Product Directories: Two of the Best Just Got a Whole Lot Better

Product Directories:

Two of the Best Just Got a Whole Lot Better

Guide to Resource Efficient Building Elements, 4th Edition, 1994, from the Center for Resourceful Building Technology, P.O. Box 3866, Missoula, MT 59806; 406/549-7678. 94 pages, soft-cover, $25.The Center for Resourceful Building Technology (CRBT) did a superb job in updating this classic directory of green building materials. With each edition since the first in 1991, the

Guide (previously called “GREBE”) has gotten better. The 4th edition includes more than 50 new product listings, its redesigned format permits a great deal more information to be included with only a moderate increase in total length, and the introductions to each chapter are expanded and edited for clarity.

EBN noticed a few inevitable omissions in reviewing the new

Guide, such as Roxul, a manufacturer of mineral wool, and listings of fly ash suppliers and foam-core panels were missing some companies, but overall it seems remarkably complete and accurate. We continue to be impressed with how much we learn from the

Guide. In fact, it’s usually one of the first places we turn when beginning article research on a building material for EBN.

An update on CRBT: Last year the organization received its 501(c)(3), non-profit tax-exempt status. Rod Miner was hired in mid-1993 as CRBT’s first executive director, and he is both managing the organization on a day-to-day basis and moving it forward with program development and fundraising. Board President Steve Loken spends about 30% of his time with CRBT, devoting most of the rest to his construction business, Southwall Builders.

Energy Source^® Directory: A Guide to Products Used in Energy-Efficient Residential Buildings, 1994 edition, from Iris Communications, Inc., 258 East 10th Avenue, Suite E, Eugene, OR 97401; 800/346-0104; 503/484-9353; 503/484-1645 (fax). 750 pages, soft-cover, $125.The

Energy Source Directory published by Iris Communications got a major upgrade in 1994. It is totally updated, more complete with about 100 new product listings, perfect-bound so it will sit on your shelf more easily, and—perhaps best of all—30% less expensive than previous editions. For any designer or builder specializing in energy-efficient, environmentally friendly residential construction, the

Energy Source Directory is a publication you simply can’t afford to be without. Iris Communications also publishes a commercial building product directory for $175 (500 pages).

The residential

Energy Source Directory is organized into 11 chapters: Air Barriers and Sealants; HVAC Controls; HVAC Equipment; Indoor Air Filters and Cleaners; Insulation; Lighting; Moisture Control; Passive Cooling; Testing Equipment; Water Conservation; and Water Heating. Each of these chapters is divided into numerous product categories. In the “Air Barriers and Sealants” chapter, for example, there are 16 categories, including: construction tapes, electrical box seals, housewrap, four types of gasket, and eight types of sealant. Each of these specific product categories includes write-ups on a few to about a dozen products.

The product write-ups are each a full page and include product name, address, phone number (including enough toll-free numbers to pay for the book many times over in phone bill savings), a short product description, a “SpecCheck” summary of key product specifications, relevant code/certification information, and often product photos. The product photos are clearer than in previous editions.

The

Energy Source Directory comes with a 30-day full refund guarantee, but we doubt you’ll be inclined to take advantage of that offer.