Energy Efficiency Archives - The Handbuilt City

In Search Of Cheap, Scalable Solutions For Grid Resiliency

February 16, 2021February 16, 2021 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments AGM battery, air conditioning, air source heat pump, battery storage, carnot cycle, electric reliability council of texas, elon musk, energy efficiency, ERCOT, ERCOT texas, heat pump, home battery storage, li-ion battery, lithium-ion battery, lone star, market transformation, mini-split, mitsubishi, mr. slim, off-grid, power grid, powerwall, reduce energy bills, save money on energy, sorcery, split system heat pump, Tesla, tesla powerwall, texas, texas interconnection, texas power grid, texas storm, texas winter storm, thermodynamics

The extreme weather event affecting about two thirds of the United States right now suggests the need for small-scale interventions that can be scaled over an entire market.

Energy Efficiency Energy

This Doesn’t Happen In A Normal Climate– Or Power Grid

February 15, 2021February 18, 2021 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments coal, coal power, dallas, electric reliability council of texas, electrical generation, electricity, ERCOT, galveston, gas, gas-fired, gas-fired turbine, generation mix, gulf coast, houston, load following, microgrid, mid-merit, NERC, peaker, peaker plant, PJM, power generation, power grid, power grids, power plant, texas interconnection, texas power grid, texas storm, texas storms, texas winter storm

An unusual winter storm in the Lone Star State is prompting the grid operator to orchestrate voluntary blackouts– asking people to shut off power voluntarily. Climate change, power reliability, and the state of infrastructure in the United States in 2021.

Business & Economics Energy Efficiency Culture & Language

James Brown Feels Good (About Weatherization)

January 15, 2021January 15, 2021 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments ACH50, air leakage testing, ben dueweke, blower door, branding, building envelope, depressurization, energy efficiency, energy justice, funk, funky, funky president, get up offa that thing, i feel good, i got you, james brown, Kevin McNeely, make it funky, manometer, marketing, mcneely building group, minneapolis blower door, pressurization, RESNET, retrotec, retrotec blower door, sex machine, usgbc, walker-miller energy services

One of the weirder things I’ve come across in the past year– apart from Soviet Cookiemonster, our second-most viewed post

Energy Efficiency Policy Energy

Detroit’s Green Task Force Looks Toward Benchmarking, PACE, Energy Codes

December 9, 2020December 9, 2020 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments 2030 district, bali kumar, ben dueweke, bob bedzyk, city of detroit sustainability office, connie lilley, detroit city council, detroit council, detroit public schools, ecologic institute, EcoWorks, elise matz, energy, energy benchmarking, energy efficiency, energy policy, energy waste reduction, energystar, Joel Howrani-Heeres, josh musicant, kendal kuneman, latia leonard, max gruenig, michal helman, michigan public service commission, POCACITO, policy, randy hargraves, Regulation, scott benson, utilities, utility policy, walker-miller, walker-miller energy services

The Energy Waste Reduction Committee of the Detroit Green Task Force met yesterday morning to talk shop for the last

Energy Efficiency Home Improvement & DIY Construction Energy

DIY Energy Tips: Insulating Boiler Pipe

December 7, 2020December 10, 2020 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments boiler, boiler loop, boilers, comfort, DIY, DIY energy, DIY energy projects, DIY projects, energy, energy efficiency, energy savings, fiberglass, home comfort, home improvement, home renovation, hot water boiler, hydronic, hydronics, infrared, insulating boiler pipe, insulation, manifold, mineral wool, pipe insulation, pipe wrap, radiant barrier, radiant heat, reduce utility bill, Renovation, rockwool, roxul, steam boiler, thermal, thermal comfort, water boiler, water heating, winter

Got a boiler? Insulate your pipes to save you some bucks.

Energy Efficiency Home Improvement & DIY Construction

Glazed Over: Donald Trump’s Tiny Windows Conspiracy

October 23, 2020October 27, 2020 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments Donald Trump, energy, energy efficiency, energy waste reduction, glazing, green new deal, home rehab, home renovation, home repair, insulation, windows

US President Donald Trump’s claims that Democrats want to make the windows smaller in everyone’s houses were, while baseless, not the craziest thing he’s ever said. Glazing, energy, and you!

Energy Efficiency Construction

New Client Who Dis

August 17, 2020August 16, 2020 Nat M. Zorach 0 Comments ASHRAE, BPI, building code, building envelope, climate action plan, climate change, detroit climate action collaborative, Detroiters Working for Environmental Justice, energy auditing, energy audits, energy code, energy efficiency, energy waste reduction, energystar, eric douglas, hers, Kevin McNeely, Kimberly Hill Knott, LEED, RESNET

Handbuilt’s newest client is energy building guru Kevin McNeely, who works on energy audits and architectural energy consulting services around the Midwest.

Energy Efficiency Historic preservation Construction

Major Home Repair: To Go Gas-Free, Perchance To Dream?

June 22, 2020June 22, 2020 Nat Zorach 0 Comments draft vented combustion appliances, energy, energy efficiency, furnaces, heat pumps, home rehab, home renovation, home repair, rehab

Is it worth the premium to go electric? Maybe– if you have a good excuse to, like part of your house falling down. But it’s still going to run you a pretty penny.

Business & Economics Energy Efficiency Climate

Epilogue from the Climate Leadership Conference: We Cannot Stop Asking The Tough Questions

March 11, 2020March 10, 2020 Nat Zorach 0 Comments apiculture, capitalism, climate crisis, distributed generation, DTE, ecological restoration, energy poverty, native landscaping, photovoltaics, solar power

The Climate Leadership Conference did a great job of bringing powerful stakeholders together. What it didn’t do such a great job of was asking tough questions of those stakeholders. But there is always opportunity to continue the dialogue.

Finance Energy Efficiency Finance Climate

Climate Leadership Conference: Practical Energy Finance Solutions

March 10, 2020March 10, 2020 Nat Zorach 0 Comments alex kregie, carbon footprint, climate change, decarbonization, decarbonization of finance, energy finance, energy financing, EUI, green bank, green building, hers

One session at last week’s Climate Leadership Conference in Detroit dealt with financing strategies for energy and sustainability improvements. PRACTICAL

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