Category: Architecture

Guidelines for Window Design Standards

In today’s world, it’s crucial to take both the building requirements and design advice into account when choosing windows for your house. In most places, minimum levels for windows, doors, and skylights are required by building energy codes and standards. Windows were formerly seen to be a weak point in a house’s ability to protect its occupants from the elements. Today’s energy efficient windows are now a key component of design, offering several advantages.

Building Codes

The majority of places have building energy codes that require windows, doors, and skylights to meet minimum performance standards. The code standards, which normally apply to both replacement and new construction windows, must be followed by the builder, contractor, or homeowner. These specifications are subject to the building energy code of the relevant jurisdiction.

Considerations for Design

Both new and old homes’ energy use is impacted by new windows.

Energy efficient windows are an important consideration for both new construction and existing homes. Heat gain and heat loss through windows are responsible for 25%–30% of residential heating and cooling energy use.

If you are selecting windows for new construction or to replace existing windows, it’s important to choose the most efficient windows that work best in your climate.

Replace Your Windows and the Selection Process

In addition to choosing the window type, you also need to consider design, energy use and labelling, warranties, and proper installation.

Ensure your windows are covered by  ENERGY STAR label when buying new windows. Then review ratings on the energy performance label from the National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) to find the most efficient windows for your needs.

NFRC ratings are included on all ENERGY STAR certified windows and provide a reliable way to determine a window’s energy properties and compare products.

Canada must act to remain a leader on clean energy and do its part in ensuring an equitable, prosperous and safe energy future for our world

Signed into law in August, the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has been heralded as the biggest single piece of legislative action aimed at fighting climate change that the world has ever seen. It is worth remembering, though, that the huge IRA is not just one policy — but many — and will touch multiple sectors in the months and years ahead. Here, we focus on what the IRA means for clean energy in the U.S., which — like Canada — has committed to a net-zero electricity grid by 2035.

With US$369 billion dedicated to direct investments and tax credits, the IRA represents the single largest investment into climate and clean energy in history. This includes several provisions to support investments in clean electricity

Content courtesy of the NFRC

Home buyers increasingly want to live in an energy-efficient homes, and statistics show that the proportion of them willing to pay extra is rising fast.

In June 2022, NFRC hosted the “Residential Green Building Demand & Certification Trends,” where a panel of speakers shared their results based on surveys.

The event began with the Director of leadership and sustainability for the National Association of Realtors (NAR), sharing figures from the Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends Report survey of realtors: 50 percent reported helping buyers purchase a home with green features, a leap from 36 percent in 2021. Almost two-thirds of the realtors said that energy-efficiency technologies are valuable or somewhat valuable selling points to potential buyers. “This speaks to the growing awareness and understanding of sustainable homes, and there is value from the realtor’s side in being able to highlight and point

Content courtesy of the chba

Every part of a Net Zero Home works together in harmony to create the ultimate energy efficient living space. Every aspect of the home, including the building envelope, mechanical systems, and renewable energy systems, works together as a system to ensure peak performance. Through advanced “building science” techniques, technologies, and products, builders can significantly reduce a home’s energy consumption.

Most Canadian homes use roughly half of their energy consumption on space heating. Net Zero Homes, on the other hand, use only about a quarter of the energy of conventional homes on space heating. Net Zero Homes have a superior building envelope. The building envelope is considered the “shell” of the home because it separates the indoor environment from the outdoor environment. It includes the home’s overall air-tightness, the insulation of the exterior walls, floors, ceilings, and foundation, as well as high-performance windows and doors.

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Content courtesy of the Pembina

The federal governmentpledged a raft of policies to tackle green house gasses generated from Canada’s built environment, including drafting a Canada Green Building Strategy.

Ottawa is funding programs to support retrofitting residential and commercial buildings to improve energy efficiency and allow switching from fossil-based energy to renewable sources. However, the government has yet to advance policies or provide sufficient funding to meet the goal of substantially decarbonizing Canada’s buildings.

Emissions in the buildings sector have been trending upwards since 2005 as Canada’s building stock continues to grow. It is critical that, as new buildings are constructed, they are net-zero ready and energy efficient to avoid the need for costly retrofits in the future.

However, by 2030, more than 80 per cent of Canada’s building stock will still be made up of buildings that exist now. The most recent data shows that the building sector