Archive for 'Designing for Compliance'

GreenPoint Rating: What’s In It for You?

Posted on 12. Oct, 2009 by Rebecca Firestone.

After our recent interview with a GreenPoint Rater, several people wrote to us and we realized that since our last coverage in the Chronicle, many of our site visitors aren’t architects or building officials. They’re interested homeowners, or just plain interested.

Some confusion is perhaps justified. Even a cursory web search for “green building rating systems” turned up a pile of competing standards and organizations, some of which merely promote green building without issuing standards. (Mark, Alan, and myself have all contributed to the answers below.)

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Interview with GreenPoint Rater John Eckstein

Posted on 23. Sep, 2009 by Rebecca Firestone.

A few months ago, we had the pleasure of working with a GreenPoint rater on one of our recent Title 24 consulting projects. John Eckstein is a building professional with expertise in both home energy performance, and indoor air quality, particularly mold investigation. Since GreenPoint rating is still relatively new, we asked him what is involved in working with, or becoming, a GreenPoint rater.

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Re-Greening Your Home Remodel

Posted on 18. Sep, 2009 by Rebecca Firestone.

Just when we thought there couldn’t be any more how-to manuals for green building – LEED, GreenPoint checklists, the Title 24 Residential Compliance Manual – along comes another one that might be the best one yet. The 2008 Residential Remodeling Guidelines from Regreen.org (a partnership between the ASID and the USGBC) is clearly written, persuasive, well-organized, and sensible.

(Above image used by permission of Dormer’s only Construction Corporation, based in Wyandanch, NY.)

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Why Does Title 24 Ignore Alternative Energies?

Posted on 13. Aug, 2009 by Rebecca Firestone.

Nearly every week, we are asked why Title 24 does not give credits for electric water heating if that electricity comes from solar or other self-generated power. In fact, it seems that many of the renewable energy developments occurring now are not fully recognized in Title 24, not even in the 2008 code. We’re in the position of telling people that their homes, which are designed to consume very little conventional power, may have trouble passing the Title 24 code if those homes rely solely on solar electric for all their home power, heating, cooling, and water heating needs.

So why does T24 continue to penalize electric resistance heat and water heating in solar homes? Why does T24 not give credits for self-generated power (geotherm, solar, wind, other)? And why can’t our utilities buy back excess power from customers who generate more than they use? Wouldn’t this help to reduce California’s grid load, save California homeowners money, provide entrepeneurial opportunities, and reduce American dependence on foreign oil?

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Klopf Architecture Reflects an Eichler Sensibility in New Energy-Efficient Home

Posted on 09. Jul, 2009 by Rebecca Firestone.

When I first ran the numbers on the new Title 24 project from Klopf Architecture, the numbers were so high – 50% over compliance – that I immediately assumed that I had made a mistake somewhere in the calculations. After an internal review, however, we realized that it really was one of the most efficient projects we had ever taken through the energy compliance process. How did they do it?
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Qualifying For Solar Incentives With NSHP – Case Study

Posted on 22. May, 2009 by Rebecca Firestone.

A principal in a local architectural firm approached us for T24 on a new house in Sonoma County that he was designing for himself and his partner. They needed Title 24 documents for their permit submittal, but beyond that, he wanted to qualify for solar rebate credits through California’s New Solar Homes Partnership Program (NSHP). He also wanted the house to be as “green” as possible, just because.

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