Recent Q&A

• Comments from HVAC folks

  This paper makes the case for oversizing variable capacity heat pumps. Comments?http://www.aceee.org/files/proceedings/2014/data/papers/1-371.pdf

• Thanks GBA!

  Huge thanks to the entire GBA community. My house is finally complete and we are moved in. I feel our house is 100X better for having spent so much time…

• Leaky lock

  The front door on my new house was just installed. It's a custom door with multipoint lock system and full perimeter gasket. The door lockset choices are somewhat limited with…

• Be ever vigilant

  Not really a question, but a comment on the sad state of building. I have reached the drywall stage in my build. I have spent countless hours airsealing, caulking, taping,…

• Crawlspace / basement junction

  Zone 4 build going on--the lot is a steep slope. The uphill foundation wall is essentially a giant retaining wall, and the trusses for each floor sit on a ledge…

• Does this “attic” need conditioned air?

  The main section of our house (kitchen, dining, living rooms) that is under construction lies below a 3:12 pitch roof that will have R-49 insulation sprayed directly on the underside…

• Rainscreen detail and belly band

  My house is slowly going up. In the back, it is two stories and there will be a 12" belly band of boral trim at the floor level, with Hardi…

• Rainscreens and trim

  This is not exactly a green building question, but more of a "secondary effects of green building" question. I am using 1/2" plywood (.46875" really) for furring strips and Hardi…

• Tape vs. caulk

  My house is finally in the construction stage. I am doing most of the airsealing myself. The sill plate is locked up tight(gasket, Contega HF on the inside seam, Prosoco…

• Staggered stud tips?

  Does anyone with experience building a staggered stud house have any framing tips? My house will have 2x4's on a 2x8 top and bottom plate. The framer says he has…