Truth. Improperly vented roofs/attics are one of the primary causes of roof failure (the heat buildup in the sun weakens the shingles and causes other issues). You can as much as double the lifespan of your roof if it's properly vented. Most water damage problems stem from faulty roofing.
Modern HVAC can prevent all manner of the sort of mold/dust problems you see in older or shittier houses, in addition to providing a stable humidity year-round.
Modern gutter systems won't clog easily, and can be designed to prevent icicles (which are a leading cause of shingle/wall damage in cold climates). (Protip: never let large icicles accumulate on your roof).
Trivial to avoid with proper maintenance and a good roof. ;^)
It's hardly trivial in a winter with such heavy snow and ice accumulation. I have over 2 feet of snow on the ground right now, and the ice buildup on the roof is pretty extensive. The way I look at it, if a 60 year old house has exactly one 4 square foot section of wall with water damage in those conditions, the thing is being maintained as well as I could expect. It apparently hasn't been a problem for about 6 or 7 years now, and that particular spot has always been trouble due to a plumbing vent pipe.
Or a modern high quality house.
Yeah, this is why I've considered a build loan as opposed to buying an existing house. I know a couple of contractors who build houses up where I used to live, so they can design around a heavy snowfall winter.
EDIT: It definitely has crappy gutters, though, which is leading to heavy icicle formation. It's cool, though; the spot isn't ruining my stuff, and it's not like I own the house. I'm not responsible for the water damage, so I don't care that much.
Yeah, this is why I've considered a build loan as opposed to buying an existing house. I know a couple of contractors who build houses up where I used to live, so they can design around a heavy snowfall winter.
Also modern building technology is lightyears beyond what was standard practice even a couple decades ago. AND, builders are desperate for work, making everything cheap to do.
Also modern building technology is lightyears beyond what was standard practice even a couple decades ago.
This is another huge incentive. Building an energy efficient home from the ground up is far more cost-effective than retrofitting an old house. Plus, it works better. Maybe get some renewable energy up ins if it makes sense. Of course, this area of New York doesn't get enough sun to make solar terribly viable; maybe a small wind turbine would work.
Also modern building technology is lightyears beyond what was standard practice even a couple decades ago.
This is another huge incentive. Building an energy efficient home from the ground up is far more cost-effective than retrofitting an old house. Plus, it works better. Maybe get some renewable energy up ins if it makes sense. Of course, this area of New York doesn't get enough sun to make solar terribly viable; maybe a small wind turbine would work.
Small wind turbines suck, and you are too far inland to get a significant amount of power-generating wind. You are much better off going with energy efficiency. If the way your apartment heats up in the summer is any indication, a few solar panels on the roof at a good angle to the sun would be more beneficial than a turbine. Solar power peaks at the time of highest electricity demand in the summer (daytime), and wind peaks at the time of lowest demand (night), so even if you get the same amount of power from solar and wind, the environmental benefit of solar is better than wind. Plus, peak pricing for electricity may be instituted soon. You will save more money with a peak offset than a non-peak offset.
My mom's house (in Saugerties, NY) was built in 1850, and it has held up pretty well. When she bought it a few years ago, she had to redo the roof, and pretty much gut the insides, but now it's nice and toasty in the winter and cool-ish in the summer.
As for NYC, I have no idea why a city like this can't get its act together when snow falls. Today, the L train took an hour and a half to get from Bushwick to 6th Ave (usually a half-hour ride). They ran trains on the wrong tracks, switched directions multiple times, and stopped service entirely for a while. Throughout all this, they kept announcing that a shuttle bus had been canceled. I wasn't expecting a shuttle bus. They don't usually run shuttle busses. What the hell.
My uncle built an immensely efficient house; I use the design whenever I work on home designs of my own. It's three floors; all the staircases are slat stairs, each on top of the other. On the middle (living room, kitchen, deck) floor sits a German fireplace that acts like a furnace, using all of the available oxygen to burn the wood in a way that only releases as much waste gas as natural decomposition would, but at such a rate that it gets incredibly hot (its made of refractory firebrick and furnace glass, and you could melt metal in it). However, the back of the fireplace faces these two stacked, open staircases, which form a sort of natural flue for all the hot air. The result is that a single log, burning with no open or dangerous flame and no pollution, will burn for anywhere from 6-12 hrs, and the well-insulated house will retain that heat for a long, long time after that. If the house gets too hot after an hour of full burn (it's happened), you just close the intakes on the fireplace and the log stops burning until you light it up next time.
The house also uses solar pipe for water heating (with a tiny, auxiliary water heater to maintain water temp and heat water on overcast days) efficient stoves and insulation, and I'm going to begin work on a solar/wind grid for it soon.
No, it gets far too cold in Albany for heat pump use.
I did read something about low-temperature optimized heat pumps, but I get the impression that they're not common, and still cannot be used as the sole source of heating.
EDIT: I'm also all about the on-demand water heater and solar water heating.
That solar water system I mentioned above is so awesome. We had eight people living in that house for four days in November, and I don't think we ever had to fire up the heater.
Berlin is only -5C today, but the cold has a sort of breath-sucking aspect that is so surprising after 6 weeks sailing in the tropics. I was going to cycle to the phone shop to see about getting a replacement for my broken iPhone, but FUCK THAT!
it was -10 F this morning when I was walking to class. Without the wind. The wind chill is -20 F, and is that awesome kind of bitter cold that causes burning pain in any exposed flesh.
At least you have sidewalks, mine are still buried. >_<</p>
Well, you see, that is why they are treacherous. I think some of the neighbors gave up on shoveling, because half of the sidewalks on the way to campus are covered with a layer of compacted snow. It's basically a sheet of ice now.
Comments
Modern HVAC can prevent all manner of the sort of mold/dust problems you see in older or shittier houses, in addition to providing a stable humidity year-round.
Modern gutter systems won't clog easily, and can be designed to prevent icicles (which are a leading cause of shingle/wall damage in cold climates). (Protip: never let large icicles accumulate on your roof).
EDIT: It definitely has crappy gutters, though, which is leading to heavy icicle formation. It's cool, though; the spot isn't ruining my stuff, and it's not like I own the house. I'm not responsible for the water damage, so I don't care that much.
As for NYC, I have no idea why a city like this can't get its act together when snow falls. Today, the L train took an hour and a half to get from Bushwick to 6th Ave (usually a half-hour ride). They ran trains on the wrong tracks, switched directions multiple times, and stopped service entirely for a while. Throughout all this, they kept announcing that a shuttle bus had been canceled. I wasn't expecting a shuttle bus. They don't usually run shuttle busses. What the hell.
The house also uses solar pipe for water heating (with a tiny, auxiliary water heater to maintain water temp and heat water on overcast days) efficient stoves and insulation, and I'm going to begin work on a solar/wind grid for it soon.
EDIT: I'm also all about the on-demand water heater and solar water heating.
Driveway covered in ice, road covered in sleet slush, temperatures below freezing all day. This is gonna be awesome.