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Is Foam Evil? A New Paradigm of Foam - Less is Best

Is Foam Evil? A New Paradigm of Foam - Less is Best
Is Foam Evil? A New Paradigm of Foam - Less is Best "Is Foam Evil?" was the initial title of a panel discussion 475 participated in at NESEA's Building Energy 15 Conference - before it was renamed "Tiny Bubbles" (see Green Building Advisor's highlights toward the end of this article). Here at 475 High Performance Building Supply, we ar … read more

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Middlesex VT: Foam-free, WUFI-verified, and OSB-free high performance
Middlesex VT: Foam-free, WUFI-verified, and OSB-free high performance Project Spotlight The town of Middlesex, Vermont, located just north of Montpelier, has put itself on the high performance building map. Leading the way is the new "Whitchurch Passive House Cottage" - not only in terms of energy efficiency (Passive House certification is in … read more

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Can't vent at valleys and dormers? Use a smart vapor retarder (not foam)
Can't vent at valleys and dormers? Use a smart vapor retarder (not foam) Straight gable roofs are easy to vent, and ideally would be vented.  But often we end up with dormers, valleys and other complications. In this post we feature Alex Wilson's house rebuild in Vermont to explain how smart vapor retarders like ProClima's DB+ or INTEL … read more

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475's 2013 Year in Review
475's 2013 Year in Review It's been a momentous year, and happily, there is plenty to reflect on and consider for the future of 475 and high performance building as a whole. We'd like to share some highlights as we charge up to begin a new year. The Projects and People First and foremost we've been amazed at how much great build … read more

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Rowe Hill: Foam-Free Deep Energy Retrofit (DER) by Maine Passive House
Rowe Hill: Foam-Free Deep Energy Retrofit (DER) by Maine Passive House Rowe Hill House before renovation Jesper Kruse, founder of Maine Passive House,contacted us last Spring to discuss details on the renovation of his Rowe Hill house. We had recently finished our Foam-Free Deep Energy Retrofit (DER) blogpost and were working on our … read more

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Reason Foam Fails #4 - Counterproductive Vapor Retarder

Reason Foam Fails #4 - Counterproductive Vapor Retarder
Reason Foam Fails # 4: Counterproductive Vapor Retarder As insulation levels increase, building enclosures get colder and are more resistant to drying out - staying wetter longer, and posing greater risks for mold and structural damage.  With the structure unable to "bake/air" dry in the old energy inefficient manner, the assembly dr … read more

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