Archive for July, 2007
A Clear View On Glass
Tuesday, July 24th, 2007Things in the glass world, they are a’changin’, according to Reed Construction Data!
Down in Florida the building codes are changing to require high impact-resistant glass to be installed in both commercial and residential buildings. Meanwhile, high energy efficient glass is becoming a more common choice for both commercial and residential builders.
Energy efficient glass reduces glare and UV light passing through the pane. It also keeps heat on the side of the glass it’s on much better than standard glass. So if it’s hot outside, it keeps the heat "out there". If it’s cold outside, it keeps the cold "out there" and the heat inside.
Property owners are finally cottoning on to the money that can be saved on heating and cooling by upgrading their windows.
But not all windows are created equal. To aid home-owners in rating the energy efficiency of the windows they’re considering for their homes, a rating system has been devised. You can read more about the rating system and how it’s used here. Energy Star also has some good information on energy efficient windows you may wish to look over.
As usual, just as not all (energy efficient) windows are created equal, so too are not all (energy efficient) windows suitable for all applications. To give but one simple example, low-E coated window would be a poor choice for the south face of a passive solar home, for instance, but an excellent choice where that heat is undesirable.
As always, ask your contractor to help you make the best choice for your application.
Technorati Tags: windows, energy efficiency, energy star, energy conservation
Careful With Those Wires, Please!
Sunday, July 15th, 2007It’s been a busy few weeks here. Along with work, my wife came down with a case of MRSA. So up until last week it had been work, work, work, then come home and take care of her and the house and the puppies . . .
Yes, puppies. Our old labrador had the last litter of puppies she’ll ever have. But in doing so she gave us a gift: A pretty little girl puppy that we named Anniel ("Gift"). Unfortunately, the puppies came at the same time as the Staph infection, so it just added to the stress.
Anyway, on to what’s been going on at ABS.
It’s been busy and hectic, but up until yesterday (Saturday, even) all has been pretty routine.
Then yesterday I got a frantic call from an older fellow living in an old double-wide mobile home. He’d gotten himself into a spot. He tried to melt down the wiring in the place. Totally fried a 50 amp circuit breaker! Worse, he did it trying to wire his new electric stove onto the same circuit as his electric dryer. There were wires everywhere, plugs that here hanging out of the wall. It looked like he was trying to do a do-it-yourself remodel.
Note: Major electric appliances (i.e. 220v appliances) must be on individual circuits.
This guy was trying to put a 70 amp load on a 30 amp circuit on a box that was only wired for a total of 50 amps. That he cross wired the connection and had to call me is probably the only thing that save him from an electrical fire!
220 wiring is a bit different than 110. With a standard 110 setup you normal have to conductors: Black is "hot" and white is "neutral". If the wiring is relatively modern, you’ll also have an "earth ground" that may either be a bare wire or colored green.
220 has two "hot" wires: One is black, the other is usually red. But on older homes, like this mobile, both "hot" wires were black. Now, different things will happen depending on how you put those wires together:
Red + black = 220 volts. (Or black + black)
Red (or black) + white = 110 volts.
Just make sure you don’t connect the green (or bare) wire to any of the others! (That’s how he melted down his system.) Green (or bare) is earth ground. At your mains box it should be connected to an "earth strap" of some kind. It could be an underground water pipe, or a metal rod that’s been driven into the ground. Again, older homes may not be grounded, but with the sensitivity of today’s electronics, should be.
Another thing I discovered when I entered the house was that the fellow had remove 12 feet of bearing wall from the center of the double-wide mobile. Now, today you can buy a mobile home that’s built almost as well as a house. (Not that you should ever remove a bearing wall without blocks and bracing!) But back in the 1960s, when this unit was built, they were still building mobiles out of the lightest wood they possibly could. One good snow storm this winter and the roof was going to come down on him!
Then I looked under the cook-top counter and found a standard gate valve being used as a gas shutoff valve, and only masking tape covering the flair fitting. The smell of gas was fairly strong.
I recommended he fix that problem immediately if not sooner! I also recommend he brace the ceiling until he could either get the wall replaced or put a timber of some kind up to hold it up.
Technorati Tags: electrical wiring remodeling
