LEED vs PHIUS: Which one do I Choose?

I watched a movie a while ago where the hero had multiple bullet wounds and knife wounds but he makes it home to patch himself up. He pulls out all the bullets, dumps alcohol on it, and then puts a bandage on it. Sounds logical, right?

• - Can’t maintain even temperature throughout the whole house.
• - Heater or AC comes on frequently throughout the day to compensate.
• - You sometimes feel a draft for no reason at all.
• - Your 12-year-old thinks the cold spots are ghosts.
• - Your seasonal allergies seem the same or worse while inside.

These are all signs of a leaky house, but even without noticing these symptoms, most homes have several leaky areas they’re not even aware of.

Last week, we looked at rain inside a non-vented vaulted roof cavity in the Rocky Mountains. This week we’ll delve into the proper roof assembly. By following the 7 Passive House Principles we’ll see that Step 1 would have shown us that there was a dew point risk under the wood decking,

I got that call again yesterday. The type us building geeks don’t want to hear about.  A brand new custom log cabin sweating to death from the ceiling. Looking at the pictures the owner emailed me, I could practically smell the fresh chink outlining the logs. I love Log Cabins!

So, you or your client are interested in going green for the sake of the environment or to help save money on utility bills….or both! The problem is you, or your client, love your/their old home and have no desire to move. This may seem like an impossible situation, but there are several ways you can improve the energy efficiency in that older home:

Dust Mites. Mold spores. Bacterial organisms. Tiny creatures live in our air on a continual basis – indoor and outdoor.

When considering which building standard to use when designing your next building, it’s important to do these kinds of fair comparisons. We could also do a similar comparison to Energy Star (which I just might do) or other building models out there, but for now, let’s focus on these two standards. Our friend Ken Levenson of FourSevenFive.com had a few key points on the subject:

We’re all headed towards retirement…someday. Because of that fact, everyone seems to have a piece of advice for us regarding our “golden years”. Financial gurus are always advising people in their 20s and 30s to begin to think of retirement now so that you can save up a “nest egg” for those non-working years ahead.

What would you say if I told you that this beautiful home is 4 times the size of the typical single family home but uses only half the energy? Amazing, right?

Vicki Hutchinson, the owner of Traveler’s Rest, a 6,800 SQFT Certified Passive House, was interested in building an energy efficient, green home which is what led her to finding us. Her only bill is electricity and last month it was $17!