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The "Lexus" HVAC system - Variable Refrigerant Flow Technology
Air Conditioners are sized for the Hottest day of the year. This results in rather uncomfortable AC about 70% of the time, as well as electric bills that are needlessly high. Enter Variable Refrigerant Flow Technology. This allows your AC to run at any capacity from 15% up to 100%. Join me for a system overview
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Southern HVAC Best Practice Videos
This is my collection of my 9 best HVAC related videos. Most will be relevant no matter your climate but many speak specifically to best practice for the Southern US.
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Ventilation Strategies for Houses in the Hot-Humid South: Good/Better/Best
Build tight, ventilate right. I learned that from building science guru Mark LaLiberte. But what is the right way to ventilate a house in Texas (or anywhere in the hot/humid South)? I'll give you my recommendations for three strategies.
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Indoor-Air Quality and Ventilation for Homes in Hot-Humid Climates
1 commentThe weather in the Southern United States poses a unique challenge to the issues of ventilation and indoor-air quality. Here are my opinions and suggestions on how to address these issues if you are building or remodeling in the South.
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Nest Review - Builder Perspective
3 commentsThe Nest thermostat has a ton of buzz, but is it worth the price? In this review you'll hear my perspective as a builder.
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Best Practices: Methods for Installing Brick or Stone Veneer
4 commentsBrick is a wonderful building veneer and is the original "Rain Screen" method of separating your cladding from your building with an air gap. Rock on the other hand is often devoid of that air gap here in the South and can lead to building failures. In this post I'll show you a Best Practice Rock veneer approach with a vented air gap.
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High-Performance Homes Dos & Don'ts: Mark LaLiberte Seminar Notes
2 commentsMark LaLiberte is an amazing building-science teacher. Read my blogging notes from his seminar titled "Building High-Performance Homes Dos & Don'ts," which I attended in Austin, Texas. Remember that this is focused on Texas construction, but there is plenty to learn here for anyone in the U.S.
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Kohler's New Musical Shower Head
I attended a builder luncheon the other day and was blown away by this cool new shower head called the Kohler Moxie. It has a magnetic bluetooth speaker that magnet holds into a standard shower head. The sound was fantastic and I love the idea.
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Modern Hardie Siding Details w/ Exterior Rigid Foam
In this video I'll show you some modern hardie siding details we used to overcome the issues encountered with exterior rigid foam installation.
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Drying Wet Framing Lumber
5 commentsIt's not unusual for a house to get wet during construction before it's "dried in". In this post I'll share some techniques I've used to dry my houses prior to sheetrock. This is a follow up to my last post about using a Moisture Meter.
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How to Paint Fiber-Cement Siding
Painter Jim Lacey shares some tips for caulking and painting fiber-cement siding. read more
