Water Heaters Demystified

February 7th, 2010 by andrea in Energy, Energy Conservation, Water

water heater(NC)—Water heaters quietly function in basement corners across the country, providing hot water to millions of families on a daily basis. Most take hot water for granted, but when a water heater stops providing hot water, one wonders what they really know about their water tank. Dave Walton, director home ideas with Direct Energy talks about the most common myths and questions he’s heard around water heaters recently:

Myth: You have dirty water if you have an older water heater.

Truth: Water heaters work for years without accumulating any significant buildup of rust – that’s how they are designed. Small amounts of sediment or lime can accumulate at the bottom of the tank over the life of a water heater, but since hot water is pulled from the top of the tank, your water is largely unaffected by the small deposits of sediment.

Myth: Annual maintenance improves efficiency. Read the rest of this entry »

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Energy Efficient Homes for 2010

February 5th, 2010 by andrea in Energy, Energy Conservation, Uncategorized

efficient furnace(NC)—As Canadian homeowners enter a new decade, the topic of home energy efficiency is hard to overlook. Over the past year, many homeowners made energy efficiency upgrades to their homes and took advantage of federal and provincial rebates. On December 31, 2009 a new energy efficiency initiative took effect in the form of the National Minimum Energy Performance Standard for residential gas furnaces. The new Canadian standard requires that all gas furnaces operate at a minimum of 90% efficiency. This applies to new purchases only; homeowners are not required to switch out existing gas furnaces until they are ready to do so.

An additional energy efficiency tool is also available to help homeowners save energy. Direct Energy suggests Canadians take advantage of an energy audit, which can identify areas in the home which can be upgraded to a more energy efficient standard. A Direct Energy home energy assessment will result in a tailored list of suggested energy efficiency upgrades for each home audited. Many of the energy efficiency upgrades, if implemented, can qualify the homeowner for various federal and/or provincial rebates.

Completing an energy audit should be the first step a homeowner takes towards increasing the energy efficiency of their home, and reducing their energy bills.

More information is available online at www.directenergy.com or toll-free 1-888-334-8221.

www.newscanada.com

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Cork. A Warm (and quiet) Introduction to Nature’s Perfect Floor

February 3rd, 2010 by andrea in Products + Materials, Projects

(NC)—While it’s relatively new to us, cork flooring has been used in Europe for centuries because of its resilience, durability and surprisingly versatile, attractive designs. Today, cork is taking North America by storm due to all of those attributes, plus its unsurpassed eco-friendliness and sustainability.

Cork is hand-harvested, and no trees are harmed in this ancient practice. Century-old cork trees, harvested every nine years, still thrive in the forests of Portugal and Spain.

Eco-engineering of modern cork floors allows them to be installed over existing flooring including tiles. And, once installed, cork doesn’t merely beautify the home, it mutes and muffles sound with its natural acoustic properties, provides exceptional cushioning and warmth with its natural insulation properties, and is hypo-allergenic to safeguard your family’s health. Read the rest of this entry »

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How to Increase Energy Efficiency With DIY Renovations

February 1st, 2010 by andrea in Energy, Energy Conservation, Uncategorized

(NC)—Will you renovate your home this year? Up to 74 % of Canadian home owners claimed they would renovate if it meant that it would increase energy efficiency and save them money in the long run (RBC survey). However, rising energy costs during the cold winter months can leave many homeowners worrying about paying the heating bills instead of renovating. Well, the government grants available mean you can renovate and it won’t cost you a fortune!

The ecoENERGY Retrofit – Homes program is offering a grant of up to $5000 from the Government of Canada for energy efficiency renovations which have not yet started. Some energy utilities and provincial governments offer additional funding. For more information on ecoEnergy grants and incentives, visit www.ecoaction.gc.ca/homes. Read the rest of this entry »

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Window Coverings

January 14th, 2010 by Conrad in Air Quality, Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building Blogs, Products + Materials

IMG_2416

The temptation has always been there for eco-house builders. It’s those damn windows; they are just so useless once the sun goes down. There must be some way to insulate them once they no longer need to be seen through, right? Read the rest of this entry »

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Family Support is Priceless

January 9th, 2010 by andrea in Blogs - Andrea's Green Kitchen, Community, Green Building Blogs, Projects, Reclaimed + Recycled Materials

Recycled content moldingOh, how the little things can make such a big difference! As some of you may have noticed, our green kitchen reno slowed to a stop. There has been nothing to report for several months, which was really demoralizing, especially as I prepared newsletters with updates from other bloggers who were building entire green homes from scratch!

Meanwhile we were left with an assortment of glaring niggly finishing tasks that we had neither time nor energy to complete, not to mention a floor that turned out nothing like what I had imagined.

Enter Super Dad. Read the rest of this entry »

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Observations (Part 02)

December 17th, 2009 by Conrad in Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Energy, Energy Conservation, Green Building + Design, Green Building Blogs, Green Homes, Renewable Energy, Solar

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Mill Creek NetZero Home, December 15, 2009, 14:00.

As we approach the winter solstice and the three-month anniversary of our moving in, we continue to learn about our new house. These observations are mostly qualitative, because we don’t have the rest of our solar modules up, and we haven’t set up monitoring equipment yet. We are tentatively planning to remove the door of our wood stove on July 1st, 2010  and then monitor the house’s energy use for a year. Read the rest of this entry »

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Straw Bale Home Building Primer

December 10th, 2009 by greenspree in Blogs - Shire Strawbale Home, Green Building + Design, Green Building Blogs, Green Homes, Straw Bale

IMG_5788.JPGSo you want to build your own straw bale home.  You’ve seen them in green home building books and on TV shows, you saw green home builders wax poetic about their homes low impact on the environment and connection to the local ecology.  You’ve researched all the possible alternative home building techniques and the thought of conventional framing makes you shudder.  You are going to build a straw bale home no matter what obstacles the MAN and doubters have to say!  Well far be it for me to try and dissuade you!

There are some things you should know and experience first though.  This, in all likely-hood, is going to be one of the most challenging things you will ever take on.   Read the rest of this entry »

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Bike-o-phile Gift Idea

December 7th, 2009 by andrea in Lifestyle, Projects, Transportation

Have someone in your life who brings hardcore to a new level by biking through the winter to save our climate? Reward his or her courage and tenacity this year with a handmade bike chain bracelet. Here’s a simple warm and fuzzy ‘how-to’ via ThreadBanger to get you started. Note: a quick trip to your local jewelry shop and you’ll have plenty of clasp and embellishment options!

View bike chain bracelet video here. See note below.

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Ventilation

November 25th, 2009 by Conrad in Air Quality, Blogs - Mill Creek Net Zero Home, Energy Conservation, Green Building Blogs

Mill Creek NetZero Home Heat Recovery Ventilator

I heard a story once about a man who built a house using insulated concrete forms (ICFs). While I don’t advocate their use in general, ICFs have some distinct advantages (certainly over conventional construction). The primary of these advantages is supreme air tightness. ICF homes (those that are built with ICFs from top to bottom) can achieve hourly air change rates of 0.2. In contrast, the Mill Creek NetZero Home has an airtightness measurement of 0.36 ACH, which is really amazing for a wood-framed house. Read the rest of this entry »

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