Home Energy articles from January 2003

Home Energy archives from January 2003

My twenty years with Home Energy. (Editorial).
January 1, 2003... Way back in 1983, I noticed that a lot of important energy efficiency research was not getting to the practitioners--the people actually doing audits and retrofits for a living. My solution was simple: translate that research into readable...

Warts and all. (Letters).
January 1, 2003... I just saw the Sept/Oct issue of Home Energy and your editorial on duct tape. It reminded me that I recently heard a new and very innovative use for duct tape on NPR that I thought you (and others) would want to know about. It turns out that...

The coolest way to cool (or heat). (Letters).
January 1, 2003... With respect to operating a home central air conditioner, is it more economical to turn the unit off when leaving at 8 am and returning at 4 pm or to keep the unit operating during the day? What about for shorter time periods (two hours, etc.)?...

Beauty and the beast. (Letters).
January 1, 2003... My husband and I really appreciated your article "Beauty and the Beast Upstairs" (Mar/Apr '95, p. 27). It held the answers we needed to an uninsulated roof jutting out alone over our office. We weren't sure if we should bother crawling in and...

Time of use. (Letters).
January 1, 2003... Which produces greater societal benefit--conservation or curtailment? With regard to the article ("New Technologies Generate Bicoastal Successes," Sept/Oct '02, p. 14) reporting the "bicoastal successes" of Time of Use (TOU) rates, I would like...

Don't get burnt. (Diagnostics).
January 1, 2003... Q: I read your article about renovations to houses in New York City ("From Ruin to Rehab," May/June '00, p. 24) and noticed that the author addressed a stratification problem in indirect water heater tanks by adding a pump. I could not be sure,...

A serious challenge to a new building technology. (Diagnostics).
January 1, 2003... Every new building technology comes with new problems along with its benefits, and structural insulated panels (SIPs) are no different. SIPs are made of rigid foam insulation sandwiched between sheets of oriented strand board (OSB). The sheets...

RESNET seeks input on Home Energy rating standards. (Programs).
January 1, 2003... The Mortgage Industry National Home Energy Rating Standards are the national standards that guide home energy ratings. They are recognized by the mortgage industry for documenting energy savings for energy mortgages, and by EPA for the labeling...

Sunup to sundown. (Software/Web).
January 1, 2003... You need special tools to design high-performance homes--residences where energy efficiency creates greater comfort, health, and energy savings. Making decisions about energy efficiency requires the accurate calculation of energy use and...

After the flood: since people continue to build--and rebuild--their houses in flood prone areas, finding the materials that hold up best after flooding could save energy and money and keep tons of material out of landfills.
January 1, 2003... The extensive flooding that took place last fall in the southeastern United States brought attention once again to a persistent problem. Floods and flooding result in more damage to buildings throughout the United States than any other natural...

New construction report card: in order to make energy-efficient and comfortable new houses, California builders need to pay more attention to the details.
January 1, 2003... Houses are getting more complicated these days, at least in California. Features such as cantilevered floors, interior columns, arches, and soffits complicate the work of the mechanical contractor and the framers, insulators, and drywall...

Just how big is a 2 kW photovoltaic system? Analysis of hourly metered data collected from 19 residential grid-tied PV systems in California helps to answer questions about actual system power output.
January 1, 2003... In recent years technology advances, environmental considerations, and economic factors have contributed to an increased interest in grid-tied photovoltaic (PV) systems for homes. Well-funded support and promotional programs in Japan, Germany,...

The avocados, the golds--the replaceables? Can you spot an inefficient refrigerator by its color or its age? Tests reveal which rules a program administrator can depend on. (Appliances).
January 1, 2003... Many states are currently introducing electric baseload components into their low-income weatherization programs. Often replacing refrigerators rises to the top of a reducing baseload to-do list. But which refrigerators should be replaced?...

Testing air sealing techniques: a detailed component leakage database for different building envelope technologies should be considered as one of the key elements for future energy-designing tools. (Diagnostics).
January 1, 2003... Despite the sophistication of modern building design methods, detailed information has not yet been fully developed that links air leakage for the whole building to the sum of air leakage for individual building components. Each type of...

Declaring freedom. (Field Notes).
January 1, 2003... With insurance costs skyrocketing and some insurers no longer writing new policies or even canceling policies, insurability is becoming a very important consideration in home construction. And with respiratory ailments now afflicting one or...

It's cold up there. (Now and Notable).
January 1, 2003... The Cold Climate Housing Research Center (CCHRC) facilitates the development, use, and testing of energy-efficient, durable, healthy, and cost-effective building technologies for Alaska and the world's cold circumpolar climate regions. ...

An efficiency genius. (Now and Notable).
January 1, 2003... David Goldstein, energy programs co-director of the Natural Resources Defense Council, is a recipient of the 2002 John T. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's prestigious genius award. The award recognizes Goldstein's passion for applying...

Retro results of restructuring. (Now and Notable).
January 1, 2003... A new study, conducted by the National Center for Appropriate Technology, documents many adverse effects of electric and natural gas market restructuring on residential customers, particularly low- and moderate-income households. The...

At your fingertips. (Now and Notable).
January 1, 2003... The GreenSpec Building Product Directory has been revised and expanded. The 416-page third edition includes detailed information on more than 1,650 products, from access flooring to zero-VOC paint. The guide was prepared by the editors of...

Consumer-generated electricity sparks up. (Now and Notable).
January 1, 2003... In California, Governor Gray Davis approved a bill that will extend the state's net metering law indefinitely. The California net metering law applies to systems up to 1 MW in size, although it places restrictions on wind installations greater...

Calendar.
January 1, 2003... January 7-8, 2003 Energy Management Conference, A Gathering on Electricity, Louisville, Kentucky. Contact: East Kentucky Power Cooperative, P.O. Box 707, Winchester, KY 40392. Tel: (859)744-4812. January 23 High-Performance...