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How's this for a test?
As the folks at Inhabitat say, build the house in a snow globe, and then simulate all the different sorts of weather that are possible for a country. The country, in this case, is England (go figure) and the work is going on at Salford University. Check out the YouTube animation.
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Can you run your business from an iPhone?
 Chris Cunningham does! In this article, Chris tells about how his heating and air conditioning business is up 40 percent after adding iPhones to his operations. I notice that there are a lot of folks out there like Chris who use iPhones on the job. So we launched an iPhone app just for you. Troubleshooting steam heating problems just got easier! |
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IKEA is at it again
They just announced a huge new store for Denver, that they'll be heating and cooling with geothermal (I told you about that a few weeks ago), and now they're moving their Richmond, BC store to a new location. This one will also have geothermal. Sounds like a trend to me. |
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On the way to Cape May
Our family has been going to Cape May, New Jersey for more than 30 years. It's our summer city by the sea and time moves slowly there. Lots of Victorian houses but not many old radiators (it was a summer resort). They had a convention center, which had replaced an earlier one that a Nor'easter had swept away, but the current building got condemned a few years back for structural problems. It's not easy being a building on a beach. The city has been twisting itself into knots over the new convention center, trying to bring it in under budget. Here's the latest. Interesting final (maybe) approach to the heating and cooling. |
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Passive house makes the NY Times
I liked this article from The New York Times on the benefits and the challenges of building a passive house. Interesting exchange between the homeowners and the builder over the fireplace/stove. You can't always get what you want. |
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Once again, back to insulation
The best place to spend your limited dollars if you're looking to save fuel is on the building envelope. If it leaks, fix that first. We've chatted about that a few times over the years, and the Brits just proved it again with this report on heat pumps, which don't work well when the house leaks. Read all about it.
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And yet...
Here's a story from New Zealand, where they recently lost a lot of chimneys during the earthquake. Rather than replace the chimneys, the government is now pushing heat pumps, believing that they'll save lots of energy. Trouble is, New Zealand is notorious for having houses that have little or no insulation. Small world, isn't it? |
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Back to Denmark
When it comes to energy research, Denmark is becoming the M.I.T. of countries. These folks are hellbent on getting off fossil fuels. Check out what they're up to now.
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Big ass!
Not mine, the company that goes by that name (Big Ass Fans). You and I know that heat doesn't rise, but that warm air will. Here's a nice case study about the benefits of using these huge fans in warehouses with high ceilings. Good stuff.
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Hug your kids!
Dan
If you like what we're doing, your friends will too!
Do a friend a favor - forward this email!
(Click on the link below)
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