Archive of posts tagged energy efficiency
Is This A Good Time To Buy A Rooftop Solar PV System
If you have thought about owning a solar PV system to cut your energy bill, this may be a great time to take action. Just after the real estate bust in 2008, residential rooftop solar PV systems purchases started to lose ground to leasing arrangements. It didn’t take long for solar leasing to account for […]
Remodeling with Passive House Approach
Kevin Stamm, general contractor based in San Francisco, wanted to apply many of the Passive House techniques to achieve high degree of energy efficiency when he started to renovate his home. While the project is still work in progress, he offered to pass his learnings along. He hosted a tour of his project on March […]
Save Energy While Watching Your Favorite Shows
If you plan to upgrade your entertainment system after remodeling your home, be sure to choose EPA Energy Star cable box, modem, TV monitors and routers. Each of these units saves 30 watts or more than non Energy Star models. Streaming over internet is getting more and more popular. One of the advantages of streaming […]
How To Choose LED Lights
If you are trying to get a replacement light bulb, you will now find a large variety of products available. Buying a light bulb used to be simple. You choose either a 25W, 40W, 60W, 75W, 100W or occasionally 150W bulb depending how much light you want. The incandescent bulbs do not give you other […]
New Eco-Friendly Products For Green Homes
I went to several conferences and seminars in the last couple of months. I was pleasantly surprised to find that there are more and more eco-friendly, health and efficiency oriented products on display for green homes. Many of the products are already available on the market, and some are still under development. I like to […]
Is Your House Leaky?
Have you ever felt drafty in some rooms in your house? The draft can be coming through some hidden gaps or holes in your house. Most homes have gaps and holes in the ceiling, floors and exterior walls that let a lot of cold air into the house in the winter and warm air in […]
Century Old Home New Again
After months of detailed work, the project is finally done and the home is on the market. This home was almost gutted to the studs and reconfigured with a much better flow. It is practically a brand new 100+ years old house. Now there are three bedrooms and two and one half bathrooms with 1716 […]
Energy Measures Are All In Place
After taking most of this 100 plus year old house to the studs, the energy efficiency measures were all in place. That includes Triple-pane windows (by Kohltech), air sealing throughout the house, blown-in cellulose insulation in attic with R-80 and in walls with R-18, 15 mil heavy-duty polyurethane liners lined the crawlspace and basement. (Yes, […]