Musings of an energy nerd : toward an energy-efficient home Cover Image

Book

Musings of an energy nerd : toward an energy-efficient home / Martin Holladay.

Summary:

"In this fascinating collection of postings from his popular "Musings of an Energy Nerd" blog, Green Building Advisor's Martin Holladay cuts through the hype and myths about energy efficiency, sustainability, and green building to present the very best ways to make your home more energy efficient.... The book begins with an overview of energy priorities, and a discussion of what we mean by terms like green and sustainable. Martin presents several options for energy upgrades for an existing house (from replacing windows to adding superinsulation) before looking at ways to improve the energy efficiency of a new house. Separate chapters follow on HVAC, domestic hot water, appliances, and renewable energy, before the book wraps up with an eye-opening chapter on useless products, scams, and myths (including Martin's list of "Stupid Energy-Saving Tips")" -- Amazon.com.

Record details

ISBN: 9781631862564
ISBN: 1631862561
Physical Description: 267 pages : color illustrations ; 24 cm
Publisher: Newtown, CT : The Taunton Press, Inc., [2017]

Content descriptions

General Note:

Includes index.

Formatted Contents Note:

Introduction: What is comfort? -- 1. Construction basics -- 10 ways to improve a new home -- Banish these details from your plans -- Martin's 10 rules of roof design -- How to build an insulated cathedral ceiling -- Ice dam basics -- All about basements -- Building an unvented crawl space -- Polyethylene under concrete slabs -- How to design a wall -- 2. Building science -- Do I need a vapor retarder? -- Forget vapor diffusion - Stop the air leaks! -- When sunshine drives moisture into walls -- How risky is cold OSB wall sheathing? -- Monitoring moisture levels in double-studed walls -- 3. Energy modeling -- Understanding energy units -- Using Manual J for load calculations? -- When do I need to perform a load calculation? -- Energy modeling isn't very accurate -- Payback calculations for energy-efficiency upgrades -- 4. Airtightness -- Blower door basic x -- Questions and answers about air barriers -- Pinpointing leaks with a fog machine -- All about attics -- Air sealing an attic -- Getting the biggest bang for your air-sealing buck -- All about indoor air quality -- 5. Insulation -- Plan ahead for insulation -- Understanding R-Value -- Installing fiberglass right -- How to install cellulose insulation -- How to install rigid foam sheathing -- Calculating the minimum thickness of rigid foam sheathing -- Insulating low-slope residential roofs -- 6. Windows -- All about glazing options -- Choosing triple-glazed windows -- Vinyl windows and vinyl siding -- "Innie" windows or "outie" windows -- Expensive windows yield meager energy returns -- What should I do with my old windows? -- 7. H VAC -- All about furnaces and duct systems -- Duct leakage testing -- Sealing ducts: What's better, tape or mastic? -- Keeping ducts indoors -- Heating a tight, well-insulated house -- Just two minisplits heat and cool the whole house -- Designing a good ventilation system -- HRV or ERV? -- Are HRV's cost-effective? -- 8. The Passivhaus standard -- Passivhaus for beginners -- Can foam insulation be too thick? -- Are Passivhaus requirements logical? -- It's not about space heating -- Reassessing passive solar design principles -- Afterword: Martin's pretty good house manifesto. Construction basics -- building science -- Energy modeling -- Airtightness -- Insulation -- Windows -- HVAC -- Passivhaus standard.