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3398 Washington Road
Atlanta, GA 30344
USA

773.398.5288

Advanced residential construction and home improvement consulting and owner's advocacy in Atlanta, using the latest building performance diagnostic and modeling techniques and tools. Airtightness, insulation, HVAC, ventilation, moisture, and air quality and EMF consulting for homeowners and building professionals alike.

Videos/Podcasts/Articles

Home performance articles and stories from the field with internationally respected building forensics guru Corbett Lunsford at the Building Performance Workshop. Hear new episodes of the Building Performance Podcast, see new videos from the Home Performance YouTube channel, and learn all about how diagnostic testing (more than an 'Energy Audit') can make home improvement and new home construction a proven process!

Filtering by Category: Architecture

Attached Garage: Disaster Waiting to Happen?

Corbett Lunsford

FROM 'HOME DIAGNOSIS' Season 2 Ep6: People generally don't think about the performance of their garage, even when it's directly connected to living space with a door or a duct (or nothing at all like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI2--RdSq-k).

But we keep all kinds of toxic stuff in garages, and they're always at the bottom of the living space, so houses, townhomes, and multifamily buildings may suck air partly, or entirely, from the garage in cold weather. Here's a quick explanation of the what/why/where of garage air leakage that could pose a threat to the health of your family. See this entire episode: https://homediagnosis.tv/episode-206-windbreakers-air-sealing-and-insulation

Join our team and be a part of our exploration of the Science of Homes: https://Patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

The Future of House Wrap: a Stronger, Insulated, and More Airtight Envelope

Corbett Lunsford

At the Tallwood Design Institute at Oregon State University, we found a mockup built by our friend Mark Fretz, whom you'll be hearing more from. This is an experimental use of Mass Plywood Panels (MPP) and wood-fiber insulation for multifamily buildings and other homes.

One note: they don't seem to have termites up there, so this would be extra experimental around Atlanta, where we certainly do have burrowing insects of all kinds. Season 3 of 'Home Diagnosis' coming soon: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv

Join our members and become part of the making of this show: https://Patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

Intro to Modular Homes: Alternative House Construction with Bill Spohn

Corbett Lunsford

From episode 205 of ‘Home Diagnosis’- Bill Spohn gives a quick demonstration of the process of having his forever home built in a factory and assembed onsite. Thanks to https://ecocraft-homes.com/ for the awesome video footage of Bill’s build.

Join our Patreon membership and help shape the stories on this channel and on this show: http://patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

How to Choose the RIGHT Windows for Your Home with Energy Modeling

Corbett Lunsford

FROM ‘HOME DIAGNOSIS’ SEASON 2 EP5: To avoid the extreme sales and marketing tactics we all see every day, we need science and measurement. Here's a quick tour through the evolution of homes (how homes work and why), the basics of energy modeling to compare how different home improvements will perform in the long run, and how the windows should install and function.

Every place is different, every home is different, every family is different- one size never fits all. To watch this entire episode about the science of doors and windows: https://homediagnosis.tv/episode-205-this-little-light-of-mine

Join our team for as little as $5/month and become part of the frontier exploring the science of homes: https://Patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

Elegant HVAC Duct Design: the Rooms are Ducts, Too

Corbett Lunsford

Ductwork is more than just supplies and returns- the entire home enclosure is actually part of the ductwork. Here’s a quick demonstration of how to use room arrangements to direct airflow. From Season 2 episode 9 of 'Home Diagnosis' on PBS.

Watch all the episodes for free right now: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv

Become a member and help make this show! https://Patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

Best Place to Put a Bath Exhaust Fan

Corbett Lunsford

From 'Home Diagnosis' Season 2 Episode 9- most bathrooms are not designed for performance, let's admit it. If your mirror gets fogged up, if it takes 30 minutes to exhaust all the steam, if your ceiling drips or your walls have streaks on them, you can do better. Most of this, insanely, has to do with WHERE the bath exhaust fan is located. Here's your quick crash course to help you school all the builders, remodelers, and mechanical engineers in the world.

See the whole episode at: https://homediagnosis.tv/episode-209-opening-the-ice-box-cooling-and-drying

6 Case Studies for Crafting Modular Ventilation Systems: Radon, Filtration, ERV, Make Up Air, & Dehumidifiers

Corbett Lunsford

Not only do we usually misunderstand the causes of problems in our homes, we often miss the mark in our attempts to fix them. #Ventilation is not a piece of cake, but it’s certainly not brain surgery.

Learn the hows and whys behind six specific, unique situations where air quality was an issue for families. Thanks to @aprilaireco for teaming up with us on this!

Watch the first-ever TV series about the science of homes at: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv

Consult or Train with Corbett at: http://BuildingPerformanceWorkshop.com

Check out Aprilaire modular ventilation components at: http://Aprilaire.com

Tour of our Kichler LED Lighting System Layers

Corbett Lunsford

Our #ForeverHome is not just a marvel of scientific control, it's also stunningly beautiful thanks in large part to our design help from Kichler's Jeff Dross. Get the full tour of all the layers of lighting (ambient, task, and accent) as Grace and Corbett Lunsford go deep on details of designing, wiring, and customizing a high performance home lighting system.

See the 'how to design' video interview at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdFtY5udLKA

Learn more about this house at: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv/atlanta-homestead

Join our Patreon membership and learn TONS more for as little as $5/month: https://Patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

HVAC Zoning: Do You Need It, or Not?

Corbett Lunsford

We get asked this a lot, so here we're trying to explain as concisely as possible why zoning is often a symptom of a badly built home enclosure (or a poorly planned McMansion, obviously). If heat is bleeding through the skin of a home at a controlled rate in every room, there's no need to zone the HVAC system to give special attention to a weak link. There are no weak links in a well-tuned home enclosure, and so your HVAC system can be simpler with fewer components, and more sure to effectively condition the home.

Come train with me, or get 1-on-1 consulting: https://BuildingPerformanceWorkshop.com

See the first-ever TV series about the Science of Homes: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv

THANKS AS ALWAYS TO OUR PATREON MEMBERS, who make these videos possible. Join the club at: https://Patreon.com/HomeDiagnosisTV

Staircase with Built-In Pantry and Powder Room, HVAC and RailFX Cable Railings

Corbett Lunsford

One of the central design elements in our high performance forever home (aside from the lighting, which is coming soon) is the staircase. We took the tiny house strategy of multifunctionality to a new level to challenge ourselves with, and hopefully to wow our visitors! Here I show the DIY install of the RailFX cable railings (http://railfx.net), the powder room underneath, and the amazing custom cabinetry my dad built into this 2x12 wall.

See more about this house at: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv/atlanta-homestead

Healthy Interior Finishes: Low Chemical Impact, Non-Reactive, Non-Toxic Materials for Homes

Corbett Lunsford

From flooring and cabinetry to drywall and paints, we made a ton of decisions on our new home that affect air quality and the health of our home for our growing family. We go very in-depth here about what exactly we chose, and why, and what the installation was like. For the deep indoor materials investigators, this whole thing is likely a treasure trove. For those of you looking for something specific, here are the highlights:
1:20 Flooring
10:14 Tile
11:19 Cabinetry
12:53 Countertops
15:19 Pecan Trim
19:29 Decorative Surfaces
20:51 Drywall
22:15 Paint
24:08 HomeChem Basics for Decision-Making

Learn more about this whole project at: https://HomeDiagnosis.tv/atlanta-homestead

Air Cleaning System for Healthy High Performance Homes

Corbett Lunsford

Our family's forever home has some super sophisticated systems (that sometimes require super wacky tweaks to other things in the house). Here you'll get a full tour of our fully-ducted Fantech SER150 energy recovery ventilator (ERV) and CM 3000 HEPA filter unit.

Learn more about these specific products at: http://Fantech.net