As I always do when I fly, I bring my own stainless-steel water bottle, finishing the contents before going through security, then filling it so that I don't need a plastic water bottle from the flight attendant.
Last week, after reviewing a little physics regarding condensation and latent heat, I described how air conditioners remove unwanted humidity.
Updated! Our addenda review now continues through 2014.
For noteworthy new LEED Interpretations, see our page devoted to that.
Need to get caught up on LEED 2009 addenda? Here is LEEDuser's review of key addenda so far for LEED-EBOM 2009—corrections and changes to the rating system since its official release. The earliest of these start in November 2009.
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has now released several sets of LEED addenda for LEED-EBOM 2009—corrections and changes to the rating system since its official release. The earliest of these start in November 2009, and the latest batch came out in July 2010.
Following is a summary of the more useful LEED-EBOM addenda to date. Most of the rest is less critical to project teams unless you need clarification on things like understanding that "includesincludes" on page 23 of the Reference Guide really means "includes."
Wasco Products of Sanford, Maine, has raised the bar on energy-conserving skylights with its high-performance "Triple Glazed 30/30" option.
Last week, I addressed strategies for controlling moisture sources in homes during the summer--one of the contributors to discomfort during hot humid summers. This week, I'll examine how to remove unwanted humidity using air conditioning equipment, starting with some fundamentals. To understand moisture removal, it's important to brush up on a bit of physics. Air is able to hold only a finite amount of water vapor, and that amount is governed by the temperature of the air.
In commercial buildings where cast-in-place, reinforced-concrete balconies extend through the insulated building envelope, tremendous heat loss occurs, and this thermal bridging often leads to condensation and associated mold problems. The German company Schöck Bauteile, GmbH, has the answer with the Isokorb product line.
How Isokorb works
High relative humidity is a significant problem in many regions of the country during the summer months. In hot weather, the higher the humidity, the less comfortable we are--partly because moisture does not evaporate from our skin as readily.
A new gas-filled panel insulation material that consists of pockets of low-conductivity gas in a honeycomb foil substrate provides insulation levels as high at R-11 for inch-and-a-half-thick panels.
About gas-filled panels
You would think that establishing a definition for “showerhead” would be simple. But, as the Department of Energy (DOE) is discovering after issuing a draft interpretive rule on the matter, nothing is simple when it comes to getting people wet.
We're into those hot days of summer--really hot--with temperatures predicted in the mid- to upper-90s, even in Vermont, this week.
The July 2010 issue of Environmental Building News asks whether we should end our love affair with all-glass buildings. The short answer is "yes." With most large commercial buildings there is an energy penalty associated with increasing the glazing area beyond 20 to 30 percent.
Pursuing SSc4.4: Alternative Transportation—Parking Capacity in the LEED 2009 NC, CS, and Schools rating systems just got a little more expensive for some projects—$118.75 more to be exact.
North America's largest water heater manufacturer, A.O. Smith, is shaking up the water heating industry with its NEXT Hybrid gas-fired water heater that combines key features of both tankless and storage water heating technology.
About storage water heaters
