“The world is now engaged in a peaceful competition to determine the technologies that will power the 21st century.   From China to India, from Japan to Germany, nations everywhere are racing to develop new ways to produce and use energy.   The nation that wins this competition will be that nation that leads the global economy.  I am convinced of that.  And I want America to be that nation.” Read more linktext

Delaware-based GeoEnergy Enterprises has invented a new self-contained HVAC system called the GeoSource that offers the benefits of both direct-exchange ground source heat pumps and air source heat pumps, and attempts to use each to make up for the inherent weaknesses of the other.  The benefits of this type of green-building-and-green-technology development are both obvious and non-obvious, with implications that extend well beyond the field of HVAC itself and play into the generalized importance of green buildings and green technology for the Big Picture of America’s energy future. Read more linktext

Further proof of the benefits of LEED buildings and green building in general came from sources located on opposite sides of the globe in June and October of 2009. Read more linktext

We regularly talk at Just Venting about innovative HVAC solutions – variable-speed technology, high-tech sensors and building control software – to name just a few.   Mostly these innovative solutions to HVAC problems are stand-alone technologies or one-time product offerings. Read more linktext

In the race to transition to the “clean energy economy” spoken of by President Obama, we shouldn’t get so carried away by our archetypally American fascination with the “new and improved” that we forget the value of the old.  That’s the message presented by a very interesting opinion piece published in late November by The Boston Globe. Read more linktext

Using communications to save energy costs seems to be a key strategy for a host of new green building products and technologies.   In another post we talked about a new communications protocol being developed just for HVAC gear. Now Cleantech – one of the world’s  largest competition for clean technologies – has picked a winner that uses communications as a means of reducing HVAC costs. Read more linktext

Remember LEED?  The U.S. Green Building Council’s “Leadership in Energy and Environmental and Design” program?  Of course you do.  So do we.  We write about LEED frequently.  We urge our readers to learn about it, qualify for it, and practice it.  We hope to help you in that endeavor, since LEED seems to be the green building program of the future, and we’re all for that. Read more linktext

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13 SEER Air Conditioner Efficiency As of January 2006, central air conditioning equipment installed in the U.S. must be 13 SEER. SEER stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating. It is the ratio of cooling produced in BTU, divided by the amount of electricity in watts, which is required to produce a certain amount of cooling. A 10 SEER air conditioner requires 30 percent more watts than a 13 SEER of the same tonnage or output. This does not include electricity needed to deliver the cooling to each room, so blower use is a constant and approximately 3 percent. There are two main parts to a central air conditioner, indoor and outdoor. A thirteen SEER condenser (outdoor unit) can only be efficient if paired with a 13 SEER coiling coil (indoor unit). Many cooling coils can be upgraded by adding an expansion valve, in fact many manufacturers have done exactly that to their existing product line to meet 13 SEER standards. A 13 SEER condenser is approximately 50 percent larger, physically; than a 10 SEER condenser. It is also more expensive. When an older air conditioner fails, replacing it will be considerably more expensive from now on. Not only because the outdoor unit simply costs more, but also because the indoor section must be addressed. This efficiency upgrade does not directly affect warm air furnaces with central air conditioning, if the furnace was properly matched to the air conditioner to begin with. The heating mode is not affected, and the air flow should not need change. The cooling coil which sits on top of the furnace will be effected and possibly the corresponding ductwork. Most air handlers however, are more specific to the coil and condenser and will be subject to more frequent replacements, if the coil cannot be upgraded or simply replaced. Unlike the furnace, where the cooling coil is a modified fit, the cooling coil inside of an air handler is more or less a custom fit. Replacing the cooling coil itself will depend on the age of the system, as manufacturers have altered their many coil styles over the years, and a new coil may not physically adapt to the old air handler cabinet. Replacing the air handler and coil will most likely require ductwork alterations. When the ductwork does indeed need modification, it would be a good time to upgrade the filter system and insulation values of plenums and accessible ducts. Read more linktext