by srmi | Feb 7, 2013 | Energy News
Neglectful Design I understand why developers and contractors want to build commercial buildings out of steel. For cost and flexibility of design, it’s hard to beat steal beams, girders, and studs. The design error is to overestimate the R-value you achieve with...
by srmi | Feb 5, 2013 | Energy News
What is a Passive House? The passive house concept was pioneered in the Northern U.S. and Canada in the late 1970s and early 1980s when it was called “superinsulation”. European builders have improved the superinsulation technology and applied it to both...
by srmi | Nov 1, 2012 | Energy News
Biomass energy, especially woody biomass fuels, is our cleanest combustion solution to heating buildings and generating electricity through combined heat and power (CHP). Unfortunately, there is no powerful lobby to promote biomass heating or CHP. So most people do...
by srmi | Oct 15, 2012 | Energy News
Approximately half of all energy used in the U.S. is consumed within buildings. Half of that energy is wasted because of shortsighted design, sloppy construction practices, and careless building operation. Energy conservation in buildings is the easiest and best...
by srmi | Oct 3, 2012 | Energy News
Solar energy is the next best building-energy solution after energy conservation. Wind and photovoltaic electricity are competitive with coal-fired electricity and less expensive than nuclear electricity. However solar energy isn’t as powerful, or reliable, as...
