking about this question again. If you've spent any time here in the Energy Vanguard blog, you know that one of the things I do a lot is point out bad HVAC design,…
Are Radiant Barriers Cost Effective in New Homes?
Radiant barriers are cool! Well, actually they get quite warm, but they help the space below them stay cooler when used on a roof assembly above an unconditioned attic. They can drop the temperature of an attic about 20° F.…
To Heck with Duct Design! Let’s Just Throw the Vents Anywhere
You'd think with all the articles I've written about bad duct installations that it'd be hard to find more to write about here. After all, I've told you about stumpy (photo left) and panned joist return ducts and what may…