By Travis Ritchie It seems that 2017 is the year for the return of the electric car in America, with the release of three mass market high-range vehicle models that offer the opportunity to go more than 200 miles on a charge. Look around—a hybrid can be spotted at every stoplight and you’ll probably see…
Appraising & financing high-performance homes By Parlin Meyer Few people who embark on the adventure of building a new home have done so before. If you are venturing down this road, there are key things to know before the first shovels hit the ground. And a significant portion of this knowledge lies in the financing…
We caught up with Jeff Edelstein, creator of Portland Greenfest to find out what all of the hubbub was about. The fourth annual Portland Greenfest takes place on Saturday, September 9th from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. in Portland’s Monument Square! The eco-fair features music, art, local food, kids’ activities, exhibits, workshops, and demonstrations. Jeff Edelstein is…
How to Design and Build a Pretty Good (or Better) House by Michael Maines THE BUILDING STANDARD that’s not a standard and started as a joke takes off… again. Once a month a small group gets together in Portland, Maine to discuss hot topics in building science—the field that covers everything from indoor air quality…
A conversation with Efficiency Maine Ductless heat pumps are one of the most popular technologies for highly efficient heating in cold climates. More than 20,000 high-efficiency ductless heat pumps have been installed in Maine homes and businesses in the past three years. We sat down with Efficiency Maine program managers Dana Fischer and Andy Meyer…
By Heather Chandler THE LED (OR LIGHT emitting diode) bulb is a relatively new entry to the lighting scene, but one that many say has the power to transform the lighting industry with its energy efficient technology. While even just a few years ago, LEDs were unfavorable to some because of the “cool” blueish light…
By Barry Woods I’VE BEEN AN UNREPENTANT advocate of plug in electric vehicles since 2009. It was then that I realized these cars, and their improbably elegant marriage of clean energy, battery storage and transportation, could heal many of our accumulated social, environmental and economic ills. When I leased my first Nissan LEAF in 2011,…
By Tim King DON’T LET THE name fool you – there’s nothing passive about constructing a high performance building worthy of passive house certification. In fact, achieving what many consider to be the pinnacle of building energy standards requires a substantial amount of activity – before, during and after construction is completed. The payoff, however,…
Considering an electric vehicle for your next car? With recent advances in battery technology and range, affordable lease options, and growing choice in make and models, electric vehicles are quickly becoming a viable option for drivers in Maine. Wondering where you can charge up? Here’s a partial list, current as of April 2019. Check back…
By Heather Chandler & Chris Briley There are a lot of loosely defined terms used to describe how “green” a house is. Luckily some professionals in our industry have worked very hard to find ways to quantify this almost intangible quality, and in so doing, have generated new nomenclature that can often sound foreign to those outside the industry. LEED, for example,…