energy star: These Windows Are Energy Star Inferior, By Any Measure
- 03/17/16 07:38 PM
In this new construction I found that these windows are Energy Star inferior, by any measure.
This is a beautiful, zillion $ house, with the builder claiming Energy Star all over it.
I noticed that I could feel the sun through a bedroom window. The day was not particularly warm, in the 60s. But if you can feel warmth through a window at this time of year it is not the superior window one might expect in a house like this.
However, all the window performance stickers had been removed. Except one!
It was located over the master bathtub.
The tub was full of the protective … (34 comments)
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energy star: The Energy Star Label On The Panel Box Really Got My Interest
- 02/29/16 04:52 PM
When I got to the house, the Energy Star label on the panel box really got my interest.
I rarely see this label! Why? Because it is very difficult for builders to bring a home to this standard.
The new Energy Star standard, Version 3.1 revised in 2015, is rigorous. The home must meet every one of a nine-page checklist of requirements. You can read about it here, but your eyes might bleed. Trust me, the standard that gets the sticker on the panel box is hard to meet.
What did I see?
> Windows and doors that had great thermal resistance, and little air … (12 comments)
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energy star: If It's Supposed To Be Energy Star Certified, Certify It Rigorously!
- 11/05/15 07:42 PM
If it's supposed to be Energy Star Certified, certify it rigorously!
I am taking a stand here. I'm tired of buzz words that get used, and used, and more used, and over used, until they become meaningless.
What is a buzz word?
Defined: from my Oxford English Dictionary:
Buzz Word /'bez. werd/ noun a word or phrase, often an item of jargon, that is fashionable at a particular time, or in a particular context.
Not much could be considered more of a buzz word than this concept of GREEN.
Services tout themselves as "green." Commodities tout themselves as "green." Products tout themselves as "green." Regulations and so-called … (15 comments)
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energy star: Even If The Builder Says They Are Energy Star Windows
- 07/23/14 09:52 PM
Here is how you can know how good your windows are even if the builder says they are Energy Star windows.
First of all - we need some definitions. Lots of buzz words and catch phrases get thrown around.
Energy Star - this has been around since 1992, a program introduced by the EPA as a voluntary program, first to rate computers and monitors for efficiency standards. It has since grown to include many appliances, electronics, windows, doors and other home/office products. Different areas of the country have different standards for many things due to differences in climate, temperature, etc. Standards change all … (51 comments)
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energy star: Since They Did This, Our Room Was Cold Last Winter And Hot This Summer
- 09/24/13 09:50 PM
Setting up the inspection, a one-year warranty inspection, my client explained that some lights had been installed in the master bedroom and, "since they did this, our room was cold last winter and hot this summer."
On the final inspection last year I learned that some lights in the master bedroom ceiling had been forgotten by the builder. That is something I would not have known, but put it on their inspection report so they had it in writing. The builder promised to install them and dutifully did.
But there's a hitch!
Mighty Mo found the problem right away. He's good … (50 comments)
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energy star: Energy Star Qualified In Highlighted Regions
- 11/30/12 06:59 PM
When I do a pre-drywall inspection, I really look around! I check everything, read what is stuck on windows and doors, look at labels, measure wall placements, and so forth. Again, I really look around!
My buyer told me that this home was sold as an energy-efficient home and he would be receiving a certification from one of the rating agencies, he couldn't remember which. It doesn't matter which, they all have their criteria, and to certify the house the energy-saving contents and materials have to meet that criteria.
In this house I looked at the stickers on the windows. I … (27 comments)
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energy star: Be Careful When The Builder Says Your Insulation Is "Green Certified"
- 09/09/11 12:18 AM
One thing people tell me when I do one-year and two-year warranty inspections is that the builder said the house was "green certified," or whatever phrase is used.
Be careful when the builder says your insulation is "green certified."
First of all, who knows what criteria is being claimed.
Second of all, unless you are provided some written example of such "certification," you got nothin'!!
THEY CAN SAY ANYTHING THEY WANT. WITHOUT SOME RECOGNIZED CERT, YOU HAVE JUST ANOTHER HOUSE.
When I ask clients if there is paper work on the window quality, insulation R-values for floors, walls and unfinished attic, … (22 comments)
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energy star: When Builders Say Green, Find Out What They Mean
- 05/01/11 10:21 PM
On new construction inspections, I have learned a couple of things. First, everyone wants to say their product is green, although I am not sure why. And second, when they do, when builders say green, find out what they mean.
My clients on a recent new construction said that the builder told them it was a "green house." I asked which standard was used to determine that and if he was going to give them a certificate. They knew nothing of that.
So I asked, "Why do you think it is green?"
"Well, the appliances are Energy Star, we think he … (76 comments)
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energy star: A Tale Of Two Furnaces - Great Expectations
- 02/09/11 10:04 PM
It was the best of furnaces. It was the worst of furnaces.
Now, if I was to truly wax Dickens, this would be a REALLY wordy post (Dickens was paid by the word).
When one is buying new, and buying a $1.5 mil house NEW, one has great expectations. My clients carefully poured over the sales literature of many builders to see what they were getting for their money. Then they selected a builder, and for two reasons - house design and stuff. When the ad says, "Starting in the mid $700's," it means, "You get the normal, builder grade everything, … (86 comments)
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In this new construction I found that these windows are Energy Star inferior, by any measure.
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