Here's another in the series of building practices that drive me crazy - recessed can lights. They're so popular that some remodelers carry a shotgun and walk through the house randomly shooting holes in the ceilings to install them. Here's…
Yesterday, I visited a house in South Carolina and took the photo you see to the left. Notice anything peculiar about the framing here? If not, I'll tell you the answer below, but let me say here that one feature…
Guest post by Ed Voytovich of Building Efficiency Resources (The BER). I know Ed mainly through our interactions in the LinkedIn RESNET BPI group, where he's a frequent and knowledgeable contributor, though we also met IRL (in real life) at…
In yesterday's article, I wrote that atmospheric combustion appliances should not be inside the conditioned space of a home. If you have a furnace or water heater that draws air from the room, uses it in the combustion process, and…
Speaking of things that drive me crazy (we were, weren't we?), here's another one - people confusing the roles of insulation and air barrier. The people I'm talking about are not homeowners, though. I'm talking about contractors, builders, and journalists…
Last week, I did my first webinar. Along with Jason Payne of Structured Energies and EEM Training, I discussed the Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM), theory and application. I handled the theory side, and Jason, who's actually done a bunch of…
The new Georgia energy code, based on the 2009 IECC, moves our state a step ahead of other states. The major new requirement is that all new homes be tested for infiltration rates with a Blower Door. As far as…
Put your hand out, palm up. Believe it or not, you're now holding about 200 pounds of air in your hand. You may have heard that standard atmospheric pressure is 14.7 pounds per square inch. Your hand is probably in…
Building Envelope as a Balloon At some point in your life, you may have seen or done the needle through the balloon trick. It's where a large needle pierces one end of a balloon and is pushed through to the…
Green Building Advisor, one of my favorite sources of good info on building science and green building, ran my Flat or Lumpy article as a guest blog yesterday. (They also gave the Energy Vanguard blog a nice review!) With the…