I know what you’re thinking, how can a McMansion be green – especially with tiny homes becoming popular – and when you see the photo below you’ll be even more skeptical. Add in the $2.5 million price tag and it sounds like a bridge-to-nowhere disaster. But before you pass judgement let’s learn more about the …
Continue reading “Federal government builds a net-zero energy McMansion”
A Passive House certification is one of the highest available for energy-efficient homes. And this residence hall in Belfast, Maine demonstrates that, “space heating costs for TerraHaus are less than $300 per year ($30 per student), a big improvement from the two poorly insulated housing units it replaced, each with an annual space heating cost …
Continue reading “The first high performance – ultra energy-efficient – residence hall”
A home profiled in Wired has six very interesting zero-carbon elements, but it’s the last two that fascinate me – thick walls and ultra-efficient windows. Thick walls mean “two 8-inch-thick concrete layers that protect the interior from outside temperature fluctuations. On hot days, the concrete absorbs and retains heat, keeping rooms cool; at night it slowly …
Continue reading “Moving towards 100% thermal insulation for homes”
There are many who dream of owning the smallest home they can find; a strong reaction to those who dream of owning a two-story mini-mansion. Here is a CNN profile of a young couple who did just that – moving their two kids, cat and dog into a 168 square foot home (on 3 acres …
Continue reading “CNN profile of a couple moving from a 1,500 to 168-square foot home”
Our homes were never designed for energy efficiency. So what happens when designers, architects, and engineers approach the problem? From the European Solar Decathlon: “The house generates twice as much energy in Hungarian conditions and three times as much in Madrid as the house itself spends,” the Odooproject team states. “This amount is able to …
Continue reading “European Solar Decathlon – Solar home creates twice the energy it uses”
Through a series of pumps and electricity, from the USGS Water Science School: Let’s assume that you get your water from the local water department through pipes buried below the streets. In other words, you don’t have your own well in your back yard. Chances are that you get your water through gravity and pumps. …
The EPA is reporting the wrong information on global warming and I want them to get it right. The information they publish becomes the gold standard and is reported in the media, covered on TV, and published all across the web. It reaches the eyes and ears of a majority of Americans, and so why are they …
Continue reading “The EPA is screwing up the discussion on global warming”
The average person uses 80-100 gallons of water a day. But where is all that water used? Toilet – 27% Laundry – 22% Shower – 17% Faucet – 16% Leaks – 14% Water stats: Showers – 2 gallons/minute – bathtub holds 36 gallons. Kitchen faucets – 2 gallons/minute. Bathroom faucet – 1 gallon/minute. …
We’ve written a number of stories about police officers interfering with citizens who are trying to record the actions of police in public places. In some cases, cops have arrested citizens for making recordings in public. In others, they’ve seized cell phones and deleted the recordings. The courts and the Obama administration have both said that these activities violate the Constitution. And …
“Humanity is not yet discovering how to use these glorious birds,” Bill Campbell.