Ashrae Journal - November 2008 - (Page 36)

look cool. And, that apparently is more important than cost and energy savings. I can live with the beautiful and looking cool argument if that is, in fact, the argument. But, don’t clutter it with half-truths such as heat island effects and water run-off. Other ways exist to deal with each. I know I will not win the argument on green roofs, so my advice is to at least build the green roofs correctly. In the “green world,” folks sometimes get so preoccupied with “green materials” that they forget that at the end of the day the assembly still has to work (Figures 3 and 4). And enough with the awards before a building is built and the performance is verified. Award plaques should come with removable screws.§ Show me the utility bills. Compare the building to a building of similar size and similar occupancy in a similar climate. And, if you don’t show any savings, shut up. You can’t be “green” if you don’t save any energy. Don’t talk to me about biological diversity, recycled materials and natural ventilation until after you have saved the energy. Spare me the social engineering and the smaller is better and how we all have to share the planet and how we are all equal until you have saved the energy. Don’t talk to me about carbon offsets until you have saved the energy. You need some carbon savings before you can trade any (the Kyoto protocol requires that the carbon credits be verified, i.e., a piece of paper saying we intended for there to be carbon reductions doesn’t do it). Save one, and you can trade one. Don’t build an award-winning energy pig, and say you are green because you planted some trees in Zaire and brought clean water to a village. Those are all good things, but they mean nothing to me because you still have a poor building. 1. Lstiburek, J.W. 2005. “Understanding air barriers.” ASHRAE Journal 47(7):24 – 30. 2. Emswiler, J.E. 1926. “The neutral zone in ventilation.” ASHVE Journal 32(1). 3. Hutcheon, N.B. 1953. “Fundamental considerations in the design of exterior walls for buildings.” Engineering Journal 36(1):687 – 698. 4. Shaw, C.Y. and G.T. Tamura. 1976. “Studies on exterior wall air tightness and air infiltration of tall buildings.” ASHRAE Transactions 82(1):122 – 134. 5. Johnson, B. 2008. “Energy inefficient.” North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Sept. 8. 6. Straube, J. 2008. “Can highly glazed building façades be green?” Building Science Insights, BSI-006. http://tinyurl.com/4gxjg2. References Joseph W. Lstiburek, Ph.D., P .Eng., is a principal of Building Sc ience C orporation, in So merville, Mas s. Visit w ww. buildingscience.com. †What a weird decade. Not only did we have double envelope houses, but we also had leisure suits and the “Bionic Woman.” With double façades in vogue and the Bionic Woman back on network TV, can leisure suits be far behind? §This idea is from the irrepressible Henry Gifford, New York City. Yo, you talking to me? ROTORSOURCE Recore/Replacement Contact Rotor Source to recore or replace your existing Desiccant Dehumidification or Energy Recovery wheel. Before 877-768-6771 (877-ROTORS-1) www.rotorsource.com Toll Free After 17444 Opportunity Avenue, Baton Rouge, LA 70817 www.info.hotims.com/16019-44 www.info.hotims.com/16019-6 36 ASHRAE Journal November 2008 http://tinyurl.com/4gxjg2 http://www.buildingscience.com http://www.buildingscience.com http://www.rotorsource.com http://www.rydlyme.com http://www.rotorsource.com http://www.rydlyme.com http://www.info.hotims.com/16019-6 http://www.info.hotims.com/16019-44

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Ashrae Journal - November 2008

Ashrae Journal - November 2008 Contents Commentary Industry News Meetings and Shows Feature Articles Reducing Data Center Energy Consumption Building Sciences Feature Articles Sustainable Nature Center Emerging Technologies Special Products Washington Report Special Supplement: BACnet® Today BACnet® Goes Green Seeing the Light with BACnet® BACnet® on Campus BACnet® for Net Zero Analyzing BACnet® BACnet® at Xerox Campus BACnet® in Europe BACnet® for Green Library BACnet® at the University of Minnesota: Flexibility, Interoperability InfoCenter Product Showplace Classified Advertising Advertising Index

Ashrae Journal - November 2008

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