Energy Star | The Green Building Inspector

Oversized AC, Screwed-up Manual J, ENERGY STAR HVAC Tirade!

By AllisonBailes

I was checking some REM/Rate files for our HERS raters yesterday, mostly submitted forENERGY STAR homes. I’ve come to expectManual J heating and cooling load calculations submitted along with the files to be less than perfect. Mostly, I accept them because they’re close enough. Yesterday, though, I received a Manual J to go along with a file for an ENERGY STAR home that was beyond the pale. It was egregiously horrific. It was spectacularly sordid. It did come close to meeting the ENERGY STAR Version 2 requirements for Manual J (tight or semi-tight infiltration and correct design temperatures), but whoever put this one together was singularly devious in his efforts to justify the oversized air conditioning systems he wanted to install.

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Energy efficiency absorbs water

By Elisa Wood

Efforts have been underway for decades to conserve both energy and water, but never in concert. This is unfortunate because energy uses a lot of water and water uses a lot of energy. Two leading conservation organizations have set out to bring the efforts together. The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy and the Alliance for Water Efficiency this week published a white paper that describes the co-dependence of water and energy resources, and outlines strategies to use both more efficiently.

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There’s a new sheriff in town

By Elisa Wood

It’s likely that you’ve heard of EnergyStar and seen the recent headlines about US Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency efforts to ensure that appliances are as energy efficient as the blue EnergyStar label indicates. It’s less likely that you’ve heard of a parallel DOE effort to ensure that minimum energy conservation standards are being met. Because mandatory efficiency standards apply to the manufacture of appliances and therefore are

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Hot Sectors for Energy Efficiency

By Elisa Wood

It’s clear that the energy efficiency industry is undergoing an unprecedented boom, spurred by state and federal support and movement toward a smarter grid. But for those in the industry, where exactly can the new business – and the jobs – be found? Two new reports by Colorado-based Pike Research shed some light. After years of focusing on…

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Extreme Makeover in Hattiesburg MS Starts this Weekend

By Green Building Inspector

As the home’s green building verifier I’ll be traveling to the “Hub City” at 3:30 or 4:00 a.m. (I should have my head examined) on Monday the 7th for the faming inspection and thermal bypass checklist…(now that should be the news story…that someone was able to get my butt out-a-bed that early for work…)

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Windows – New Energy Star Performance in 2010

By Green Building Inspector

Starting October 1, 2009, you might see the label shown on the right, in red or in black, in combination with ENERGY STAR product labels. This label identifies high-efficiency products that currently qualify for the ENERGY STAR but will not meet the more stringent requirements that go into full effect April 1, 2010.

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The Green Building Inspector

Oversized AC, Screwed-up Manual J, ENERGY STAR HVAC Tirade!

Energy efficiency absorbs water

There’s a new sheriff in town

Hot Sectors for Energy Efficiency

Extreme Makeover in Hattiesburg MS Starts this Weekend

Windows – New Energy Star Performance in 2010

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