Sustainable Green Building Blog

LEED-Certified Buildings: Energy Efficient or Not?

Wed, Apr 09, 2014 @ 12:33 / by Jim Newman posted in Codes & Standards, Energy Codes, LEED Guidelines, LEED 2009, ASHRAE, USGBC, Green Building, LEED Cerified Buildings, LEED Certification, LEED Certified, Sustainability

8 Comments

Today's LEED certified buildings are more energy efficient than their predecessors. There has been some heated discussion lately about how much energy LEED® certified buildings use. When the US Green Building Council (USGBC) first came out with its Version 1 LEED Guideline in 2000, a building could earn LEED certification without any points in the energy section.

Why Not to Do the Easy Energy Efficiency and HVAC Fixes

Thu, Apr 03, 2014 @ 01:30 / by Jim Newman posted in HVAC, Commercial Building, bEQ, Building Energy Quotient, ASHRAE, Energy Savings, Energy Audit, Retro-commissioning, energy efficient lighting

4 Comments

3 Ways to Get the Best Value From Solar

Tue, Mar 25, 2014 @ 03:10 / by Jim Newman posted in HVAC, bEQ, solar, ASHRAE, renewable energy, Sustainability, Energy Savings, Energy Audit, energy efficient lighting

9 Comments

The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) predicts another growth spurt for 2014. Not surprising, as solar power grew 40% in 2013 and prices keep coming down.

If you’re thinking about jumping on the bandwagon – good for you! Solar is a great investment in the future of our planet. But before you go solar, it is important to be sure you are ready for it. We’ve seen too many companies get all excited about renewable energy and then spend more money than they need to, or not get as much benefit as they could, because the building is not energy efficient.