I lost 5000 pounds in 8 weeks!
Actually, I shaved more than that off my carbon footprint. And I’m going to tell you how. A couple months ago, a friend showed me the “cool community” program and […]
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Do this, not that… technical edition
Part of my job is that I get to see a lot of new, popular, and cutting edge things that people do in new homes. Last week I wrote about
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Forest Fires and Air Quality in WNC
This is going to be a quick one, because it’s the middle of my workday and yours. We’ve got forest fires burning in WNC and no rain in the forecast.
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Net Zero: Insights from Western North Carolina Home Builders
What is a net-zero energy home? A net-zero energy home is simply a home that produces as much energy throughout the year as it consumes. A home can only truly
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New Energy Code Training Materials Available
The North Carolina Energy Efficiency Alliance has recently completed a study to identify commonly missed requirements of the North Carolina energy code, and they have followed that up with some
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I have to clean my solar panels, and you probably do too
Later this month, my husband Matt and I will celebrate our five-year anniversary in our new net-zero energy house. When we built the house we made a commitment to use
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No excuses things you can do for the environment
I’m often asked to give talks about what people can do to help the environment. And afterward, I often get feedback about why people can’t do things: they don’t have
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Are the energy bills in my new house too high?
Most people who buy a new Greenbuilt or Energy Star home are thrilled with how low their utility bills are. But occasionally we get calls from homeowners who suspect that
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Green building pitfalls of tiny homes
What could be greener than a tiny home? They use so many fewer resources than a traditional home that they should almost get a free pass in the green building
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Why you should be using an induction cooktop
Induction cooktops are new. I get a lot of questions about them, and at this point not enough designers, contractors, and homeowners are specifying them. In my opinion, they’re the
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