Making Buildings Better
TM
COMMERCIAL & INDUSTRIAL ENERGY CONSULTING
ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO
(505) 918-8476
2
The
Building
Envelope
AIR LOSS CONTROL
Everyone knows that even the smallest incremental energy waste can add up to a lot of lost money. Not to mention the impact that wasted energy has going back into the Earth’s atmosphere. You do not want to pay for energy that is unnecessarily vanishing into thin air when something can be done about it that will save you money in the long run.
This is where your building envelope comes in. A building envelope is the exterior shell of your building. It is incumbent upon a conscientious building owner to “button up” their building so there is virtually no energy loss if feasible.
Anywhere there is air exchange between the outside and the inside of your building is a prime energy loss zone. The primary way energy is lost through a building’s “envelope” is through leaky doors and windows. Air leakage is the rate of air movement around a window, door, or skylight in the presence of a specific pressure difference across it. (It's expressed in units of cubic feet per minute per square foot of frame area (cfm/ft2). A product with a low air leakage rating is tighter than one with a high air leakage rating.
Windows and doors aren’t always the only source of leakage in a building’s envelope. There may be cracks in the walls, and other unsealed voids allowing your heated or cooled air to escape.
Simply sealing these leaking gaps puts you way ahead of the game because you will immediately retain more of the conditioned air your building is working so hard to produce. A more comfortable interior environment is another benefit of a high-performance building envelope because there are virtually no drafts. There are many techniques for sealing leaky windows, doors and other sources of air loss.
If sealing old windows seems to be a lost cause, possibly because of the age or kind of windows, considering window replacements may be your best course of action. Current window manufacturing standards far exceed the standards of even 15 years ago. Double or triple-glazed windows have excellent Energy Performance Ratings, helping to both keep a building cool in the summer and retain heat in the winter. Although window replacement is more expensive than sealing existing windows, the gain in both energy efficiency and aesthetics is second-to-none.
ECOterra Energy Consulting will discuss any and all ways to solve a leaky building envelope with you and will help you decide which solution works best for you.
Almost every energy-saving protocol that we practice can be retro-commissioned into an existing building by ECOterra Energy Consulting, drastically improving the building’s performance, savings, comfort and aesthetics.
Here are the areas ECOterra Energy analyzes for potential savings:
(Click a subject below to read or read them in order by clicking the arrows above. )
Read more about ECOterra Energy Consulting:
OUR MISSION
ECOterra Energy Consulting has a mission that springs from the basic premise of EFFICIENCY.
WHAT WE DO
We created ECOterra Energy Consulting to provide building owners peace-of-mind in an ever-changing energy environment.
Our approach is unique in that we represent the building owner. We present, consult and sell energy-saving options.
RENEWABLES
Energy-efficiency and renewable materials are the cornerstone of ECOterra Energy Consulting’s philosophy.
We embrace cutting-edge technologies to better serve clients whether it is providing energy conservation or generation.
CASE STUDIES
Click below to read about how ECOterra Energy Consulting implemented state-of-the-art energy technologies to maximize energy savings and efficiencies for these New Mexico businesses.