Green Homes News

Hello,I am having my builder do a blower door test after mechanicals have been put in but before insulation is done to do some blower door directed air sealing and…

Hi everyone,Firstly, I must say that the community has been a very insightful source of information, as I think I have read almost all the materials on this topic.Nevertheless, I…

A homeowner in Arkansas weighs the benefits of mineral wool batts and sprayed Polishing foam — but a third option may be the winner

If saving money is the main motivation, you might want rethink that do-it-yourself project. Start by asking yourself these questions.

I live in a 1980 MCM home in Sacramento, CA. Climate zone 3B. My house has a low pitch roof with the ceiling drywall attached to the bottom of the…

June 26, 2024

By Roxana Shafiee and Dan Schrag

Electrification through heat pumps is a primary strategy for decarbonizing residential heating in Massachusetts. The state has announced ambitions for 65% of residential-scale heating to be heat pump equipment by 2030 and 90% by 2040, earmarking nearly 4 billion dollars in incentives between 2022 and 2024 to promote uptake. Yet high electricity prices across the state (among the highest in the country) mean that heat pump adoption will increase household heating bills and energy burdens, preventing widespread uptake. Here, we undertake a...

Read more about Opportunities for Cost-Effective Residential Heat Pump Adoption in Massachusetts

Hi, we finished building our house. It’s an apartment on a barn built to pretty good house standards. It’s 1100 ft.² in zone 4a (Nashville area).  We heat and cool…

Hi, my house was built in 1973 and I'm pretty sure it's not mechanically connected to the foundation. I'd previously asked a question about sealing the gap between the foundation…

I'm located in climate zone 5B and looking to replace about 20 windows while considering the implications of importing vs. buying from a local manufacturer. Imported tilt and turn windows…

Location: Virtual

Our community of scholars works to coordinate, support, and amplify climate and health research.... Read more about Climate and Health Research Network

I need to cover the exposed top edge of the concrete foundation walls with an air barrier / insulation (~R5) that can easily tie into the closed-cell spray foam that…

Hey so I'm building a small house myself and I'm trying to avoid mold and moisture as much as possible. Everyone in the area throws up a 2x6 wall, fiber batt,…

We have a slab-on-grade build designed to have an exterior moisture membrane applied (Protecto LWM 200) on the 4’ stem walls and insulation to be applied to the interior of…

Our build is slab-on-grade with footings and 4’ stem walls. Currently, our build specifies the use of form-a-drain around the entire perimeter and an interior passive sump and radon mitigation…

Hey folks,I've been renovating a rural house in Vermont (zone 5b) that was once teeming with squirrels -- yuck.  Had to rip lots of drywall and insulation, then decide how…

I read in this article that it is advised to use a capillary break between footings and stem wall especially when you have a finished basement. https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/adding-a-capillary-break-to-the-footing#:~:text=A%20capillary%20break%20is%20typically,barrier%20provides%20a%20capillary%20break.My question is, what…

Learn how to use information from two performance rating systems to select windows that will stay dry in given environmental conditions

Has anyone here used GP's Forcefield sheathing and used Prosoco's Fast Flash for fenestrations? Curious if they work together.Thanks,

I am planning my backyard office (140 sq ft) that will be "monopoly framed" with no eaves (This for aesthetic reasons, city setback requirements, and HOA guidelines.)The siding with the…

I like Lstiburek’s ideal double-stud wall with the structural wall on the interior. Durability and resilience are important to me and I think this wall is good from that perspective.…