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Martin’s Six Rules for Polyethylene
In the 1970s and 1980s, the practice of installing polyethylene on the interior side of wood-framed walls became common in much of the U.S. These days, however, installing interior poly…
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All-Electric Buildings Can Work in Cold Climates
A decade ago, the prevailing wisdom held that all-electric buildings presented many challenges: They were served by dirty coal instead of cleaner natural gas, they struggled to meet temperature setpoints…
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Research Finds Racial Disparities in Solar Panel Distribution
Although the rooftop solar market in the U.S. has grown by roughly 50% a year since 2012, not everyone is reaping the benefits, a new study says. Writing in the…
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Heat Pump Balance Point and the Building Enclosure
So we've looked at a simple way to estimate the heat pump balance point. Then I showed how the capacity of the heat pump affects the balance point. (A larger…
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Researchers Study Impact of Energy Disclosures on Home Sales
Massachusetts real estate agents are hoping that lawmakers won't force home sellers to tell prospective buyers how energy-efficient their houses are. The reason? Disclosing energy use in older homes might…
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Why Expensive Asbestos Litigation Just Won’t Go Away
It is tempting to dismiss asbestos as a problem of the past. The height of its consumption was in the 1970s, and asbestos litigation began over a half century ago.…
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The Multi-Zone Heat Pump Issue
In cold climates, multi-zone heat pump systems (or multi-split systems) are developing a reputation for under-performing in terms of energy efficiency. In a nutshell, this happens when you ask…
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Designing a Multifamily Building That Approaches Passive House Performance
Jesse Thompson is a Maine architect whose company (Kaplan Thompson Architects) has been involved in three recent high-performance multifamily projects. At the Better Buildings by Design conference in Burlington, Vermont,…
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Massachusetts Bill Would Require Home Energy Assessments Prior to Sale
A Massachusetts lawmaker has introduced a bill that would require an energy assessment and an energy performance label for all single-family homes when they are put up for sale. The…
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An Innovative Financing Tool That Makes Energy Efficiency Affordable
This post originally appeared at Ensia. For customers of the Roanoke Electric Cooperative in rural North Carolina, high energy costs are much more than a pesky bill or a grudging…
