The HTRC

The Homeowners & Trades Resource Center

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BS4D: Stack Effect

Stack or Chimney Effect describes the natural phenomena of how air moves into and out of a building, a chimney, a flue pipe, or other type of container. This is caused mainly by pressure & temperature differences – the bigger the difference, the bigger the effect is. For most people the concept seems simple – […]

SkillsUSA 2012 – TeamWorks Video Recap

Last year as many of you know, I was more than impressed… I got to say though that the level of competition this year was amazing. While sitting through some of the presentations I was looking at their timelines & going – yeah right… Well in the “Show Me” state, they did just that. In […]

The UK’s Green Deal Program

This week we have a guest article from Sohaib Siddique who is located across the pond in the UK. Sohaib works for Anyjunk and provides man and van services for all types of waste, and is able to divert plenty of it from the landfills. Like many people he is keen to promote green & […]

Guest Post: Installing a Bathroom Fan Timer

So there I am with three bathroom timers to install for my place & thinking this would be a great “how-to” piece. Not only is this one of my most specified items for saving energy, but also  for improving indoor air quality. You know… if JB doesn’t have one yet, it might actually be a better fit on his blog with […]

BS4D: ACH (Air Changes per Hour)

ACH or ACH50 stands Air Changes per Hour. It is a standardized measurement using a calibrated blower door designed to see how leaky a home or building is. While the test & many of the terms are a popular means of expressing leakage, they can also be very misleading. The blower door was invented in […]

Accio Butterbeer

Frak that didn’t work, & going to the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade is simply out of the question, so what can one do… Well I guess I could do what any Muggle would do & simply Google it. Oh my, there are over 235,000 different pages on just the recipe. Well that might be a […]

Hitting the Road: RV’s, Gas Mileage, & Assorted Tips

As the Star Trek transporter still has not been invented, many vacationing families & others start looking to RV’s due to their many benefits. Can one say no TSA checks, bag check fees, or as many of the dreaded “are we there yet? One of the biggest questions most often asked (after the price) is […]

BS4D: Energy Codes

Just like any other scientific field, building science is constantly evolving as new information, testing, and materials are released. Unfortunately in some cases the amount &/or type of information provided is not only hard to understand, but can also be meaningless based on your house or area you live in. With that, welcome to our […]