4 Ways to Fix Your Duct System
I've written a lot of articles about ducts here, but I haven't yet addressed today's topic: common problems with ducts and how to fix them. This one is for homeowners or renters who want to save money and be more…
The Energy Vanguard Blog
4 Ways to Duct a Dehumidifier
Humidity control is becoming a bigger deal than it used to be. As Joseph Lstiburek, PhD, PE said to me one time, "the gap between stupid and hurt is narrowing." Building codes and best practices are getting better, which is…
How I Got Faster Hot Water
In my last post, I told you about the plumbing work I did to begin the retrofit of my hot water distribution system. I'm bypassing the original too-long, too-big copper pipes with shorter, smaller runs of PEX tubing. My goal…
A Weekend Plumbing Adventure
Did you know that some plumbers stuff a wad of white bread (sans crust) into a pipe before they solder it? That's one of the things I learned during my weekend plumbing adventure. More about that later, though. The purpose…
The Meaning of Rejected Energy
I love the US energy flow charts published by the Lawrence Livermore National Lab each year. The chart for 2021 came out in April, and you can see it in its full glory above. (Right click to download the full…
10 Building Science Lies to Watch out for
This past week I learned the truth about another one of many building science lies. It's the first one in my list here. Having my eyes opened to that lie made think of some of the other ones out there. …
My Undersized Mini-Split Heat Pump in a Heat Wave
You may recall that I wrote about my undersized mini-split heat pump a couple of years ago. It's undersized compared to both the heating and cooling loads, as you can see in the table below. I'll discuss the heating performance…
Make It a Mechanical Room, Not Just a Closet
In our HVAC design work, we get sent projects where the client sometimes wants the impossible. They've read enough to know they want the mechanical systems in conditioned space, so they put a tiny little closet somewhere in the house…
Introduction to Whole-House Electricity Monitoring
Last year I bought the Emporia Vue whole-house electricity monitoring system.* This past weekend, I finally installed it. The photo below shows my electrical panel with the monitor installed. Yes, it looks like a mess at the moment. The panel…
Air Conditioner Sizing: Load Calculations vs Rules of Thumb
It's time to revisit one of my favorite topics: air conditioner sizing. Many contractors use rules of thumb to decide what size cooling equipment to install. Usually, the rule is based on the amount of conditioned floor area, and contractors…