Cooling & Heating
Finally! No more yanking the wrong chain!
Stress relieving fan pulls I guess these little doodads have been around for a while, but they are new to me. Imagine that you have a lovely ceiling fan with a light. Are you [...]
Flash News — Hot Sun Makes Barn Cooler
This is what I’m talkin’ ’bout! This agricultural barn is being cooled with Big Ass Fans powered by solar panels. What a concept! This is so obvious! [...]
Is This Wall Insulated? Infrared Camera Solves the Mystery
Looking at the wall below, or a wall in your home, you may wonder: Is it insulated? Short of tearing down the drywall/sheetrock to have a look, how will you know? An infrared [...]
Women’s Work — Making Homes Healthy, Safe, Durable, Comfortable and Energy Efficient
Above: A. Tamasin Sterner, of Pure Energy Coach, teaches women in her class about safety issues with a wood-burning stove. Having just returned from a five-day course for [...]
The New Orleans Healing Center Rises from the Post-Katrina Muck
My heart goes out to the victims of Hurricane Irene. I feel your pain. (And I promise not ask this inane question: Why would you live/rebuild where hurricanes can hit? [...]
The greenest remodel in America?
If you can’t sell your parent’s former home, why not turn it into a showcase for green remodeling? That’s exactly what Jay DeChesere and his wife did with a [...]
Last call for free replacement of faulty vent pipes
Back in 1998, in a massive recall, virtually the entire furnace and boiler industry — along with the manufacturers of high-temperature plastic vent pipes and the [...]
Keeping cool in Claremont
Deb and Vern Jahnke, pictured here, are way too nice to brag. So let me do it for them. Even on the hottest days, their home in Claremont stays cool and comfortable without [...]
When the embers die down . . . recovery begins
It might be soon to talk about recovery as the tragedy unfolds, but Southern Californians do rebuild after fires. I’m sure Claremont residents Vern and Deb Jahnke, who [...]