Energy & Climate

Guides on house plans, building costs, permits, materials and energy efficiency, with plans you can buy today.

Energy & Climate · 7 min read Passive Solar House Plans in Canada: A Checklist for Orientation, Glazing and Overhangs The winter sun can do part of the heating in a Canadian home, but only if the plan, the windows and the lot work together. This checklist walks you through orientation, south glazing, overhangs, thermal mass and when to mirror a stock plan. Read more → Energy & Climate · 7 min read EnerGuide Ratings and Energy Code Tiers: Myths and Facts for Your New Home in Canada What an EnerGuide rating in GJ/year really tells you, how the energy code tiers work across Canada, and why the plan you choose decides how hard your target will be to reach. Read more → Energy & Climate · 7 min read Wood Stoves in a New Airtight Canadian Home: Make-Up Air, Clearances and Rules A tight, well-insulated new house changes how a wood stove behaves. Here are straight answers on certification, outdoor air, clearances, insurance, costs and where the stove belongs in the plan. Read more → Energy & Climate · 7 min read Triple-Pane vs Double-Pane Windows: 8 Myths About Glazing a New Canadian Home Triple-pane windows cost more, and the energy savings alone rarely pay them back quickly. Here is where they make sense in a Canadian new build, and where a good double-pane unit is enough. Read more → Energy & Climate · 9 min read Blower Door Test and ACH50: One Canadian Family's Path to an Airtight New Home A young family building in BC's Interior learns what a blower door test measures, which framing details leak the most, and why the plan they chose made a tight house easier to build. Read more → Energy & Climate · 8 min read Building Net Zero in Canada: One Family's Path from Lot to First Winter, in Real Dollars A typical Canadian family goes from a bare lot to a Net Zero home. Along the way: which plan they picked, what the envelope and solar added in CAD, and what their bills look like now. Read more → Energy & Climate · 9 min read HRV or ERV? One Ontario Family's Ventilation Choices, From Lot to Move-In A family of four builds a tight, well-insulated home on a suburban Ontario lot and has to choose between an HRV and an ERV. Their story covers the code, sizing, duct layout through the basement and two storeys, costs, and the mistakes that leave air stale or windows wet. Read more → Energy & Climate · 9 min read R-Values for a New Home in Canada: A Step-by-Step Guide by Climate Zone The R-20 printed on a batt is not what your wall delivers. Here is how to set insulation targets for a new Canadian home zone by zone, and what going beyond code costs and saves. Read more → Energy & Climate · 6 min read Heat Pump or Gas Furnace? 7 Plan Ideas That Shrink the Heating System You Need The best heating system for a new Canadian home is often the smallest one, and the floor plan decides how small it can be. Seven design ideas, with costs, provinces and real plans. Read more → Energy & Climate · 8 min read BC Energy Step Code: What Step 4 or 5 Really Costs in Your New House Plan A line-by-line look at what the BC Energy Step Code adds to a new home budget, from blower door tests to triple-pane windows, and how a simple plan shape keeps Step 4 or 5 affordable. Read more →