Not everyone lives in a place or a situation that allows them to install their own solar panels. If you are among them, fear not! Here are four ways to source renewable power or at least compensate for the carbon emissions of the energy you use. These four methods make zero energy homes and buildings possible for everyone.

This middle-class family disconnected from fossil methane and saved money. See their step-by-step approach to powering their home and car with renewable energy.

It’s no surprise that covering cold windows enhances comfort and improves building energy performance. However, until now there hasn’t been a reliable way to measure or express the efficiency of shades, blinds, shutters and storm windows. Now there is, thanks to the recently created Attachments Energy Rating Council.

When addressing indoor air quality, let’s not leave out existing homes and buildings. The same principles that make new zero energy buildings more healthy can also be applied to existing homes, whether during minor upgrades or major renovations. The return is in improved health and comfort. This is the final installment of our three-part series on indoor air quality and health.

Building codes are the nerdy superheroes that will help us stop the worst impacts of climate change. Local and state governments across the U.S. are beginning to recognize that every new building will use energy for decades and must be as efficient as possible.

Giv Group just finished a zero energy affordable housing apartment project in Salt Lake City that cost less than a comparable building built to conventional energy standards. Now, they want to share what they learned so others can duplicate their accomplishment.

One payoff of a super insulated building envelope is a smaller heating and cooling system. Achieving the payoff requires HVAC contractors to plan and implement the project a bit differently than a typical one.

The time is now for zero energy commercial buildings. To that end, Architecture 2030 has developed a new international building code for commercial buildings allows jurisdictions in North America and beyond to establish zero energy as the new standard.

Some production builders around the U.S. are beginning to shift their businesses to high-performance and zero energy homes. Mandalay Homes is leap-frogging their competition by including on-site storage batteries. This added feature improves each customer’s bottom-line and offers the potential for supporting the larger electrical utility grid with clean, cheap power.

One of the most visible, and perhaps even iconic, features of a super energy-efficient home is the heat recovery ventilator (HRV). These devices remove stale air from the home and replace it with pre-heated fresh air from outside. The result is better indoor air quality and lower energy use than in standard homes. The HRV […]

State governments are stepping into the policy void created by the U.S. government’s denial of science and reversal of environmental rules. The latest move comes from the State of Oregon with a sweeping new initiative to promote clean energy for buildings and vehicles.

Natural disasters like the recent hurricanes of 2017 challenge us all. While natural disasters are intrinsically bad, they do present an opportunity to upgrade homes and buildings to a higher standard of performance – one that benefits the occupants, the community, and the planet as whole.