Building Energy Efficiency | This Old House

Richard Trethewey checks out an Idea House in development and learns about energy efficiency building techniques.

Richard Trethewey goes to Devens, MA to visit a new house with advance building techniques. He meets builder Dan Gainsboro who says the entire heating season will only cost $1000 or less for this new house—considerably lower than what our homeowners were paying to heat their house. He shows Richard how the houses in the development are built using 2x6 walls with insulated panel sheathing for a water and air-tight shield. Walls are insulated on the inside and the window openings are wrapped with flashing tape and even the headers are insulated. They used triple glazed windows throughout. The finished Idea House is a lovely small scale home with an open floor plan. The light fixtures use LEDs and the appliances are all Energy Star rated. In the well-insulated basement, there’s no mechanical room because mini-split heat pumps are used to heat and cool the entire house. And finally, Dan shows Richard the solar panels on the south facing roof of the garage. On a sunny day, the panels generate enough electricity to power the house for a family of four.

About This Old House TV:
This Old House is America’s first and most trusted home improvement show. Each season, we renovate two different historic homes—one step at a time—featuring quality craftsmanship and the latest in modern technology. We demystify home improvement and provide ideas and information so, whether you are doing it yourself or hiring out contractors, you’ll know the right way to do things or the questions to ask. Our experts including general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, landscape contractor Jenn Nawada, master carpenter Norm Abram, and host Kevin O’Connor give you the tools you need to protect and preserve your greatest investment—your home.

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Building Energy Efficiency | This Old House

[PaulHenreid]

Structural Insulated Panels, air source heat pump, solar panels, triple pane windows, and mechanical heat recovery - great video!

[antimatters]

This was an interesting but brisk run through. I would love to see a more detailed look at each area, such as the basement insulation and setup, how they handle drainage or water protection in the basement.

[JJ-zghh]

Great house. It seems to me that the technology on display here is what will 'win the day' in the long term. Air source heat pump, solar pv, advanced insulation and heat recovery mechanical ventilation. Big capital expenditure but costs peanuts to run.

[aaronvallejo]

This is how we build our clean, highly insulated and renewably powered future.

[michaelmcnew]

Watched This old House show for many years.

[ozzy]

I just bought that r sheathing . 70 sheets for 5, 500. We’re doing a whole roof for an old a-frame and then cedar shingles over it

[donaldlee]

I really like the smart choices the builder did, reminds me of the Joe Lstiburek building philosophy. Only criticism is the bottom mounted vent hood on the induction stove.

[kingssman]

Looks amazing. For just 1, 900 sq.ft, I wonder what a new construction like that would cost?

[jimdevilbiss]

Really great use of technology. Except is the most developments one house is almost on top of the other.

[scotteric]

The methods and style of HVAC units have been in Europe for almost 50 years.

[leozmaxwelljilliumz]

That house is probably 400 to 500k. Super efficient but very expensive to build. I do like what they did but I'm curious about the insulated header load strength

[jblyon]

I'd still want a gas furnace and water heater there (or a gas water heater with a heat loop off it). The electric rates are sky high, especially in the winter, and only get higher every year. I don't care how efficient it is, if you're paying 22-24 cents/kWh running a heat pump is going to be expensive.

[loueckert]

What did all of this COST and how long to PAY BACK the savings? Is this construction worth the cost? Great video, thanks!

[saulgoodman]

Spend $50, 000, to save maybe $2, 000 a year. Which would take 25 to break even. Which by then, you will need to spend like 25k on a new HVAC system.

[RicardoJunqueira]

Isn't this episode a re-upload? I think I already saw this segment before.

[Matt-dclp]

It's like a Matt Risinger for beginners show

[artfuldodger]

That should be the standard for houses in this country.

[chaseweeks]

All that Zip R12, but couldn't spring for a bit of Zip Stretch Tape for the window sills? That 3M stuff isn't going to last long the way they had it cut.

[tomnelson]

Great for new homes but what do I do with my foundation that dates back to 1920? I want to pull away the soil to seal coat the foundation or check if it's already been done. I also want to depressurize the house with a home energy audit but my walls need to be insulated as well. I have a long list but finances are tight.

[GreenAppelPie]

Great use of space, but yeah it looked a bit cramped.