LEED sucks. This has been known for a long time. But instead of bashing it, we should be asking: is there an alternative? If not, how could we create one?
Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
51–60 of 102 posts
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#52Earlier quoted context omitted.
Reducing them is great. Trusting China to self-regulate their emissions is the height of stupidity. Us paying China to then turn around and lie is even dumber yet. Want to reduce CO2? You'll need to embargo China and then start ramping up domestic regulation.
I've always liked the term " not on my watch ". It probably derives from the maritime world, but is useful in my sysadmin career. In many (larger) organizations you cannot ensure everything is running smoothly all the time. But you can look after everything in your own (IT) wheel house. As a Canadian I cannot do much about China's (or India's) action, but I can do stuff about what happens in Toronto, Ontario, Canada,…
The thing about global pollution, it's global. The actors you are pushing to progress don't have to stick around, they can just pick up and move. If you clean up your house, you didn't really clean up the problem, you just moved it somewhere else, making the problem worse.
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#53The focus of buildings should be: 1. Keeping dry and bulk water out/away. 2. Being as air tight as possible.† 3. Controlling vapour. 4. Being well-insulated. * https://www.buildingscience.com/documents/insights/bsi-001-t... † Air is exchanged in a controlled fashioned: filtered for pollen and other things, and then tempered with an HRV/ERV. Buildings do not need to 'breathe': * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIcrXut…
The problem I have with this is if #1 ever fails, and lets be honest, it will eventually, then #2 means you'll get mold and its game over.
Heat transfer mechanisms, in order of amount of heat moved typically follow: conduction, convection, and radiation and should be addressed in that order while not ignoring moisture content. Mitigation strategies should default to passive measures. Or at least that's my plan if I ever get around to building a house.
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#54The frustration I have with environmentalism is this. There's this enthusiasm for environmentalism that seems to be blind to outcome. A new standard for buildings, cars, circuit boards -- whatever -- is met with accolades. However, the opponents of such a standard clearly want the planet to die and suffer. It's time to listen to science! Then a decade later, the program is assessed, and found to be ineffective, and t…
"There's this enthusiasm for environmentalism that seems to be blind to outcome." I am completely stealing this line, because it explains the modern environmental movement perfectly. I've argued with so many people about the Paris Accords and how they are a terrible idea. Why? Because they heap regulation on the West while sending money to China and India who have no obligation to improve their environmental policy.…
Both China and India have lower CO2 emissions per capita than the US....
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#55The biggest issue I see is that LEEDs allow for a building that looks like a big heat exchanger, and has zero heat insulation to certify for high power efficiency in a cold climate. Canada, and Toronto area had tons of LEEDs certed luxury condos being heated like no tomorrow in Winter. Things are even worse in Vancouver, but that's offset by milder weather. The opposite picture is there in hot climates. Building with…
I live in an apartment in Toronto that is LEED certified. To be honest, it's not that great but for different reasons than you outlines. The insulation is too good and so the building is too warm all year round. My unit can easily be > 24C without any heating running even in winter.
Insulation doesn't simply make a building warmer inside, it keeps heat out just as well as it keeps heat in. If your apartment is too warm in the winter it is probably because you have too much sunlight coming through your windows, or because your downstairs neighbor lives in a sauna.
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#56Earlier quoted context omitted.
I live in an apartment in Toronto that is LEED certified. To be honest, it's not that great but for different reasons than you outlines. The insulation is too good and so the building is too warm all year round. My unit can easily be > 24C without any heating running even in winter.
Is it possible that all of your neighbors in your building have their heater on? This is what happened to me in a building in NYC. It would actually get so warm in the winter I would have to crack the window open or I would get a nose bleed.
>or I would get a nose bleed.
Are nose bleeds associated with high temperatures?
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
Is it possible that all of your neighbors in your building have their heater on? This is what happened to me in a building in NYC. It would actually get so warm in the winter I would have to crack the window open or I would get a nose bleed.
As someone who also lives in Toronto: most things being built now are giant class towers. Now, glass sucks at insulation (even triple glaze), but—depending on the coatings—it lets in a lot of sun light and with that potentially heat. While in a perfect world there would be no / minimal exchange between the inside of the structure and the outside,† being too warm may be better than being too cold, as I'm guessing that…
>giant class towers.
That is an excellent typo.
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
The problem is engineers look at this like engineers and make assumptions and decisions based on the objectives given and their toolkit. When you hire an ASHRAE certified engineer, he’s going to be all about HVAC, based on whatever the architect produced. Usually that means a focus on less energy usage. That frequently doesn’t align with lower cost or optimal solution. For example, buying a 95% efficient boiler for m…
I know you only said "partially by efficiency", but the other part is pretty important. another goal of sealing the building is to align the moisture and thermal barriers with each other. this is important, because this is how you control humidity inside the envelope. in theory, this makes it much less likely that you get mold, rot, etc. if you're going to heat/cool your house at all, you really don't want heated ins…
Agreed — I was trying to capture a lot in a small space without being hand-wavy. (Not sure if I succeeded)
My big “beef” is that assumptions that require active, intelligent building management and maintenance have their own risks. These are hard to quantify and thus discounted.
Case in point: I worked for a decade in a building with professional management and all sorts of efficiency programs where chronic issues like a leaking roof were ignored for 30 years. In theory, the HVAC did a great job of moisture control. In reality, there was 3 feet of water on the roof. (Water wins) Point being, budgets drive suboptimal behavior.
In my personal case, my house was designed with features that permit user-controlled airflow and thermal flow. It has modern windows, enhanced attic ventilation, etc that improve performance. Many buildings are not and are dependent on active ventilation to be livable or mold-free.
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#59Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've always liked the term " not on my watch ". It probably derives from the maritime world, but is useful in my sysadmin career. In many (larger) organizations you cannot ensure everything is running smoothly all the time. But you can look after everything in your own (IT) wheel house. As a Canadian I cannot do much about China's (or India's) action, but I can do stuff about what happens in Toronto, Ontario, Canada,…
The thing about global pollution, it's global. The actors you are pushing to progress don't have to stick around, they can just pick up and move. If you clean up your house, you didn't really clean up the problem, you just moved it somewhere else, making the problem worse.
[deleted]
Re: Does LEED Certification Save Energy? Evidence from Federal Buildings
#60LEED sucks. This has been known for a long time. But instead of bashing it, we should be asking: is there an alternative? If not, how could we create one?
The article authors aren't bashing it:
> Trade-offs across LEED attributes account for the absence of energy savings on average. If energy efficiency is the primary policy goal, LEED certification may not be the most effective means to reach that goal.