Claire Remsberg, an architect in the Rocky Mountain region, is working on a house where the main goals are to limit thermal bridgingHeat flow that occurs across more conductive components in an otherwise well-insulated material, resulting in disproportionately significant heat loss. For example, steel studs in an insulated wall dramatically reduce the overall energy performance of the wall, because of thermal bridging through the steel. through the 2x6 wood frame and to beef up wall R-values. Plans call for vertical wood siding over a layer of rigid foam insulation.

If that sounds more or less straightforward, the details are not. The contractor has limited experience working with rigid exterior insulation, Remsberg writes, and has concerns that installing siding directly over the foam may not be a great idea.

Last week we examined the amount of energy it takes to transport and treat water — and how we can conserve energy by using less water. This week, we’ll look at the inverse of that: how much water it takes to produce energy and how our energy conservation efforts reduce water use.

The water intensity of energy

It is winter in Australia, and so it is a good time for Peter Reefman, a builder based in the southeastern state of Victoria, to show off the energy efficiency of his recently completed three-bedroom home in the town of Portland.

Concrete floors with high thermal massHeavy, high-heat-capacity material that can absorb and store a significant amount of heat; used in passive solar heating to keep the house warm at night. are often at the heart of passive solar designs. The density of concrete helps it store thermal energy and helps to reduce uncomfortable swings in indoor temperatures.

Slabs collect some heat from the sun through south-facing windows, often supplemented by radiant-floor heating systems that use a network of embedded plastic tubing to circulate hot water.

In a post from last summer on LEED for Homes, I mused on the ineffectiveness and confusion surrounding the required Durability Planning process, the preparation of a project-specific Durability Checklist, and third-party inspection of this work. The general consensus among green raters I know is that the entire Durability Planning process in LEED for Homes is confusing, arbitrary, and extremely difficult for most construction teams to get their heads around.

In our last episode, Dr. John talked about How Heat Moves Through Homes and why radiant barriers work better in outer space than on earth.

In this episode, Dr. John talks about the history of insulation, how different materials work, and where they make sense.

TRANSCRIPT
The history of insulation comes about because of the history of structural engineering. Now, I’m a recovering structural engineer, which is probably why I like to think of it that way.

In almost every corner of the U.S., reports are increasing of vinylCommon term for polyvinyl chloride (PVC). In chemistry, vinyl refers to a carbon-and-hydrogen group (H2C=CH–) that attaches to another functional group, such as chlorine (vinyl chloride) or acetate (vinyl acetate). siding that has been melted by sunlight bouncing off nearby windows. This melted-siding pandemic makes vinyl manufacturers very nervous — so nervous that the topic is rarely discussed.

Most reported cases involve siding that melts, gets replaced, and then melts a second time. One possible reason for the apparent increase in cases of melted siding is the increasing use of high-performance glazingWhen referring to windows or doors, the transparent or translucent layer that transmits light. High-performance glazing may include multiple layers of glass or plastic, low-e coatings, and low-conductivity gas fill..

In case you haven’t read my earlier posts about my aborted attempt to build myself a house, Green From the Start Home Edition, Green From the Start Home Edition, Volume 2, and the dismal ending to the first half my saga, What We Have Here Is a F

There are some significant advantages to urinals when it comes to bathroom maintenance (I won't go into the messy details of splashing that happens when males stand and urinate into a toilet). With ultra-efficient urinals (often called one-pint urinals) and waterless urinals, there are also very significant water savings that are achieved.

It takes a lot of energy to transport and treat water in this country, and it takes a lot of water to produce the energy we use. To put this a different way: when we save water we save energy, and when we save energy we save water.