GreenSpec Insights
Dirty Tires Become Clean Floors in Pennsylvania’s Amish Country
Posted by Martin Solomon on 09/20/2012
Pastoral scenery provides a contrast to Ecore’s factory, where it produces unique recycled rubber flooring systems that could change the industry.
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, home to one of the largest Amish communities in the United States, is also home to the headquarters of Ecore International, a company predominantly known for several rubber flooring offerings.
During a recent visit to Ecore’s manufacturing location in York, Pennsylvania (located in York County,...
A Look at Heat Pump Water Heaters
Posted by Alex Wilson on 09/19/2012
New federal regulations beginning in mid-April 2015 will require that larger electric water heaters be heat-pump models. It’s time to pay attention to this option.
Last week I wrote about “hybrid” water heaters, a relatively new type of water heater that includes features of both storage and tankless models. This week I’ll cover another type of water heater that is also (...
Hybrid Water Heaters
Posted by Alex Wilson on 09/13/2012
A relatively new type of water heater combines features of both tankless and storage water heaters.
In last week’s blog I compared tankless and storage water heaters and explained why tankless water heaters often don’t make that much sense.
This week I’ll describe a newer type of water heater that has some features of both...
Free Webcast: How to Find and Avoid Toxic Chemicals in Buildings
Posted by Paula Melton on 09/12/2012
Phobia or fatigue? When it comes to toxic chemicals, we all have our own way of coping with information overload. A free webcast helps you sort it all out.
Even if we try to ignore it, we are constantly barraged with information about dangerous chemicals in our food, our water, our dust, our air…even our grocery receipts.
The...
Hidden Seam Failures? We Put Flashing Tapes to the Test
Posted by Peter Yost on 08/30/2012
Flashing and air barrier seam tapes get buried deep in our walls where we rely on long-term performance without monitoring them. Are they doing their jobs?
NOTE: Read this whole series here.
Service life of tapes can determine the service life of an entire high-performance building assembly.
...
Saving a Little More Energy With Exit Signs
Posted by Alex Wilson on 08/29/2012
Those ubiquitous exit signs use a huge amount of electricity; a little-known alternative to conventional LED products offers surprising savings.
In the years that I’ve been writing about energy and energy conservation (longer than I really want to admit), I’ve reported on several dramatic transitions in how we illuminate the exit signs in commercial buildings. For an energy geek, it’s been an exciting technology to watch.
...Insulation to Keep Us Warm—Not Warm the Planet
Posted by Alex Wilson on 08/22/2012
An update on getting the global warming potential (GWP) out of insulation materials.
I’ve been pretty vocal about a...
Adhesives and Sealants: Performance First, but Materials Matter
Posted by Brent Ehrlich on 08/22/2012
Exterior adhesives and sealants are formulated for performance, but some contain chemicals that pose risks to unprotected workers or the environment
NOTE: Read this whole series here.
As discussed throughout this series, adhesives and sealants used outside the building envelope have to adhere to the substrate and seal gaps, and they often...
Sealing Without Stickum: Gaskets Make a Place for Themselves
Posted by Peter Yost on 08/15/2012
Compressible gaskets keep air and water barriers continuous without liquid sealants or adhesive tapes. But they don’t all last equally well.
NOTE: Read this whole series here.
In the U.S., we tend to put a lot of faith in caulks, tapes, and wet-applied sealants. But in Europe it’s a different story.
Some Gaskets can be used in place of...
Sustainable Sealants: The Challenges of Predicting Service Life
Posted by Peter Yost on 08/08/2012
Caulk joint sealants can be a major deciding factor in how long your building envelope lasts. Is there a better way to predict how long they last?
NOTE: Read this whole series here.
Durability, or service life, is critical to the overall performance of liquid...
About the Authors
Alex Wilson is founder and executive editor of BuildingGreen, Inc., and coeditor of GreenSpec. For more than 30 years, Alex has been the most trusted voice on energy efficiency and environmentally responsible design and construction. Since launching Environmental Building News (EBN) in 1992, he’s built a reputation, resources, and staff to serve the companies for whom sustainable design is a core value.
Brent Ehrlich is BuildingGreen’s products editor, conducts research and writes product and category insights for the company’s GreenSpec product directory. He also contributes product reviews and feature articles for Environmental Building News, and is a contributing editor to McGraw-Hill’s GreenSource magazine.
Jennifer Atlee is research director at BuildingGreen, responsible for guiding the in-depth independent research that is the hallmark of all BuildingGreen resources. With her broad knowledge in sustainability, analytical acumen, and passion for improving the standards used to assess the sustainability of products, processes, and organizations, Jennifer brings strong direction to the research process behind GreenSpec’s product-screening decisions, and technical rigor to BuildingGreen’s custom research projects.
Tristan Roberts is Editorial Director at BuildingGreen, Inc., a position that requires broad knowledge about sustainable design, deep understanding of products, and mastery of all things LEED. Tristan Roberts brings that to Environmental Building News, GreenSpec, and LEEDuser, a plug-in tool supported by the U.S. Green Building Council to provide credit-by-credit advice for LEED projects.
Peter Yost brings more than 25 years' experience in building, researching, teaching, writing, and consulting on high-performance homes to his role as director of residential services for BuildingGreen. He has been called upon to provide his building-science expertise to the nation’s leading homebuilding programs, including NAHB’s Green Building Standard, USGBC's LEED for Homes, EPA’s WaterSense, and the U.S. Department of Energy's Building America.
Paula Melton, BuildingGreen’s managing editor, brings a dynamic style, critical mind, and sharp wit to the many feature articles, blog posts, and product reviews she writes for GreenSpec, BuildingGreen.com, Environmental Building News, and other BuildingGreen-supported websites.
Nadav Malin is president of BuildingGreen, where he oversees the company’s industry-leading information and community-building resources and consulting services. He also convenes and facilitates gatherings of industry leaders, and lends his technical expertise and vision to GreenSource magazine. Nadav was the founding chair of the Materials & Resources Technical Advisory Group for LEED.
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Is ComfortBoard currently available on the West coast, and do you know if anyone on the West coast has used it yet?
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It is a challenge reupholstering furniture in a non-toxic way. I found a great upholsterer who was willing to work with me here in the...
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These would be fine for warmer temperate climates, where heat loss and gain are not significant issues. I've usually used the 400 Series, and...