http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/ HGTVPro.com contributor Eric Helton discusses the science behind the best practices for homebuilding. 2008-05-07T09:03:11-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/05/a_smoke_alarm_with_design_and.html A while back, we were lamenting the design aesthetics (or lack thereof) of many of the thermostats in our houses. It's nice that there are more and more thermostats being offered with sleek designs. The same can finally be said of smoke alarms. The Kidde Silhouette is an attractive alternative to historic smoke alarm aesthetics.

]]> ehelton 2008-05-07T09:03:11-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/04/energy_star_water_heating.html Energy Star has released information about the Energy Star Water Heater criteria that will take effect in January 2009. This is exciting news, as water heaters had not been Energy Star certified prior to this, and it will help people make informed decisions about products' energy efficiency and potential long-term cost savings. Depending on the type of water heater, choosing an Energy Star model is estimated to save 7.3 to 55% of typical annual energy use for water heating. This relates to $26 to $277 a year.

]]> ehelton 2008-04-09T11:45:22-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/03/ornl_and_habitat_for_humanity.html Here is a nice article about work our friends at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have been doing with Habitat for Humanity in Tennessee.

]]> ehelton 2008-03-27T13:45:55-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/03/inexpensive_home_electrical_en.html A high-performance house client from a few years back just sent me an email saying he has opened a retail store for environmental and sustainable products. He asked me if I could point him toward some products for homeowners to monitor their electrical usage. I figured I'd share the list as an easy entry for a Friday afternoon. :)

]]> ehelton 2008-03-21T16:36:06-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/03/is_home_automation_part_of_the.html A study just released by ABI Research says that the market for home automation and security systems is beginning to open up. Costs of systems and components are coming down, and the technologies are becoming much more accessible to the non-techie. Are we going to see advances in energy efficiency due to the control such systems may have over the HVAC, lighting, and other electric loads? Or, will it be adding electrical consumption to the house where there currently isn't?

]]> ehelton 2008-03-17T11:55:21-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/02/a_cathedralized_attic_in_a_hot.html This was the title from a colleague's paper recently presented at the Buildings X Conference. Yes, it's a little dry sounding, as it was written for a building scientist crowd, but I want to discuss some aspects of the type of construction used in the high performance house where this study took place.

]]> ehelton 2008-02-23T17:16:18-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2008/01/howd_it_get_to_be_the_end_of_j.html Happy New Year! January has screamed by somehow. I spent most of the past two months on the road, but am back in the office and excited to share some of the things I've learned at the conferences I've been to.

]]> ehelton 2008-01-29T14:46:23-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2007/12/responding_to_your_thermostat.html All right, there has been a great response to the post asking what you all thought about thermostats. Thanks to everyone who contributed. There is a lot of good information in your comments. It's funny how we use the term thermostat, like it's an easily defined product that simply controls temperature. However, the variation in experiences indicates it's not so simple. The comments show that it is hard to talk about one component without bringing other components of the house into the conversation.

]]> ehelton 2007-12-02T21:58:37-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2007/11/smaller_lowenergy_green_homes.html In mid-October, I attended an annual conference put on by the Energy & Environmental Building Association (EEBA). It was a fun event with a spectacular mix of great folks: builders, home energy experts, product manufacturers, building scientists, utilities, nonprofits, and people who are simply interested in green building. There were lectures tuned to the interests of every group and lots of fun products to play with at the manufacturer's expo.

]]> ehelton 2007-11-09T11:35:01-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2007/10/is_a_thermostat_just_a_box_on.html Hi friends, I wonder how this is going to work. I've said before that I'd like to have this blog be a bit of collaboration, instead of me just whistling into the Internet. So, I'd like to tap into your brains and lives for some perspective.

]]> ehelton 2007-10-31T11:33:01-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2007/10/the_next_wave_of_green_archite.html I had the opportunity to work with one of the teams for the 2007 Solar Decathlon competition that recently took place in Washington, D.C. Twenty teams of students from colleges and universities across the United States and several other countries pit their engineering, architectural, and communication skills against each other to build energy efficient, attractive, solar-based houses.

]]> ehelton 2007-10-24T11:29:29-05:00 http://blogs.hgtvpro.com/hgtvpro/building_science/archive/2007/10/my_two_cents_1.html Hi Everyone.

I've been asked to put my $0.02 into words for this group of folks interested in making the houses we live in as good as possible. My day job is with a company that tries to bridge the gap between homebuilding research and real life.

]]> ehelton 2007-10-17T11:17:31-05:00