Home Interior Renovation

             

Angelo Dongia, the famous interior designer, referred to the ceiling as the most ignored, but interesting of the six planes. Fortunately, it hasn’t always been that way. Michelangelo and his patrons didn’t exactly perceive it as such. All the great architects through centuries past have “looked up” and found an interesting surface to adorn. It seems that with the advent of the hi-rise apartment and its lowered top, the ceiling has seen better days. There’s no need to d

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Ceiling, Ceiling Decoration

A collection of links to dozens of “How To” articles, culled from Martin Holladay’s Energy Nerd blogs

How to Design a New Home

How to Design a Superinsulated House

How to Design a House for a Hot Climate

How to Design a PERSIST House

How to Decide Whether Your Wall Needs a Vapor Barrier

How to Decide Whether Your Walls or Roof Needs a Radiant Barrier

How to Perform Dew-Point Calculations

How to Avoid Problems With Inward Solar Vapor Drive

How to Understand the HERS Index

How to Build a Straw-Bale House

How to Implement Advanced Framing Techniques

How to Install Larsen Trusses

How to Calculate the Thickness of Rigid Foam Sheathing

How to Install Rigid Foam Sheathing

How to Fasten Furring Strips to a Foam-Sheathed Wall

How to Install Mineral Wool Over Wall Sheathing

How to Specify Window Glazing

How to Choose Triple-Glazed Windows

How to Install Windows in a Foam-Sheathed Wall

How to Nail Window Flanges Through Foam

How to Choose a Water-Resistive Barrier

How to Use Rigid Foam as a Water-Resistive Barrier

How to Decide Where to Put the Housewrap

How to Install a Liquid-Applied Air Barrier

How to Comply With the Thermal Bypass Checklist

How to Create an Air Barrier

How To Create an Air Barrier At Your Sheathing Layer

How to Implement the Airtight Drywall Approach

How to Seal Air Leaks in Your Home’s Envelope

How to Select the Best Tapes and Gaskets

How to Use Sprayable Caulk for Air Sealing

How to Conduct a Blower-Door Test

How to Find Leaks With a Fog Machine

How to Install Cellulose Insulation

How to Install Fiberglass Batts

How to Create a Conditioned Attic

How to Build an Unvented Crawl Space

How to Install Stucco

How to Approach a Siding Replacement Job

How to Design a Heating System for a Small, Tight House

How to Design a Heating System Using Ductless Minisplits

How to Design Your Duct System

How to Keep Ducts Indoors

How to Solve Room-to-Room Pressure Imbalances

How to Seal Leaks in Ductwork

How to Test Your Duct System for Leakage

How to Design a Good Ventilation System

How to Choose Between an HRV and an ERV

How to Duct an HRV

How to Install a Range Hood Safely

How to Design and Install a Solar Hot Water System

How to Choose an Energy-Efficient Garage Door

How to Choose an Energy-Efficient Television

How to Choose a Clothes Dryer

How to Decipher the Tax Credits for Energy Retrofit Work

How to Insulate An Old Brick Building

How to Prevent Ice Dams

At the end of every season a local garden center says “Thank You” all customers and neighbors and this is how they do it……………

Pot-ted’s JULIUS Pot

The Julius pot is back – and with it a tale about just how hard it’s becoming for California designers to manufacture their latest looks locally. 

In 2009 Annette Gutierrez and Mary Gray, owners of Potted in Atwater Village, introduced the Julius — “a modern, sexy pot with a curve and a little pedestal,” Gutierrez said, and a tribute to the late architectural photographer Julius Shulman. Back then, Potted worked with a small, local ceramics factory to produce the planter. “We did a

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Back, Julius Pot