energy-guide / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

The new BC Energy Step Code - The details The BC Energy Step Code is a new provincial standard intended to provide an incremental approach to achieving more energy-efficient buildings that will help the province meet its goal of having all new buildings be Net Zero Energy ready by the year 2032. The City of Vancouver S...

Why suspended-film insulating glass windows may be a game-changer Suspended-film insulating glass windows are an intelligent way to make windows super high-performance with insulating properties up to R-17, without adding too much weight for window frames to cope with. Since air is an insulator, trapping it (or gas) be...

We are seeing more frequent and more severe weather events as our climate changes, and all evidence points to that trend continuing. Here we have a list of ways to prepare yourself in the event of grid failure or absence of municipal services.  Storing emergency food and water: City water systems will remain pressurize...

When beginning to think about permanent edible landscape design and forest gardening, taking in the general concepts of Permaculture can help tremendously.  An edible forest can feature a number of natural layers. Fruit and nut bearing trees can create a canopy, dwarf trees shrubs and vines can create a natural under l...

Slab-On-Grade Construction - Technical Guide   Deciding to build your home with a slab-on-grade foundation instead of a conventional basement or raised crawlspace foundation can greatly reduce your environmental impact during construction, and has the potential to offer significant financial savings as well. By replaci...

What is the cleanest energy?  Despite how commonly  the term ‘clean energy’ is used, there is actually no such thing. At least not in the power delivery market; there are only various levels of ‘dirty’ energy. Starting with the worst and moving up, that would in general be - coal, oil, natural gas and propane, wood and...

The Kenogami Net Zero Energy off-grid house is a virtual energy laboratory, and in constant evolution. Every system of this award-winning home is innovative from the heating and ventilation systems to the production of domestic hot water. Energy systems as advanced as this have never been seen together before, and coll...

Recent articles have praised major public investments in biomethanization plants around Canada and North America. These huge chemical plants produce renewable natural gas (RNG) which is a pipeline-quality gas that is fully interchangeable with conventional natural gas and so can also be used in natural gas vehicles. RN...

New technology combines solar power generation & battery free power storage The forever-changing landscape of the green home building industry sees ideas come and go, and on occasion a game-changing technology or product emerges. The big news lately is in renewable energy - solar power generation, solar power stora...

Home Energy Generation, which option is best? How the electrical grid is fed near you will be a huge factor in determining the carbon footprint of your home, with or without your own renewable power generation such as having solar panels on your roof. If you live near a windfarm, that's where most of your power comes f...

Mitigating climate change at home, get on your bike! As we look for ways to mitigate climate change, improving home energy efficiency and decentralising power generation is something we can do to reduce our personal energy consumption and carbon footprint. Theoretically then moving towards home solar, wind power and ev...