Championing the
Changemakers

Continuing our series on water heating, this week we'll look at two options for heating water with the home's central boiler. First some terminology: boilers heat water or produce steam for distribution in baseboard units or steam radiators, while furnaces heat air for... Read more

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Last week I suggested some ways to reduce your hot water use. This is almost always the easiest way to save energy with water heating--it's the "low-hanging fruit" to be sure. Over the next few weeks, I'll get into water heating options. To start, let's look at the differences between "storage" and "tankless" water heaters.

The vast... Read more

On Friday, May 19, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal published a damning story based on the leaked minutes of a private strategy meeting of food-packaging executives and chemical industry lobbyists that took place in Washington DC the previous day. The story's authors spoke with the chairman of the North American Metal Packaging Alliance (NAMPA),... Read more

Whenever we reduce water use, we also save energy. In fact, several of the most cost-effective energy saving strategies -- projects with the quickest "payback" -- are water conservation improvements that reduce hot water use. I'll cover some of these strategies here, but first I want to explain why even reducing our cold water use saves energy... Read more

Twice each month, BuildingGreen publishes an email news bulletin with current news and product information briefs. Sign up here — it's free. We will never share or sell your email address, and you may unsubscribe at any time.

It often surprises people to learn that with today's water-conserving dishwashers and typical practices for hand-washing, properly filled automated dishwashers use less water and energy. If you wash dishes by hand and leave the water running when washing or rinsing, hand-washing almost certainly uses more water. Even if you try to be miserly... Read more

Who could be more qualified than one of the principal authors of LEED for Homes to provide insight on the best ways to make the program work?

In a typical home, the refrigerator accounts for about 8% of the total annual energy expense, according to 2005 data from the U.S. Department of Energy. While this energy consumption for food storage is significant, it's far less than it was a few decades ago. In the mid-1970s, an average new refrigerator used about 1,800 kilowatt-hours (kWh)... Read more

I get a lot of questions about energy. Electricity consumption factors into many of them. Why are electric bills so high? How can I tell when it's time to replace a refrigerator? Most of us have electric meters on our houses, but these measure your total household electricity use. To... Read more