Spotlight Article:
Living Better with Less Energy
At times, the solutions to our problems are hiding in plain sight. Sometimes the hardest part is taking the time to examine things that we assume don’t need to be examined. Consider my ...
Keep Reading
Contractors Face Changing Marketplace
If a nationally known expert on building trends is correct, the home retrofit and remodeling marketplace will become dominated by corporate players who sell contracting services with their products. [continue reading]
Chicago Apartments Get New Lease on Life
Walking through abandoned multifamily buildings is urban spelunking. The buildings are dark, dreary, and damp. Water drips in from the roof. Pitfalls abound. One must be cautious of dark shafts and mounds of who-knows-what. H [continue reading]
Sowing Conservation in Garden Apartments
Auditing low-rise garden apartments is different from auditing single-family or high-rise multifamily buildings. [continue reading]
Today's Weather: Rain in the Living Room!
Last summer, the Applied Building Science Center received a call to investigate a North Carolina multifamily residence where it was raining inside the apartment. This home serves as an example of the need for good air sealing and a whole-building approach. [continue reading]
Florida House Aglow with Lighting Retrofit
Most lighting studies focus on average lighting energy use or on how much energy can be saved by retrofitting large numbers of homes. However, at the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC), we were interested in finding out how much lighting energy we could save in a single house. [continue reading]
Energy-Efficient Window Retrofits: Install with Care
Retrofitting a house with high- performance windows can produce significant energy savings and improved comfort. However, when the right window is installed incorrectly--or worse yet, the wrong window is installed incorrectly--energy savings will be few, structure and furnishings may be damaged, and the occupants' safety may be jeopardized. [continue reading]
Take It Outside: Water Heaters Get Fired Up
In much of the United States, converting electric water heaters to gas can reduce household energy costs. However, many properties-particularly multifamily homes-have space limitations or venting problems that make such a retrofit impossible. [continue reading]
Out, Out Dammed Ice!
Anyone who has lived in a snowy climate has seen ice dams. Thick bands of ice form along the eaves of homes, causing millions of dollars of structural damage every year. [continue reading]
Building Performance Journal Editors
Our Blog Has Moved
Thanks for your interest in contributing a blog to the Building Performance Journal (formerly Home Energy magazine). We’re ...
Jim Gunshinan
Is Energy Efficiency an American Value?
Energy efficiency is good for the economy, good for families, good for workers, and good for the environment.
