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Downtown Toronto takes advantage of Lake Ontario's constant lake bottom temperature to operate a heat exchange system.

Toronto’s Deep Lake Water Cooling system offers the city’s downtown property owners a compelling alternative to their buildings’ air conditioning requirements. Instead of installing separate chilled water generators within their buildings, many are taking advantage of the Deep Lake Water Cooling system, operated by Enwave Energy Corporation. The Deep Lake Water Cooling system offers substantial cost savings if building operators forego a standard chiller plant and instead install heat exchangers to interface with it. We’ll overview the functional parts of the Deep Lake Water Cooling system, which has been in service since 2004: the Lake Ontario intake pipes, the Island Filtration Plant, Enwave’s Energy Transfer Station (ETS), and the closed-loop Deep Lake Water Cooling chilled water circuit that individual buildings can access with new heat exchangers.

For many reasons, adaptive reuse projects are great for the environment. Using already existing buildings instead of building new reduces waste, requires less energy, and scales down the general consumption of materials. This green space has farther reaching effects, particularly fostering a greater sense of community and neighborhood revitalization. We talked with Alan Pullman of architectural firm Studio One Eleven about a recent adaptive reuse project located in an emerging Long Beach, California, neighborhood.

Most of the residential architecture in coastal Landskrona, Sweden, is quaint and unassumingly beautiful. For a long time there was an empty lot only a bit wider than two dozen feet on a dense street in the center of town. One day, a stark white townhouse appeared on the block, boasting elegant geometrical proportions and a transparency that commands a place in the heart of art and architecture enthusiasts. What happens to a traditional streetscape when distinctly different, yet equally gorgeous, architectural styles are juxtaposed? Jonas Elding and Johan Oscarson of Elding Oscarson architecture of Sweden wish to reveal a few of their design secrets.

The notion of harnessing energy from the sea has captured the human imagination for years. With interest in renewable energy at an all-time high, steps are being taken to turn this idea into a reality.

As the global need for renewable energy sources continues to surge, one innovative company has released technology that could have a major impact on utility and energy companies, as well as their customers, well into the future. The Pelamis Wave Energy Converter, made by Scottish company Pelamis Wave Power, is the first commercial machine that can generate electricity from offshore wave energy. Since the company first tested its prototype wave energy converter between 2004 and 2007 in Scotland, four additional Pelamis machines and two designs – the P1 and the second-generation P2 – have been created.

Rain chains and rain barrels are smart ways to conserve water and save energy. Learn more about their benefits and installation.

Soldering copper pipe, commonly referred to as “sweating” pipe, is a job any homeowner can do. As with any home improvement or DIY project, it is important to understand the basic skills before starting. After a little planning and ensuring that you have the right tools on hand, soldering copper pipe should be simple. Join our host, Jeff Wilson, as we learn the basic skills required to make one of the most common connections in plumbing.

The Delta Shelter, by Olson Kundig Architects, rises above its site on stilts. When unoccupied, it is shuttered against the elements and reduced to its simplest form: a metal box. In concept, it is not so different from the timber observation towers that are scattered throughout the North American wilderness and used for the purpose of hunting or habitat viewing. In fact, the 1,000 sq. ft. Delta Shelter, like its vernacular counterparts, is a rural retreat situated on a remote site in the North Cascade Mountains of Mazama, Washington.

Tranquilo might as well be the motto of Madrid. It’s commonly used to tell someone to “take it easy” or “relax," perfect for these trying economic times. For those Madrileños who might find themselves a little stressed (and overheated) these days, the Madrid Rio project by West 8 Urban Design & Landscape Architecture has created a recreational zone along the Manzanares River that will allow people to enjoy an area previously referred to by many as “what river?”

Building Information Modeling (BIM), which first proved its value as a software solution for the design and construction industries, is now being introduced in another sector: building operations. The advancement is a logical one, considering the limitations of the traditional supply chain. “There has always been a ‘handover’ from AEC to the building owner,” says Marty Chobot, Vice President of Product Management at facility management company FM:Systems, “but we need to find a way to bridge the gap between AEC and O&M.”

Gehry's masterpiece, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, functions as one of the world's most prominent art museums, a contender for the most important building of the last 30 years, and a driver of tourism.

Changing the color scheme of your home or business can completely transform it. Colors communicate aspects of a personality or brand and have the power to produce psychological and physiological effects.

Ever considered the amount of house you choose to occupy? Join Jeff Wilson, the host of Everyday DIY on the At Home channel, in thinking small to see what it can do for you and what great possibilities exist for living in tiny spaces.

Back in my “salad days,” I spent a little time working in a ski town out west, and I do mean working – I had three jobs at any one time and had job titles as diverse as Record Store Clerk, Taxi Driver, Pizza Delivery Guy, and Graveyard Shift Convenience Store Clerk. That last job was the only one I ever had where I had to routinely carry a baseball bat (and I don’t mean that in a good way).