Pandemic May Drive Zero Energy Construction

An increasing number of states and municipal governments are considering more stringent energy efficiency goals into their updated building codes. For example, new residential construction in several locales within Colorado must comply with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home program....

The current pandemic has forced many industries to develop alternative methods for their typical operations, and construction is no different. In the first of a new series we’re calling, “How Construction Will Change,” Insulation Institute takes a look at a growing trend for the building industry: virtual code inspections.

Energy efficiency is indisputably essential to addressing global climate change. At the forefront of organizations promoting strategies to tackle the climate crisis is the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Insulation Institute spoke with David Goldstein, Co-Director of Climate and Energy at NRDC, about how the building sector in America...

As a new decade begins, there are promising developments on the horizon for building decarbonization and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions in residential and commercial construction. While federal support for decarbonization to address climate impacts is at a standstill, non-governmental organizations, state and local governments, and...

Residential building energy code adoption and implementation have expanded steadily in the U.S. in recent years, with roughly 40 percent of states having a residential energy efficiency code that is equivalent to or higher than the 2015 IECC. With all the progress that’s occurred in recent years, is the building industry reaching peak efficiency?...

In the past three months, Sam Rashkin, chief architect of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office, has been traveling non-stop, speaking at meetings and conferences about the expansion of zero energy buildings in the United States. While accustomed to an exacting traveling and speaking schedule, the demands on his time likely...

DOE’s Housing Innovation Awards recognize the best in home building innovation on the path toward Net Zero. Among this year’s winners in the production home category is Insight Homes, a Delaware builder and previous innovation award winner. Insight’s ability to evolve its construction practices to take advantage of the latest in building science...

Jeff Bentley is a fifth-generation home builder who’s built more than 4,000 houses and sold more than 2,000 homes in more than 45 years in residential construction. He’s also a HERS rater, LEED Green Builder and REALTOR® whose counsel on energy-efficient home building is highly sought after. Insulation Institute reached out to Bentley to find out...

For the second time in three years, North Carolina Builder Shawn Jessup has won a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Housing Innovation Award. While Jessup’s scale may be small, at two to three builds per year, he is in high demand. S.D. Jessup Construction fields constant requests from potential customers in Raleigh, NC and other areas more than two...

When newer editions of the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) are introduced in states, often there’s a learning curve for home builders, especially when it comes to verification of a home’s air tightness with a blower door test. Some builders are having a tough go of meeting the new requirements. Increasingly, they’re relying on energy...