Energy Use Posts

Water Heaters: The Real Deal on Tankless v. Tank

April 7th, 2015

Take a look at the following terms: Tankless Water Heater, Standard Natural Draft Water Heater, Standard Induced Draft Water Heater, and On-Demand Hot Water. Do they all make sense to you? If you’re like me, you thought you understood them. Tankless…. pretty obvious, right? NO TANK. But like most things, there’s a lot more to […]

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Comfy Home, Energy Efficiency, Energy Use, Gas Water Heaters, Natural Gas, Rinnai, State, Tankless, Water Heater

The Most Stringent Building Energy Standard in the World

May 9th, 2014

Passive House (Passivhaus in German) is the most stringent building energy efficiency standard in the world.  It is not just an energy code or energy design but is integrated with the architectural design of the building to create a wholistic approach to reducing the building’s heating losses and thus decrease the need for expensive mechanical heating […]

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Blower Door, Energy Efficiency, Energy Use, ERV, High Efficiency, Home Performance, Home Testing

Selecting Heating Fuel and System Types

August 1st, 2013

Selecting the fuel and heating system best suited for your needs depends on the following factors: The cost and availability of the fuel or energy source The type of appliance used to convert that fuel to heat and how the heat is distributed in your house The cost to purchase, install, and maintain the heating […]

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Energy Use, Fuel Choices, Fuel Costs, Heating Fuel, Natural Gas, Oil, Propane Costs