The U.S. House passed the Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010 (HR 5019) today, legislation that will spur job growth in the construction, manufacturing, and retail industries by giving families incentives to make their homes more energy efficient. The measure is projected to create 168,000 jobs across the U.S. and save 3 million families an estimated $200-$500 per year over the next 10 years ($9.2 billion total) by making their homes more energy efficient.

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We just finished our duct blast test for the green house we are building at The Estates on the Lynnhaven. See the letter from the rater from Sencon below. My customer is very happy.

Chuck,

The ductwork leakage results that I got from your project are outstanding! Technically speaking the total leakage is only 1.09%, to see how efficient this is I’m going to compare it to a very efficient new home and to the average house in the US.

The ductwork in this house will only leak:

• 1/6^th of the ductwork leakage allowed by energy Star or the upcoming energy code IECC 2009 when compared with efficient new homes.
• 1/30^th of the ductwork leakage in the average house in the USA.

I don’t see this kind of results very often

Daniel Cwik

SENCON/EARTHCRAFT

Chuck Miller, President of Miller Custom Homes, is now a published author. Chuck and Co-author Dr. Michael J. Seiler, Professor and Robert M. Stanton Chair of Real Estate at Old Dominion University, joined forces to write a case study designed for use in a Principles of Real Estate class at ODU. The case study received much positive attention in the newspaper and its success encouraged the authors to submit their work to a nationally recognized journal. Their case study, “Building a Green Home Fit for a President” will be published in the Journal of Real Estate Practice and Education in December of 2010. JREPE is a publication of the American Real Estate Society (www.aresnet.org) and is read by academics and practitioners around the world. The cases published in this journal are used by countless universities.

Last Tuesday I was in Richmond at the Pella Window Expo. While there I received an email from a gentleman who was interested in speaking to me about building a green home starting in the summer. Like most people these days  I want to be accessible all the time so my email is sent to my phone so I can provide a quick response.

This time the technology failed me. My phone somehow deleted that email! I figured I could retreive it when I got home from the big computer, but it is gone. Lost forever.

It seems that we are improving technology more and more these days until it just isn’t worth a darn.

What happens to these emails when the disappear?

More importantly does this customer think I am not interested in speaking to him?

So if Russ is out there, please forgive me. I am not ignoring you. I just lost you by accident. Give me a call I’d love to speak to you.

Tidewater Builders Association will hold its first free “Membership Mingle” from 5-7 p.m., Thursday, April 15, in the picnic area behind the main building at 2117 Smith Ave. in Chesapeake.

This is a great opportunity to mix and mingle with colleagues in a low-key, casual setting. As hosts, the TBA Membership Committee will provide drinks, hamburgers and hot dogs, but associate and builder members are encouraged to bring their own coolers of beverages, snacks to share or outdoor games, and stake out a spot on the TBA turf. Small tents and lawn chairs are welcome.

Although the event is free, please let us know no later than April 5 if you’re planning to attend by calling or e-mailing Stacey Turner, director of membership and member services, at 305-9042 or sturner@tbaonline.org. You can also register on the TBA Web site (www.tbaonline.org) by clicking on events.

The more the merrier, so if you know other folks who would enjoy this outing, please forward this invitation.  Hope to see you at the Mingle!

Please come visit me at the “Sustainable Living Fair” at the Norfolk Waterside. There are all kinds of vendors discussing how to go green and live a healthier life. The turn out was great yesterday.

TW Perry in Rockville, Maryland, is having their Annual Expo today and they have been gracious enough to have me speak about green building. Also speaking are nationally recognized speakers Peter Yost and Peter Pfeiffer. I had dinner with everyone last night and enjoyed some great conversation. I look forward to this morning.

WASHINGTON – Home owners, buyers and renters have a new resource for going green indoors and outdoors. EPA’s new Green Homes Web site will help people make their homes greener with tips on reducing energy consumption, carbon footprints, waste generation and water usage, as well as improving indoor air quality.

The latest federal survey of American housing (2007) reported 128 million housing units across the U.S.,   accounting for nearly 54 percent of national energy use and nearly 31 percent of all U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, the most common greenhouse gas contributing to climate change.

Many green building practices and technologies have yet to make a dent in the existing residential market, in part because it is hard for people to find clear, consolidated, readily accessible, and credible information. The Green Homes Web site addresses that need by providing guidance on approaches to greening each room of the home as well as the surrounding yard.  Information also is available on building new homes and finding an energy efficient mortgage, which takes into account the savings derived from energy efficient homes to enable the applicant to qualify for better terms. Renters will find information to help them identify a green property before moving in and tips for working with their landlord to add green features to an existing property. Users can also find references, such as a list of common green home terms, and links to dozens of EPA Web sites with more specific information on a wide variety of green home topics.

For more information: http://www.epa.gov/greenhomes