Featured Blog Posts – November 2011 Archive (17)

What is Humidity and How Does it Effect Home Energy Savings

by Don Ames,   www.detectenergy.com

We all know what humidity is - it is the cause of the mold on the ceiling in the bathroom. Humidity is what happens to the bathroom mirror during a shower. Humidity is why we have an exhaust fan in the ceiling of the bathroom. Humidity is why a hot summers day in …

This time two weeks ago I was in Anaheim, California, at the National Association of Realtors’ Annual Conference, themed “Seize the Day“.

I am still struck by the bigness of it all. Not just the sheer numbers (over 20,000 of us!), but by the strength of the passion and the vision.  Yet I am still wondering, are we delivering what future generations of home owners need…

Getting the Most out of Your Pergola, Think Solar Power Panel

by Don Ames,   www.detectenergy.com

Sitting in a meeting the other day, I was listening to a discussion on where to put half-a-million dollars worth of solar power panels. The discussion considered placing panels on roofs, on picnic shelters, and carports - it's not easy trying to find a place for a bunch of solar panels. After all, there are things to keep…

The following appeared on my blog Mapawatt and is in response to the "free energy plans" that have infiltrated Google and Facebook advertisements. I'm afraid a large number of people get suckered into buying these and are left with junk.

--------------

It still amazes me that with all our posts dedicated to trying to help homeowners save energy, our most popular posts are on free energy scams (mainly…

Consumers will soon face new decisions when purchasing light bulbs, and many don't even know it yet. Beginning January 1, 2012, lighting manufacturers will no longer be producing the popular 100-watt incandescent light bulb. For professionals in the energy efficiency industry, this has been common knowledge since the passage of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Although many consumers have been slow to understand the pending changes, awareness is trending upward, according to…

The National Association of Realtors’ annual Profile of Home Buyers/Sellers is out.  The 2011 results are impressive not because of anything new, but because of consistent results about homebuyer interest in…

I am NOT a blogger and this is my first post (could be my last).

A very good friemd mine who lives in Chicago has an "urban Rehabber program" wher he teaches newbies and thse with little experience on how to become more profitable in the Rehab sector. As an Energy advocate archiect, I get his posts.

Here is one about MYTHS I thought some of you may be interested in (Just the messenger not the author)

More…

Attending a week long class where veteran trainer Rick Chitwood is moderator has been entertaining and joyful. In the class which is inside a house that is being retrofit completely we are now designing and installing a super efficient HVAC system.…

by Don Ames

If you don't want to read the whole article, at least go to the bottom of the page and watch the screen cast. Take a look at some real effective garage door insulation. No, I didn't make this up.…

By Guest Blogger Stephen L. Cowell

A recent article in Newsweek, “Obama’s Big Green Mess,”describes what can happen when contractors are “unfamiliar with the nuances of specialized weatherization work.”  The fact is, installing furnaces that exhaust poisonous fumes, putting in…

Sean Smith was the man in the middle. – a key figure with a foot in both worlds of business and “green.” 

A high-end general contractor, he built two LEED-certified homes in the Washington Park neighborhood of Denver in 2009.  At an educational session he hosted there, the U.S. Green Building Council approached him to serve on a committee.  “If you’re doing big-picture things, I’m all over it,” he told them.

At a subsequent meeting at the Governor’s Energy…

What can we learn and use from world class organizations, and how they got there? How does this apply to energy efficiency rating and auditing?

The bottom line: They produced and sold what the customer actually wanted and was willing to pay for. There are a lot of other things they did, but all complexities funneled back into the purpose of delivering something…

note: I published this article today on daily5REMODEL, and remodelers and home performance pros are weighing in with some excellent responses. Feel free to post your response here, but please also post it on d5R if you want to be eligible for the prize, a signed and inscribed copy of the forthcoming book…

My sister recently participated in the Maryland Home Performance with Energy Star program, sponsored by the Maryland Energy Office and five local utilities. Here's what she had to say about her experience: (Yeah Maryland!)

"The Maryland Home Performance with Energy Star website is friendly, functional, and full of great information.  I was first introduced to MDHomePerfromance.org by my brother who is editor of Home Energy Magazine.   He…

Earlier this year I was asked to replace a leaking roof on a Patio of an Investment Property. The job consisted of removing the existing Mound City Clay Roof Tiles from the Porch Roof and replacing with Certain Teed 3 Tab-Shingles (…

When my first kid turned one, he was barely walking.

When Home Energy Pros turned one it was galloping.

We’re off to a wildly…