Staying Dry on Waimea’s Wet Side
I live on the wet side of Waimea in a house that needs a lot of work. When we moved here we brought a lot of art. Our house isn’t ready for me to hang it, and even if I did…you know it gets moldy here, right? And I’ve got a half-dozen roof leaks.
Dear NYSERDA,
I’ve been hearing for years that you’re working to “transform the market.”In the New York home performance world, though…you ARE the market. Anyone who’s not in your system has to compete against it. So I don’t think you’re transforming the market. I think you’re killing it, or at least strangling it.
Why I don’t HeatSmart
I’ll say, right off, that I think HeatSmart is a great program. It’s essentially a community-education program, that helps people understand that heat pumps can work well in cold climates and can help us move towards a carbon-free future. I believe in heat pumps. Shoot, I designed and built an entire building around a heat pump. (p. 6) But I don’t believe that they’re THE solution. Sometimes you just need an awesome dehumidifier. (Which is a heat pump too, hee hee.)
Bad Energy Code. BAD!
When I’m out with my family and we go by a jobsite, I slow down if I’m driving. Everybody rolls their eyes and my son says, “what’s wrong THIS time, Dad?” The answer is usually “So many things.”Today I was on my own, which meant I could get out of the car and take a close look. Was I snooping? Heck yes. This is what made me pull over.
How to spend your tax refund
It’s tax day! Hooray?
I used to get excited about tax refunds, and then I learned they’re not really anything to get excited about; if you get a refund, it just means that you overpaid your taxes, and the Man is simply giving your own money back to you. (I don’t like to be a downer, sorry.)
On Customer Service
This week a paying customer was dragged off a flight by cops, for no other reason than “the airline wanted him off.”This is BS. You have rights as a passenger, but that’s not what bugs me as an American and a consumer.I’ll state right off that I feel like this does not at all compare to much of what’s happening in the world today. But it’s indicative.
You Need A Bigly Dehumidifier (PT. 2)
I don’t want to belabor the point, but houses have evolved.It used to be that houses were uninsulated and air-leaky. They’d get wet, they’d dry out. And energy was so cheap that we could afford to pump them full of heat to help them dry out. It was kind of like putting your house in the dryer.
You Need A Bigly Dehumidifier (PT. 1)
Pre-Spring is over and Second Winter is upon us. For a bit there it was glorious. Do you remember? It was wet and squishy and muddy and dehumidifiers were kicking on all over the place. The whole area got very wet very quickly. And it’s about to get real wet real quick – up to TWO FEET of wetness, some people are saying.
The Contractor’s Dilemma
I was reminded recently of the iron triangle. I’ve run a lot of large projects, but even the small ones track the same principles.My preference is to deliver, to my clients, these three things: exceptional service, low prices, and high quality. The drawback, then, is that work doesn’t happen quickly.
A Full Plate
It’s Thanksgiving in a couple of days. It just snowed and the no-heat calls are going to come rolling in.If your heating system poops out, call your installer/servicer. When you purchase a large piece of equipment from a reputable source, they’re your first call.
Renovate, Rebuild, or Replace?
When I bought a house in Trumansburg nine years ago, one of the first things I did was cut down a tree.It was a “street tree,” an old maple with three thick leaders. A “leader” is a thick branch. When the tree grew and split into three equally-sized parts, the entire structure of the tree was weakened.There are a number of these trees in the village. The one in front of my house was held together by chains, to keep the leaders from spreading, and concrete had been poured in the crotch of the tree in an effort to keep water from pooling and rotting the tree.
Raterfest! Wrapup
Went to a conference a few weeks ago. Less of a “conference” and more of a “gathering,” really. I’ve been meaning to write this since then, but came back home and got swamped by actual work-work. For one thing, a commercial builder called me in a panic for some rooftop duct insulation. (Pro tip: never call a contractor in a panic. We have to raise our prices to push your problem to the top of our list. So…be cool.)
