announcements
Weatherization & Healthy Homes Impact Study
Click below to read the study conducted by Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Opportunity Council.
This report presents results from an analysis of the asthma-related health impacts of weatherization and healthy homes interventions using data collected from 49 households in Northwestern Washington State covering the period from 2006 to 2013. This study was performed as part of a broader evaluation of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) that Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) conducted for the Department of Energy (DOE).
Join the BPI Home Performance Workforce
BPI supports the development of a professionalized, highly skilled home performance industry through standards development, certification, accreditation and quality assurance.
invest your tax refund in energy improvements
The economic benefits of energy improvements are well known within the energy conservation community, but probably still not adequately appreciated by the general home owning public. Large upfront expenditure still is a barrier despite the potential for great bang for a buck in terms of the net long term (more…)
federal agencies unify approach to Healthy Homes
Building on the growing movement toward including health as a key consideration for any improvements to homes, several government agencies released a new vision for healthy housing in February, 2013.
HUD, EPA, the White House Council on Environmental Quality, the Surgeon General, and the DOE jointly announced their The (more…)
HERS training in Olympia, WA. July 23, 2012
The WSU Energy Extension program will conduct a week long Home Energy Rater (HERS) training in Olympia, WA. starting Monday, July 23, 2012. This course is intended to prepare participants for the tests required to become a certified HERS Rater, an Energy Star Homes Northwest Energy Star Verifier for (more…)
BPC works with Habitat for Humanity
In early March the Building Performance Center in conjunction with Habitat International held an Integrating Weatherization with Critical Home Repair training in Tacoma, WA. for western Washington and Oregon Affiliates.
The training was designed to introduce project leaders for Habitat to Building Science and Weatherization retrofit materials and processes. Course participants represented affiliates from Salem and Florence Oregon, and the Washington (more…)
energy assessment training in Alaska
In late February the Building Performance Center in conjunction with Alaska Works Partnership and with much assistance from RuralCap held an Energy Assessor training in Anchorage, AK. This training was designed for both beginning and practicing assessors. Attendees included folks from the North Slope Borough, Aleutian Housing, Interior Regional Housing Authority and Ruralcap among others.
Two days of class time were (more…)
weatherization plus health gathering attention
Combining preventative health measures with traditional weatherization continues to make news and draw attention. Home Energy magazine posted an article this week about this practice and programs around the US that are leading practitioners. A case study insert in the article describes how such (more…)
indoor air quality importance
How clean is the air in your home? The outdoor air in our locale, Bellingham, WA., is typically quite good (see our current air quality), but what about our indoor air? Most of us spend the majority of our time indoors. Unfortunately the quality of indoor air is often significantly poorer than outdoor air. The EPA estimates that (more…)
weatherization assistance program benefits
What does the national weatherization assistance program accomplish? Just in terms of cash, the DOE currently calculates that the average weatherization provided to low-income residences saves $437 per year, with some variation depending on fuel costs. If you wish to read more about this program and other benefits it creates, visit the DOE website: Weatherization Assistance Program
BPC and OC recognized for Healthy Homes program
The BPC and its parent, the Opportunity Council, have been receiving recent recognition for innovation in combining health initiatives with weatherization and energy assistance. Programs created here in Bellingham have been recognized nationally as worthy of development (see previous post here). A recent post on the National Association for State Community (more…)
HVAC quality standards approved by ANSI
A new HVAC quality standard, developed by the ACCA (Air Conditioning Contractors of America) in cooperation with RESNET, for design, installation and maintenance of home heating, cooling and ventilation systems is now ANSI approved and EPA recognized.
As described in ACCA News:
“ACCA 12 QH-2011 was developed by (more…)
Community Energy Challenge highlighted in recent article
A January 3 article from Home Energy magazine describes a number of successful efforts in Washington state to leverage recent federal funding into ongoing energy savings for businesses and homes. The BPC’s own Community Energy Challenge is described in detail and receives compliments both for overcoming (more…)
U.S. budget cuts on backs of low-income Americans
A December 16, 2011 news post on the website for the National Association for State Community Services Programs (NASCSP) emphasizes the impact of energy program budget cuts on those Americans least able to afford such cuts. Despite weatherization being an expenditure that the DOE has described as its most cost effective program, it has been reduced by 60%. (more…)
LEDs becoming the cost leader in lighting
In the Wall Street Journal , November 30, 2011, an article details how LEDs have become the best buys in areas of commercial lighting. And they are increasingly able to compete in other types of lighting as their costs plunge.
Blessed with low power usage and high light output, the key factor that has held recent-vintage, high-quality LED adoption back (more…)
BPI certification in Alaska is “cool”
BPC head trainer/BPI certification proctor, Chris Clay, was in Fairbanks, AK in late November 2011 proctoring 9 Building Analyst candidates. Chris reports that the climate dynamics there are pretty impressive. The Alaskan climate presents special challenges for the area’s energy auditors with extreme temperatures, varied housing stock, and an abundance of very tight houses. Although it was 15-20 degrees below (more…)
home tax credit for energy efficiency proposed
New energy conservation legislation with bipartisan support has been introduced in the Senate. If passed this legislation will provide for up to $5,000 in home owner tax credits for the installation of energy efficient home improvements through the creation of a new 25E tax credit. The credit would require a home energy analysis by a certified energy auditing company. More (more…)
BPC trains in Land of Enchantment
BPC head trainer, Chris Clay, traveled to New Mexico in mid-November and worked with the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority to provide dense pack insulation training for the Central New Mexico Housing Authority.
The trainees spent the first 1/2 of day 1 in the classroom hearing and seeing how and why dense pack insulation is an indispensable technique for weatherization. Later that (more…)
