Building Science

Commentary on Words/Terms Used in the Building Code

April 29, 2019

Good communication requires a common understanding of the words that we are using. As everyone knows, communication can easily become miscommunication when the same word is being used but the intent behind the words is different.

Building Technologies Office 2019 Peer Review

April 24, 2019

EERE's Building Technology Office (BTO) has released its 2018 BTO Peer Review Report and announced the 2019 BTO Peer Review will take place April 15–18, 2019.

A Quick Look at Re-Purposed, Bio-Based Insulation Materials

April 24, 2019

This TreeHugger has often written about how we should be building out of sunshine, using natural materials with low upfront carbon emissions in their manufacture. Now Blaine Brownell of Architect Magazine explores bio-based materials for insulation. He notes, as we have, that insulation "is drawing scrutiny and disagreement within sustainable design circles."

Chart Compares Benefits of Spray Foam and Batt Insulation

April 24, 2019

Spray foam insulation is an energy efficient solution, which can offer a sizeable return on your client's insulation investment compared to traditional fiberglass insulation. With the money your clients will save in energy costs, the more energy efficient spray foam insulation pays for itself within a few years.

Top 10 EEBS News Headlines of Q1 2019

April 17, 2019

Below are the top ten most read Energy Efficiency & Building Science News headlines for the first quarter of 2019, most of them were from our video series on the “perfect wall”.

Video: U of Alabama Wood Panel Testing; Ductility Concerns

April 17, 2019

There is a wide array of promotional efforts taking place in the market every day, making discernment key for all of us as we consume information. Shear wall performance tests by Clemson University and the University of Oklahoma have been promoted as authoritative sources of wood structural panel (WPS) performance testing. 

Chart: What Buyers Will Pay for Energy Efficiency

April 17, 2019

The latest study of recent and prospective home buyers (people who purchased a home in the last three years or are planning to do so in the next three years) suggests that the average buyer is willing to pay an additional $8,728 for a home in order to save $1,000 annually in utilities.

Exterior Insulation the Best Approach in Retrofit

April 17, 2019

Q: What’s the best way to add insulation to the outside of my house? A: Thee best approach  is to apply extruded polystyrene foam to the outside walls, then the siding. This kind of foam is completely waterproof and retains insulation values quite well over time.

Spray Foam Insulation Helps in Humid Caribbean

April 17, 2019

Recently, Bennett and his team were tasked with the insulation project of TIDES South Sound, a newly constructed residential building comprised of 24 state-of-the-art units facing the Caribbean Sea in South Sound, Grand Cayman for which open-cell and closed-cell spray polyurethane foam was specified.

Meritage Achieves Net-Zero Condos with Spray Foam

April 17, 2019

Meritage Homes, the seventh-largest public homebuilder in the U.S., is leading the charge in energy-efficient building by opening CitySquare, a first-of-its-kind condominium community in the heart of Irvine's Business Complex.