Study: Repayment for Energy Efficiency Improvements through Utility Bills a Growing Trend
On-Bill Financing Extends Opportunities for Energy Efficiency Investments to Historically Underserved Markets such as Multifamily Housing and Small Businesses Washington, D.C. (December 8, 2011): On-bill financing, an innovative tool that allows customers to pay for energy efficiency … [Read More...]
Interview: Sarah Evans, Passive House Owner, Salem, Oregon
Mary James spoke recently with Sarah Evans, owner of a Passive House that was completed last May in Salem, Oregon. The home is profiled in Recreating the American Home: The Passive House Approach. How has the experience of living in your new Passive House been? Any surprises? We had to learn how to use our [...]
Interview: Günter Pazen, Passive House Window Pioneer
Günter Pazen, Passive House window pioneer and owner of Enersign windows, spoke with Mary James about his commitment to building better windows and the development of his business. What prompted you to start manufacturing energy-efficient windows? I started in the window business about 40 years ago, but I started seriously thinking about making more efficient [...]
Interview: Dr. Wolfgang Feist, Passivhaus Institut (PHI) and Innsbruck University
Exclusive interview with Dr. Wolfgang Feist, scientific director of the Passivhaus Institut (PHI) in Darmstadt, Germany, and now also professor of building physics at Innsbruck University
Ellen Kathrine Hansen’s Active House Vision
Ellen Kathrine Hansen of VKR Holding in Denmark spoke in early November at UC Berkeley about her work implementing the Active House vision—creating buildings that combine energy efficiency with the use of renewable energy systems to create a positive energy balance, that provide a superior level of indoor comfort and health, and that generally tread [...]
Upcoming Passive House California Training Sessions
Intro to the PHPP June 27 & 28th, 2011 MIG conference room at Hearst and 5th Streets, Berkeley Cost: $250 ($215 for PHCA members) Thermal Bridge Calculations June 29 & 30th, 2011 MIG conference room at Hearst and 5th Streets, Berkeley Cost: $425 ($385 for PHCA members) Certified Passive House Consultant Sept 13-16th and 4-7th Oct. Pacific [...]
How Do Passive House Retrofits Actually Perform in California?
This house was retrofitted using Passive House principles; its energy use is being monitored. (Photo by Nabih Tahan) I recently went to the ACI national conference in San Francisco and heard a very interesting talk by Jeremy Fisher and Brennan Less of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). They are studying deep energy retrofits in [...]
