Duct Design 2 — Available Static Pressure
In part 1 of this duct design series, I discussed the basic physics of moving air in ducts. Now we're going to take that and use it to figure out how to make all the parts work together properly. First…
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The Basic Principles of Duct Design, Part 1
When it comes to heating and cooling homes, forced air distribution is king. Yeah, my Canadian friend Robert Bean of Healthy Heating pushes radiant for both heating and cooling, and my Texas friend Kristof Irwin drank that koolaid and installed…
The Building Trades Could Use More Women
The photo above is from one of the home energy rater classes we taught a few years ago. We had 13 students in that class. Only one was a woman. That ratio actually is comparable to what you see in…
A Couple of Top (and Bottom) Building Science Resources
Just a quick note for you this morning about some building science resources I found on the Web this week. As alluded to in the title, one relates to the top of the house (cathedral ceilings) and the other to…
Is Compressed Fiberglass Insulation Really So Bad?
I've been guilty of perpetuating a myth. Last month I wrote an article in which I said installing insulation, "cavities are filled completely with as little compression as possible." But is compression really such a bad thing? When I posted…
A Shortage of Home Performance Jobs
Dick Kornbluth was an insulation contractor in Syracuse, New York back in the 1970s. Then he discovered home performance. It's really the logical place insulation contractors, HVAC contractors, and similar companies to end up. Rather than doing just one job…
Does More Volume Mean More Heating and Cooling Load?
What happens to the heating and cooling loads when you encapsulate an attic? With the insulation and air barrier at the ceiling below the attic, you're excluding the attic space. That volume of air up there isn't involved in the…
How to Spot Improper Window Flashing
After taking classes for the past 15 years, my sister graduated from college last week. While I was in Lakeland, Florida for her graduation, I took the photo above. It's a hotel under construction. I took this picture because I…
Another Down Year for Heating Degree Days
We've had some beautiful, cool weather here in Atlanta the past couple of days. It's about 50° F outdoors as I write this. The high yesterday was only about 70° F. We're getting a few more heating degree days (HDD)…
A Little Home Energy Quiz from the DOE
I found this little quiz on Twitter the other day. I got 9 correct out of 12, but I'd like to dispute one of my wrong answers. One of the answers surprised me. And I was glad to see one…