Grist Comment Feed en http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/ Fri, 19 Jun 2009 09:42:42 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/1 Mr Shoenholz has his heart in the right place, but that huge capital investment turns out not to be very sustainable in the long and short run.  I do analysis on windows and have found that people in the San Fransisco area should not  replace their single pane double windows with thermal pane double hungs, new or replacement tilt packs.  You should upgrade the windows with state of the art weather sealing to reduce the infiltratation of cold air, but the energy cost of replacing the whole window and throwing out the old window to get an extra 2 R-value in a climate like San Francisco just doesn't add up.  If you are a die hard enviro, get a good storm window and a nice wool hat.  Remember there is a lot of embedded carbon costs in the old window that is lost and a lot of embedded carbon cost in the new windows, which by the way only have a life time guareentee of 25 years by which time the plastic slides will have worn out and you will need a replacement again, or the thermal pane seal will have broken and they will be fogged.  If you shelled out the big bucks for a wood window, which is a good choice, chances are the wood is pine and inferior to the fir that make up most of the older windows.  If you think the payback on the windows is 75 or 100 years, what are the chances that a flying object will break the glass sometime in that interval.   Have you every tried to get someone to replace the thermal pane in your windows without replacing the whole window?  When new window are things that can be repaired easily by local contractors from materials that can be purchased at local hardware storees then you have something that will last a life time and is sustainable.

]]> Mr Shoenholz has his heart in the right place, but that huge capital investment turns out not to be very sustainable in the long and short run.  I do analysis on windows and have found that people in the San Fransisco area should not  replace their single pane double windows with thermal pane double hungs, new or replacement tilt packs.  You should upgrade the windows with state of the art weather sealing to reduce the infiltratation of cold air, but the energy cost of replacing the whole window and throwing out the old window to get an extra 2 R-value in a climate like San Francisco just doesn't add up.  If you are a die hard enviro, get a good storm window and a nice wool hat.  Remember there is a lot of embedded carbon costs in the old window that is lost and a lot of embedded carbon cost in the new windows, which by the way only have a life time guareentee of 25 years by which time the plastic slides will have worn out and you will need a replacement again, or the thermal pane seal will have broken and they will be fogged.  If you shelled out the big bucks for a wood window, which is a good choice, chances are the wood is pine and inferior to the fir that make up most of the older windows.  If you think the payback on the windows is 75 or 100 years, what are the chances that a flying object will break the glass sometime in that interval.   Have you every tried to get someone to replace the thermal pane in your windows without replacing the whole window?  When new window are things that can be repaired easily by local contractors from materials that can be purchased at local hardware storees then you have something that will last a life time and is sustainable.

]]> http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/ Fri, 19 Jun 2009 13:04:58 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/2 Chris has a good point. Even in a temperate climate on the 45th parallel like those of us on the Canadian border, old wood frame single panes with aluminum frame storm windows still get enough of the job done to not warrant replacing for the heat loss at todays heating costs. What's missing from the equation? Your title: High Utility bills.

]]> Chris has a good point. Even in a temperate climate on the 45th parallel like those of us on the Canadian border, old wood frame single panes with aluminum frame storm windows still get enough of the job done to not warrant replacing for the heat loss at todays heating costs. What's missing from the equation? Your title: High Utility bills.

]]> http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/ Wed, 24 Jun 2009 07:20:42 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/3 We install solar heaters and have found that one of the things that wastes a lot of energy in the kitchen is the faucet. It seems to be very popular to use the single valve comand. When it opens in the center position, it uses half cold and half hot. Whether you need warm water or not. Because of the way water is used in kitchens, little bits at a time, the heat is lost in the tubing. 

]]> We install solar heaters and have found that one of the things that wastes a lot of energy in the kitchen is the faucet. It seems to be very popular to use the single valve comand. When it opens in the center position, it uses half cold and half hot. Whether you need warm water or not. Because of the way water is used in kitchens, little bits at a time, the heat is lost in the tubing. 

]]> http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/ Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:16:48 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/2009-06-18-sustainable-spaces-business/4 Learn how to GoGreen with Green Irene, the only national home eco-consulting firm. Green Irene's flagship Green Home Makeover can help you not just cut your footprint, but also save money at the same time. To learn more about us, visit us at http://www.GreenIrene.com!

]]> Learn how to GoGreen with Green Irene, the only national home eco-consulting firm. Green Irene's flagship Green Home Makeover can help you not just cut your footprint, but also save money at the same time. To learn more about us, visit us at http://www.GreenIrene.com!

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