Blower Door Test Redux – a REALLY Airtight House!
Once the exterior wall insulation was completed, our LEED Rater, Mark, came by to do another blower door test and IR examination of the insulation. Our goal was to identify any spots where insulation was missing, and fix any air [...]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1JoUx5k_NQ A lot has happened since my last update several weeks ago. Much of September was devoted to installing the interior insulation in the project. This is one of the most [...]
MassSave tour
A few weeks ago we hosted a tour for program administrators and utility representatives from MassSave. MassSave is a collaborative of Massachusetts' natural gas and electric utilities and energy efficiency service providers, including Berkshire Gas, Blackstone Gas Company, Cape Light [...]
Making fireplaces work in a green home
A few weeks ago our two fireplaces showed up and they’re now installed. Fireplaces can be a large source of air pollution in a home (particulates, carbon monoxide, and other noxious gases), so the guidelines for tight homes are [...]
Testing for airtightness
After a lot of diligent work from the framing and carpentry crews, we’ve reached the point where the house is tight enough for a preliminary blower door test. The purpose of this test is to measure how airtight the [...]
HVAC installation starts
Now that the house is weathertight we have started MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) work. Our HVAC contractor has been out routing ducting and has started installing and connecting up the system components. There are two separate systems: the heating and [...]
Window installation
The windows arrived a few weeks ago. Now that the blueskin is up on most of the house the team has been busy installing and sealing them into position. Window selection was a challenge for this project. Many high-performance projects [...]
GORE-TEX® for the home!
In early May I wrote about our wall mockups. Our wall assembly cross-section is designed to keep the house comfortable and dry by providing four important barriers: thermal barrier (keep the home comfortable), water barrier (keep rainwater out), air barrier ([...]
Exterior Insulation – Roof and Walls
While the framers have been busy inside with interior rooms and stairs, we’ve started installing the exterior insulation. First up was the first of two layers of 2” rigid foam on the roof. Next are the walls: 2” of rigid polyisocyanurate [...]
