As the cold weather settles in, we would like to share this article we wrote for BCH&G.  In it we offer our Top 10 tips for how to improve the energy-efficiency and thermal comfort of your home.

We created a tightly-sealed thermal envelope using a special combination of wall, floor, and roof insulation.  Open cell spray foam in the walls and roof stop air movement and prevent water infiltration; closed cell spray foam on the crawlspace walls provide a thermal barrier from below.

Rigid foam insulation under all slabs, on the roof, and on the exterior walls stop thermal bridging, completes the envelope design.The roof and wall framing was then wrapped with rigid foam insulation on the exterior to prevent any thermal bridging, therefore increasing the overall energy performance of the envelope.  Extra steps were taken to properly sequence the construction to ensure that the insulation was installed properly to create a super-high performance envelope.

Ground source heat pumps coupled with a forced air system supply heating and cooling throughout the house. Low-flow plumbing fixtures were specified throughout the house to cut down on water usage.   95% of the electrical fixtures throughout the house have LED or CFL lamps in order to reduce electrical consumption, while a 9.2kW grid-tied solar panel array using Enphase micro-inverters provides additional power for the house.