by Charles Hendricks | Jan 11, 2016 | Building Science
The profession of architecture is often looked at through the lens of television or magazines – how to make buildings beautiful. However, that is not the true work done by architects. Beauty is a minor part of the equation. Beauty is the part of the design process that can be replaced by purchasing a plan online and giving it to a builder with “a few changes.” Building science is what makes a beautiful building last for years.
A good architect will talk to you first about function over form.
What are your needs? How do you want to use the building? What are the rules that need to be followed, building code, zoning? What are the rules that can be broken? Where will you put your Christmas tree? Do you like to host Super Bowl parties? Do the kids have a dedicated place they can do their homework? How loud is the television downstairs when you are trying to sleep upstairs? Where will you store your stuff? What kind of light will be in that room?
Even better questions can follow a line of building science guided decisions.
How efficient will the house be once you move into it? Will you feel comfortable in all the rooms year-round? How much money will you spend heating and cooling your home? Building science questions are the only questions that have answers that result in money saved. Building science questions almost always address the quality of things that cannot easily be changed once the home is built. Building science questions are almost always the most important decisions that are needed to be made before a builder gives a price to construct the home.
Who sets the building science goals of a project?
Most builders will not be focused on thinking through building science decisions when they are given a set of house plans. Their goal is to build the home in the most efficient way possible according to the plans you gave them. So if they don’t set the building science goals, who does?
Air gaps in ceiling corners
If you purchase a plan online, the designer does not know what site you are building on or the climate you are building in. If you hire an architect that does not discuss building science solutions (insulation types, wall systems, HVAC efficiency, water conservation, ventilation, lighting….) then who will set the standards for your home. Typically the fall back for these solutions are building code, but keep in mind that building code is the worst possible solution allowed by law.
Not all architects consider building science solutions, but a good architect does.
Building sciences require a holistic approach. It is not simply adding more insulation in the walls or attic. Insulation decisions have to be made along with heating and cooling efficiency, ventilation, and window selection in mind. These questions, and more importantly, these answers have to be done holistically or you will create more problems than you solve. Using the wrong insulation in the attic can lead to huge moisture problems. Locating the HVAC ducts in the wrong space will lead to condensation and higher energy bills.
Buildings are complicated, probably the most complicated machine you will ever own. Make building science as important as the countertop selection you are making for your kitchen. Don’t leave out building science during design.
by Charles Hendricks | Jan 5, 2016 | Building Science
It certainly has gotten cold here. As I write this, it is 17 degrees outside and the high for tomorrow is in the 30s. This sudden change in weather has certainly hit me hard. I hope you are staying warm. Speaking of staying warm, is your house comfortable? Do you have enough of the right kind of attic insulation in the right places?
Over the years I have been in a LOT of attics and most of them do not have the right kind of insulation and certainly not enough of it. Even worse, there is often duct work running in the space on the wrong side of the attic insulation, the cold side, with very little insulation around the ducts. Code says you need R-38 insulation in the attic as a minimum. I would say that is about half what you should have for your attic in our climate if you are using fiberglass insulation or cellulose. Think of it as adding a second blanket to your entire house.
In areas where duct work penetrates the conditioned space at the supply points, there is no insulation. Having the duct work inside the thermal envelope would fix this problem. So if you have the chance, insulation on the underside of the roof sheathing, open cell spray foam, is certainly a better solution than fiberglass or cellulose on the floor of the attic (when duct work is in the space). Spray foam is air tight and when installed in the appropriate places will make your home both comfortable and energy-efficient.
Other holes that exist in the insulation envelope can be can lights and eave ventilation that does not have baffles. These holes and air leaks from improper sealing of the thermal envelope all combine to diminish the effectiveness of your installed insulation. Finding ways to stop air leakage and installing the proper amount of attic insulation will help on these cold days.
If you have fiberglass insulation, add more to achieve R-72. If you have cellulose, add more to achieve R-72. However, if you want to get it right insulate with an air tight solution, open cell spray foam is the easiest method to create a home that will be comfortable and energy-efficient for many years.
by Charles Hendricks | Dec 21, 2015 | Building Science, Green Building, green term defined, Indoor Air Quality
Green Terms Defined Summary 2015
2012 International Energy Conservation Code: Minimum energy code standards adopted by the Commonwealth of Virginia
Air Changes per Hour (ACH): the measure how many times the air within a defined space is replaced.
ASHRAE 90.1: a standard in the US that provides minimum requirements for energy-efficient designs for buildings except for low-rise residential buildings.
Carbon Footprint: a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases we produce.
Carbon Neutral Building: the process of taking into account measuring, reducing, and offsetting carbon energy used by the building.
Cellulose Insulation: a low-thermal-conductivity material use to reduce heat loss and gain from a building.
Ceramic tile: made from clay that has been permanently hardened by heat, often having a decorative glaze.
Commissioning: verification and documentation that a building and the systems used are designed, installed, tested, operated, and maintained to meet the project requirements set by the building owner.
Conduction: the flow of heat through an object by transferring heat from one molecule to another. Think frying pan on a stove or wood stud that touches the inside drywall and the outside wall sheathing.
Convection: refers to the transfer of heat by a moving fluid. Thing warm air rising and cool air sinking in a room. Convection loops circulate near walls. During the heating season, warm air is cooled by exterior walls and falls towards the floor, creating a convection loop. Convective loops can also happen within framing cavities if the insulation doesn’t completely fill the space.
Edible landscaping: the practical integration of food plants within your landscape for the purposes of decorating as well as producing food.
Erosion: the removal of soil and rock by water from one location to another.
ERV or Energy Recovery Ventilator: part of a balanced ventilation system that transfers water vapor and heat from one airstream to another.
Flashing: a strip of impervious material used to stop water from penetrating the junction of a wall or roof with another surface.
Fly Ash: a fine, glass like powder recovered from the coal-burning process for the production of electricity.
Formaldehyde: A gas used widely in production of adhesives, plastics, preservatives, and fabric treatments and commonly emitted by indoor materials that are made with its compounds.
Grasslands Conservation Carbon Offsets: similar to forestry, native grasses and other vegetation provide a natural source of greenhouse gas (GHG) absorption and sequestration.
Historic Building: a structure that has historic, architectural, or cultural significance.
Humidistat: an electronic device that measures the relative humidity in a space.
HVAC: Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning system in your home or business.
Infrared Thermography, thermal imaging, or thermal video: a type of infrared imaging used for determining air leakage in energy audits.
Insulated concrete form (ICF): a wall building system made of reinforced concrete and most commonly rigid thermal insulation.
Insulating Curtains: Thermal curtains have a lining that resists temperature change and are heavy enough to stop air flow.
Interior design: the art or process of designing the interior of a room or building.
Karst Topography: an area of irregular limestone in which erosion has produced fisures, sinkholes, underground streams and caverns.
Lifetime Home: A design approach that encompasses specific design features that ensure that a new house or apartment will meet the current and future needs of most households.
Light Shelf: a horizontal overhanging element located above the eye-level and typically having a highly reflective upper surface.
Linoleum: a resilient flooring product that was developed in the 1800’s. It consists of cork flour, linseed oil, oak dust, and jute.
Natural Ventilation: the process of supplying and removing air by natural means from building spaces by using windows, doors, solar chimneys, and non-powered ventilators.
Net Metering: a method of crediting consumers for the electricity that is generated on their home or business in excess of the total electricity that they have used.
No-Step Entry or zero-step entry: a flush entry from the driveway or garage into your home.
Pervious Concrete: concrete that allows water to move through the material into a storage area under the pavement.
Radiation: flow of heat from a warm source through space in waves of infrared or visible light energy. Think sunlight through a window.
Renovation: the act of repurposing / updating / remodeling of a building.
Resilient Design: the capacity of a design to adapt to changing conditions and to maintain or regain functionality and vitality in the face of stress or disturbance.
Single-stream recycling: a process or system where all paper, plastics, metals, cardboard, glass, and trash goes into the same can and is sorted by the facility into separate commodities.
Solatube: a tubular daylighting system
Specifications: define the requirements regarding materials, products, installation and quality aspects pertaining to the execution of the work and contract.
Thermal Bridge: where heat occurs across more conductive components in an otherwise well-insulated material, resulting in disproportionately significant heat loss.
Tiny House: home designed to be less than 1,000 sf
Vampire Load: the power consumed by electronics and appliances while they are technically switched off or in standby mode.
Vapor Barrier: a barrier that reduces the rate that water vapor can move through a material.
Wastewater: water from bathtubs, shower drains, sinks, washing machines, and dishwashers is considered grey water.
WaterSense: a label program created by the Environmental Protection Agency for consumers to easily identify water efficient products.
Weatherization: the practice of using cost-effective strategies to modify a building to decrease energy usage and increase comfort.
Window: Casement or Double-Hung glass opening in a wall system.
by Charles Hendricks | Dec 18, 2015 | Building Science
Air tight is the most critical element of green building design. The easiest way to be air tight in an existing home is using caulk at every gap and crack between building materials. The top and bottom plate of a wall, electrical outlets, doors and windows, all penetrations need to be sealed and air tight. The attic access should be considered as a door and weather stripped and insulated. The rim board (the place where floor joist meet the exterior wall) is always a huge air leak. This can be fixed in an unconditioned crawl or an unfinished basement.
There are many places where air leaks impact comfort and energy-efficiency in the average home. Ducts that are not sealed tight leak out air before it reaches the room it is intended to heat or cool. Double Hung windows have a weak air seal where the two window panes intersect. A finished wood floor will leak air into the crawl space below. The tongue and groove vaulted ceiling will leak air to the outside of the thermal envelope. Air always leaks around recessed can lights. Any penetration in the walls from outside for water lines, electrical panel, or dryer vents are consistently a place for air leaks.
Seal these gaps and cracks with a silicone caulk to stop air leakage before you take any other action. The next step, insulation, can also do the air sealing if you use spray foam.
by Charles Hendricks | Dec 17, 2015 | Building Science
In every house I visit to do an energy audit, the electrical outlets have been a major source of air infiltration. Sealing these holes up in your thermal envelope will reduce your energy usage and make your home more comfortable.
Yes, I realize these are small areas with small gaps. However, there is very little if any insulation behind the box in the wall. There is almost never any air sealing around the box.
The easiest first step is to add child protection covers to the outlets. This stops some of the air moving through the outlet. The next step is to add insulation strips behind the outlet cover. While they are thin and offer very little R-Value – they are better than nothing.
The final step, seal the box tight to the drywall.
All of these steps should be done in order to maximize the effectiveness of the solution. Sealing and insulating all the outlets in both interior and exterior walls is a critical first step in making your home more energy-efficient. To learn more about making your home energy-efficient, read this post.
Even better questions can follow a line of 
It certainly has gotten cold here. As I write this, it is 17 degrees outside and the high for tomorrow is in the 30s. This sudden change in weather has certainly hit me hard. I hope you are staying warm. Speaking of staying warm, is your house comfortable? Do you have enough of the right kind of attic insulation in the right places?
Other holes that exist in the insulation envelope can be can lights and eave ventilation that does not have baffles. These holes and air leaks from improper sealing of the thermal envelope all combine to diminish the effectiveness of your installed insulation. Finding ways to stop air leakage and installing the proper amount of attic insulation will help on these cold days.
If you have fiberglass insulation, add more to achieve R-72. If you have cellulose, add more to achieve R-72. However, if you want to get it right insulate with an air tight solution, open cell spray foam is the easiest method to create a home that will be comfortable and energy-efficient for many years.
Air tight is the most critical element of green building design. The easiest way to be air tight in an existing home is using caulk at every gap and crack between building materials. The top and bottom plate of a wall, electrical outlets, doors and windows, all penetrations need to be sealed and air tight. The attic access should be considered as a door and weather stripped and insulated. The rim board (the place where floor joist meet the exterior wall) is always a huge air leak. This can be fixed in an unconditioned crawl or an unfinished basement.
In every house I visit to do an energy audit, the electrical outlets have been a major source of air infiltration. Sealing these holes up in your thermal envelope will reduce your energy usage and make your home more comfortable. 
