Following Asheville’s Lead Growing green building across the state By Ryan Miller Alright, Asheville. As the North Carolina city with the deepest market penetration and strongest consumer demand for green building, the rest of our state looks to you for inspiration and leadership in green building. Many of the new...
Article Category: Energy Efficiency Building Science
Margaret Chandler: Fontana Lake Residence
Fontana Lake Residence – A Case Study in Beautiful Efficiency By Margaret Chandler The Fontana Lake Residence is a great demonstration of design elegance harmoniously integrated with environmental sustainability. This handsome home achieved LEED for Homes Gold certification with a total of 75 points, and earned NC Healthy Built...
Energy Audit and Inspections
Energy Audit and Inspections
Feature: Closed crawlspaces
Feature: Closed crawlspaces By Maria Mauceri on 03/22/2010 Each year, tens of thousands of homes are built on crawlspace foundations in the Southeast. In most of these homes, the spaces are built with wall vents, which are supposed to reduce moisture problems — but recent research has shown this approach actually...
Checklist: Installing Insulation the right way
Checklist: Installing Insulation the right way By Maggie Leslie on 03/22/2010 There are many types of insulation. The most common type is batt, or blanket-type insulation (typically fiberglass). This is the least expensive but requires careful installation to ensure 100-percent coverage. Blown types, such as fiberglass, cellulose (made from recycled newspaper)...
Checklist: Indoor air quality
Checklist: Indoor air quality By Maggie Leslie on 03/22/2010 Ensuring healthy indoor air quality in a home starts with the very foundation. Many simple building techniques, from radon-resistant construction to drainage planes, can prevent unwanted air-quality problems in the future. To prevent unwanted moisture and contaminants from entering, it is very...
Checklist: HVAC
Checklist: HVAC By Maggie Leslie on 03/22/2010 A home can be heated or cooled using electricity, gas, geothermal energy, solar energy or a combination of energy sources. Radiant floor-heating systems are an inherently efficient way to heat, since there is no heat lost through ductwork, but a forced-air heating system can...
Checklist: Energy-efficient retrofit
Checklist: Energy-efficient retrofit By Maggie Leslie on 03/22/2010 The average American family spends about $1,500 a year on utility bills, according to the Rocky Mountain Institute. This could be reduced dramatically by making a few adjustments and improvements. Some energy-saving measures are simple and inexpensive, while others are more complex and...
Checklist: Air sealing
Checklist: Air sealing By Maggie Leslie on 03/22/2010 Air sealing is a crucial part of building a healthy, energy-efficient home. Below is a checklist of items to use to ensure proper air sealing when building or renovating a conventional stick-frame home. A leaky home will decrease the R-value of your insulation...
Checklist: Advanced framing
Checklist: Advanced framing By Marcus Renner on 03/22/2010 Although contested, wood-framed buildings are a great American innovation. Developed 150 years ago, wood-framed (also called stud-framed or western platform framed) buildings now account for 90 percent of our homes. Framed homes are cost efficient made with a renewable resource and are relatively...