If you happen to be in the Gaithersburg area, you can drive by the NIST campus and actually see the Net Zero Energy home begin to take shape. From either Clopper Road or Rt. 124 (Montgomery Village Ave), the framing is clearly visible. This is pretty exciting, as I wasn't sure the general public was going to be able to see the home, but voila!
We've been making a big push to get the framing complete so that the roof and wall sheathing can get installed. A liquid applied air barrier will follow immediately after. Building Science Corp is schedule to perform a blower door test on July 28th, to ensure that the air barrier is continuous. While I've taken part in many blower door tests, this will be the first time to see one done prior to window and door installation. Instead, we will simply seal the openings with rigid insulation, plastic sheeting and caulk. Stay tuned for the results.
The NIST Net Zero Energy Residential Test Facility, seen from Clopper Road in Gaithersburg MD.
Serious Materials is changing their name to Serious Energy, to better reflect their complete product offerings, which include advanced building products and energy software services.
I've long been a fan of several of the other products, including QuietRock, which I've used in the soundproofing of several home theaters.
The NIST Net Zero home will be built using their SeriousWindows 725 Series with a custom glass package that includes the SeriousGlass 9 glazing. These will be the highest performing windows we've used in a home, and I for one am excited to check them out. Windows are always the weakest component of the thermal envelope, so even a small improvement in performance yields a large dividend. And hey, they're filled with Krypton!
Happy Friday everyone, it's a beautiful spring morning here in the nation's capitol, and my taxes are done. The NIST Net Zero site is fully prepped and the basement has been dug to grade. The last load of stone for the stabilized construction entrance is in place, and assuming the rain isn't too heavy tomorrow, we should be ready to pour footers early next week. We've noticed that the soil drains and dries quite rapidly, a good sign.
Todd Cirner of Therrien Waddell has been working non-stop on getting our submittals over to the team at Jacobs Engineering for initial review, before they pass them onto Building Science Corp for final review. The requirements for this project have made the submittal process a bit more challenging than we are all used to, but we'll work through it.
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