TCBA GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL – July 2010

By Cindy Hall, Cap Stone Industries

If you missed our last meeting, you have another opportunity at the SEBC this week. Sedna Aire USA and SunCool Energy Company are repeating the presentation on Saturday, July 24th at 11:15 AM. If you are planning on going to SEBC, put this on your calendar. This new technology for Solar Air Conditioning is really exciting and cutting edge. If you missed the meeting and can't make it to SEBC, here's how the Sedna Aire Solar Air Conditioner works. The solar collector super heats the refrigerant changing the thermodynamic process of the refrigerant and reduces the required work of the compression operation of the compressor. This then lowers the required electrical consumption, reduces the running time of the entire system and maintains a more comfortable conditioned space. For more information on this system and the annual savings that can be achieved by using this system, please contact Dave Reidy at SunCool Energy Company at 772-631-1243 or visit their website at www.suncoolenergy.com. Our next meeting will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 3rd at 5:30 PM at the TCBA Office. We are looking for a Networking Sponsor to pay for the cost of light snacks and beverages. The total cost is usually less than $100.00. In exchange, you will have an opportunity to promote your company during the networking portion of our meeting. If you are interested in sponsoring, please contact me directly. For those who are LEED AP, these meetings will count towards one hour of your credentialing requirements. Sponsor opportunities for these meetings are available as well. Please contact me directly if you would like more information. We hope you can join us. As I am writing this article, I am getting ready to head to the Southeast Builders Conference / Green Building Show in Orlando this week. I hope to see many of our members there. If you need to get your continuing education credits, there are over 16 courses on green building and remodeling with several that offer CEU's. There is also a course being offered on Solar PV Installation that is a day long course for only $79.00. That sounds like a bargain for those looking to expand into this industry. If nothing else, please join us for the Remodeler's / Green Building Council Night Out at the Rosen on Thursday night. I hope to see some of you there. So, where are we on the Home Star Energy Retrofit program? Right now the goal is to have it included in the Small Jobs Bill that is being considered in the Senate. There are a few issues that need to be addressed and the NAHB is part of a group of associations that have formed a coalition to address some of these issues. One is that the Senate version has the rebate going to the contractor after the work has been performed which means that small businesses most likely would not be able to compete with bigger companies. The House version has it going directly to the homeowner and that is what the coalition is asking for in the Senate version as well. The second issue is the matter of the contractor certification that is required for the Gold Star program. Right now, this requires certification from BPI (Building Performance Institute) that can be very expensive and is not offered in all of the states. They are working to have other certification organizations included as well. For a link to the article, please visit the Green Building Council Page on the TCBA website. I'll keep you posted as we get new developments. That's it for now but we will keep you posted on our events! If you would like to be included on our email list, please forward your email to cindy@capstoneindustries.net. Until then, if you would like more information, please contact the TCBA Office.