Fiber optic daylighting – a revolutionary technology

Sunlight Direct, a company in Tennessee,  has created a way of capturing sunlight and piping it indoors exactly to where it’s needed. They even integrate sensors into light fixtures that dim bring on electric lighting as skies darken and therefore provide a constant light level for the indoor spaces.

A solar tracking mirror collects the light and concentrates it. Light is then carried via 127 1/8th inch plastic fiberoptic lines. Two lines offers the equivalent of a 50 watt bulb. 

At the ends of the fiber optic lines are hybrid luminaires that integrate the natural light with either fluorescent or incandescent lighting.  A sensor maintains a constant amount of combined illumination regardless of sky conditions.

The complete system can save building operators considerable money and energy.  Not only are there direct savings in electricity and indirect savings due to less heat output from the lights but there is a considerable advantage to having more natural daylight as it dramatically improves occupant moral and health.  For retail customers this system can improve sales – according to this study conducted by the California Board for Energy Efficiency.

Green Building for Dummies

The fabulous "For Dummies" series of books now includes one on Green Building to complement the Solar Power for Dummies that was already out. 

I only just learned of it though the wonderful Inhabitat site which carries an excellent write up on the book and the author Eric Corey Freed. Who, as it happens, is teaching at my alma mater, UC Berkeley College of Environmental Design.

The book is available on my Amazon Astore.

ACTech Panels revolutionize construction

One of the first things ACTech‘s COO Tony Francel says about their product is that it’s a building system, not just a panel. And that makes sense when you look at it closely.

The key benefits of the system for the builder are speed, simplicity and competitive cost. For the building owner the benefits include durability, a warm/cool environment, a tight envelope which means better air quality, and energy savings.  Not only are there savings in in energy consumption but also pest control and insurance as well as lower finance costs due to speedier construction. Less immediate but also important is the fact that better air quality and pest resistance means a healthier happier family or occupant and fewer medical bills.

The panel system is comprised of two-foot wide panels cut to length including gable end angles, channels to mount the panels into, channels to close off window and door openings, trusses for roofs and floors, and angle brackets to connect roof to wall panels. They provide all of these components as well as self tapping screw fasteners by truck to the building site.  From there a three or four man crew can assemble a 2000 square foot house shell in a couple days. All that’s left is to frame interior walls (though panels could be used for some), finishing the interior, external finish of your choice, mechanicals and roof shingles. Time savings on a medium sized house can amount to nearly 2 months. There are also savings through using a less skilled crew and fewer subs and suppliers overall.

Then there’s the durability angle. The movies on their website show air cannons firing studs at different types of walls and basically destroying them. When fired at the ACTech panel with it’s 24 gauge steel skins the 2×4 fired at over 100 mph just dents the wall and bounces off. Any damaged panels can be replaced comparatively easily. I was told of one house in Florida that has survived three hurricanes over its 14 year life.

What I found really amazing is that while you can use the system for commercial or residential construction it’s very cost effective. Builders are using this system to construct affordable homes that are selling for $85 per square foot completed!

I’m excited about this system and plan to use it for my next house. Anyone have a plot of land available in Chapel Hill or Durham to get started on now?

Dragonboard sheathing alternative

Dragonboard is a magnesium oxide board, or MgO board. It is a sheathing product that can be used for wall and ceiling linings, fascias, soffits, tile backing and
underlayment among other things. It’s a fantastically versatile, durable, non-toxic, fire resistant material that is also resistant to mold and mildew. What’s not to like about it?

Dragonboard is available in various thicknesses, sheet sizes and finises.  It comes white, beige or light gray in color, and has
a hard sound when tapped.

Though it’s very popular in Asia, not much MgO board is used in North America – yet. But with its advantages such as fire rating, versatility and mold resistance, it is certain to catch on quickly.  One wall system manufacturer I represent, E-Wall, has recently begun using Dragonboard for its external sheathing component and they are very pleased with it.

• Fire-Proof (UL 055 and ASTM-Tested and A-Rated)
• Waterproof (Freeze/Thaw-Tested for 36 months)
• Mold/Fungus/Bug Free (Non-nutrient to mold, fungus, insects ASTM G-21)
• Impact-Resistant (ASTM D-5628)
• NYC Approved (MEA # 359-02-M)
• Silica/Asbestos Free
• Florida Hurricane Tested
• STC-Rated 53-54
• Ready for all 2007 ICC criteria
• Ideal for Flooring (3/4" = 2 1/2" poured concrete!)
• Substantial Cost Savings

Low flow showerheads

I don’t usually get excited about shower heads. In fact my excitement about this one is second hand, but the source is excellent.  I’ve been clued on to the Delta H2OKinetic shower head technology by a friend and builder.

Apparently this low flow shower head, delivering only 1.6 gallons per minute (gpm), also delivers an uncompromising shower experience.  It’s all in the science. By controlling the water’s shape, velocity and thermal dynamics, Delta
Faucet Company claims to have "reinvented the showering experience." They also say that their 1.6 gpm actually feels like 2.5 gpm. Aside from wondering how 2.5 gpm feels and wanting to rush to check my own shower’s deliver I’m impressed. Now if I hadn’t just replaced my shower head less than 6 months ago I’d be tempted.

On a related note, I was brushing my teeth and thinking it wasn’t that long ago that I used to let the water run when brushing or shaving. Wondering how much water I’m saving I did a calculation. Based on a 1.5 gpm bathroom faucet and two 2-minute brushings per day that’s over 2000 gallons per year. Looked at another way it’s almost 4% of my total consumption. Hey, 4% for a minor behavioral change sounds like a pretty good return. Looked at yet another way 2000 gallons is about half of our average monthly use, which with bills around $45 per month, I figure I’ve also saved about $20 each year.

Hycrete named one of 2008 Tech Pioneers by WEF

Last week the World Economic Forum selected Hycrete Inc. as one of 39 Technology Pioneers for 2008.
 

Hycrete manufactures a water-based chemical admixture that
integrally waterproofs concrete, preventing corrosion of reinforcement bars. This system of waterproofing can eliminate membrane and coating methods of
waterproofing, which improves the recyclability of the concrete.

Hycrete is Cradle-to-Cradle certified, meaning the concrete remains a recyclable and sustainable
building product. When demolished, Hycrete treated concrete can be readily crushed into coarse aggregate, to be reused as a component in
new concrete. Usually the waterproofing membranes are permanently bonded to concrete rendering it unsound for use as an aggregate so a lot of concrete ends up in landfill.

Hycrete has also won other environmental recognition such as one of the Going Green 100 top private companies for 2007. "

The company’s CEO, David Rosenberg, describes the business as, "It’s a water-based molecule that repels water.

The
molecule consists of a water molecule with a long
hydrocarbon attached that links up to metallic ions in whatever it’s
mixed into. In the right circumstances, the molecule behaves like an
oil and pushes water away.

So
far, contractors have mixed the substance into 53 major projects,
including sound barriers on a freeway in New Jersey. In the future, the
company may mix its material into drywall to prevent moisture seepage.
You could also mix it into roofing material and then put a green roof on
without worrying about trickle down.

Strategic Water Technology Conference – Dec 14

The North Carolina State Energy Office and The Division of Pollution Prevention and
Environmental Assistance are organizing a Strategic Water Technology
Conference to be held December 14th at NC State’s McKimmon center.  The aim of the conference is to inform and educate participants on products, programs and practices to
reduce water consumption on a long-term basis.

Presenters
will address topics such as:
– drought tolerant planting strategies;
–
infrastructure monitoring;
– new technologies;
– water efficient design
for new buildings;
– retrofits of existing buildings;
– water reclamation
and reuse, and
– training and certification of personnel for water
efficiency.

Fees will be:
$30.00 for those registered before December
14, 2007 $60.00 on the day of the conference.

Register
online here

The excellent line up of speakers includes:

• Mike Nicklas, President, Innovative Design
• Lloyd Hathcock, Chairman,
  National Water Conservation Committee
• Cindy Shea, Director,
  Sustainability Office, UNC Chapel Hill
• Ralph Daniels, President
  AWOIS LLC
• Gary Klein, GreenPlumbers, Sacramento, CA

Brac grey water systems in the news a lot

I wrote about Brac back on Oct 31. It’s a marvelous piece of technology that can save homes or businesses about 30% of their water consumption by recycling water from sinks, baths and showers for use to flush toilets. The "grey water" can also be used to water plants. 

Now TreeHugger, one of my most watched blogs, ran a piece yesterday about Brac.

The next issue of New Homes and Ideas will highlight ways to cut water use and will mention Brac in the article, I’m told.

Yes, it’s a great solution to cutting water use without changing your lifestyle. And yes, I sell them in North Carolina. Get in touch with me now if you are interested as there’s an end of year sale on for the last remaining units in stock before the 2008 models come in at a price that’s likely to be around $500 more. For now, at least, you can get one of these installed into a new construction for under $2000. Retrofits will typically cost a few hundred more for plumbing alterations.

powers of ten

This may be a little "off-piste" but Treehugger ran an item titled "The Power of the Power of Ten" which I enjoyed because I got to see this wonderful Eames film once again. Who out there HASN’T seen The Power of Ten film by Charles and Ray Eames? It was often played in school when I was young and I saw it twice, but many years ago. Whether you have or have not it’s only 10 minutes long and worth viewing. Not least because the Eames’ were such a dynamic couple to have been film makers, furniture designers, architects and so much.  Refreshing my memory on the Wikipedia article about Charles, I couldn’t help but notice that he gave his daughter the same first name we gave ours – Lucia. I love little meaningless coincidences.

NC producing a disproportionate amount of CO2

According to the Southern Environmental Law Center, North Carolina’s coal-fired power plants produce a
disproportionate amount of pollution that causes global warming. NC ranks 14th in the nation for CO2 output.

The SELC is a Charlottesville VA-based organization
that pushes for conservation. They say that North Carolina’s many coal-fired plants are the prime cause of the state’s 77 million tons of carbon
dioxide (CO2) emissions annually. This is very nearly equal to
California’s 79 million, which is shocking in itself.

The report goes on to identify Duke Energy as the
nation’s third largest CO2 producer with 41 million of its total 108 million tons of CO2 coming from its plants in NC.

full story in Biz Journals

Ethanol from trees?

Right here at NC State researchers are working on ways to genetically modify trees so as to make them a more viable source of cellulose from which to make ethanol.

Dr Vincent Chiang received, last year, a grant from the Department of Energy to find a way to make ethanol from trees. It basically involves modifying the genetics to reduce the amount of lignin in trees, thus enabling the cellulose within to be more easily converted to ethanol.

The New York Times carries a well balanced article on the issues.

Or see the original press release from NCSU

Bitublock – building blocks from garbage

Scientists at the University of Leeds in the UK have created a building block that is basically made of garbage.

The Bitublock is made from crushed glass, fly ash, steel slag and even sewage sludge, all bound together by bitumen. The mixture is compacted in a mold and heat-cured, which oxidizes and hardens the bitumen.

The blocks are also six times stronger than concrete according to the data from its inventor, Dr. John Forth.

Read more about the Bitublock in Building Green TV,  Science Daily, EcoGeek, Inhabitat and a nifty must-read blog called Rolland Piquepaille’s Technology Trends.

From : Building Green  TV

Seal up the attic door and save energy

I saw this nifty product at the Energy Star event today and immediately wanted one for myself.

I would have made my own hatch cover out of foam board like some builders I know have done. But my attic is so low, with barely 2 feet of clearance above , that I have no place to raise and reposition such a thing.

The Attic Tent gets right around my problem. Plus it’s much more professional looking as well as being a proper air barrier. That’s important because air can be drawn into the house through that hatch affecting your air quality, or it can leak from the house into the attic losing energy.

The candidates’ positions on renewables, energy etc.

The League of Conservation Voters, who describe themselves as "the independent political voice for the environment," has put together a website at www.heatison.org where they track the positions of the presidential candidates on key environmental issues.

There’s an excellent table on this page, that summarizes every candidate’s stance on issues like a Carbon Cap, Fuel Efficiency, Renewable Electricity, Efficiency Targets and Coal Power Plants. This is a great high level view and the LCV did a great job of putting everyone. But I still find it nearly impenetrable with so many candidates and so many nuances.

However, what comes through clearly are the candidates I don’t want to vote for. Though I might have guessed who they were without much study since most are from the GOP.

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Blog – Practical Eco

Is Concrete Green?

I caught this article on Greener Buildings and it has got me thinking again about this marvelous material.

Not long ago I was on the fence about concrete. I think a lot of people see concrete as a cold and hard material so therefore not very "green". Then there’s the issue of embodied energy, or the energy that it takes to make and transport the product.

Concrete just doesn’t have the warmth and natural feeling of wood, brick or a lot of other building materials. But then it also isn’t a source of food for mold which is essentially a plague on buildings here in the Southeast. It also can provide a pretty air tight envelope quite easily, which can mean better air quality indoors as part of a complete well designed system.

Plus, it’s fire proof, pest proof and super strong.This means as a home owner you’ll save money on insurance and pest protection year after year. Not to mention that a concrete building will likely far outlast stick built homes even if you don’t have hurricanes, tornadoes or other disasters that will demolish the typical home.

We offer insulated concrete forms, or ICFs, which is a great way to achieve a quick build, good insulation and all of the great properties of concrete.  And we also offer E-Wall which is perhaps my favorite build system now. E-Wall is a hybrid of structural insulated panels, SIPs, and ICFs. It’s a panelized system that is assembled quickly on site then filled with a concrete pour to produce a solid monolithic wall.

Berkeley creates solar financing district

My once home, Berkeley CA, just yesterday approved a new plan to help home owners finance solar panels through a voluntary tax. Effectively the city will use its volume borrowing rates to finance the purchase of solar systems over a 20 year period with the home owner paying a voluntary tax to cover the payments. The tax will be set to be less than or equal to the expected savings on the home’s utility bills. The agreement is also transferable if the home is sold.

So will my new home town please start considering something similar?

Cherokee gets LEED Platinum for their Raleigh HQ

Cherokee Investment Partners are a local private company that specializes in cleaning up and developing real estate. They’re committed to sustainable development and built a "mainstream green" home in Raleigh last year.

Now they’ve achieved the first LEED Platinum building in North Carolina for their own headquarters building. To do it they rehabilitated a former furniture warehouse.  Some of the key features of the building include a highly insulated, reflective roof to reduce heat gain, ENERGY STAR-certified office equipment and efficient lighting systems; water-saving faucets; waterless urinals;  zero- or low-VOC paints, adhesives, sealants, furniture and
carpeting.   The building includes showers and bike storage to encourage additional alternative transit options.

The urban office space retains 60 percent of the existing building interior, and when compared to traditional buildings it reduces water use by roughly 45 percent, energy use by 25 percent, and it provides 90 percent of occupants with natural light and views to the outdoors. In addition, the office workstations use 82 percent recycled content. 

See their full press release here.

Greenbuild 365

For those of us who don’t make it to Chicago this year for the Greenbuild Expo Nov 7 through 9, the US Green Building Council has put together a new site www.Greenbuild365.org which will feature live streaming video of the key speakers and a running journal of conference events.

GE’s new Homebuilder program?

I thought when I read this item that GE was positioning itself to offer the next green building program. With something like 80 programs out there across the country, why not another one? GE’s new Homebuilder Program claims to be "groundbreaking".  Hey, it offers 20% savings in household energy and water costs versus the average home. Pardon me if I’m not impressed when I know builders who are doing much much better than that around here.   

On the other hand, I’ve made the point several times that someone who can paint a pale shade of green across a wide area can do much more good than many small dark green efforts. And if anyone can paint green across a wide area it’s GE. So, perhaps I won’t write this off with snide remarks just yet.

Still, when I look into the program a bit more I realize that it’s mainly just a way of dressing up their appliances and electronic gizmos, like their new eco-dashboard, and selling them as a package deal.
 

To make it happen they’ve partnered with Environments for Living who are verifying the homes at their "guaranteed performance" level.  I’ve got pretty mixed feelings about this and a sense of foreboding at the idea of a giant like GE stepping into the green homebuilding arena. Will it help things to move along or will it be a great big greenwash?

NASA’s Hansen speaking Nov 16 & 17 in Charlotte and Chapel Hill.

The nation’s foremost climatologist brings his urgent message for immediate action on energy and climate to North Carolina in November.  Dr. James Hansen is head of NASA’s Goddard Institute and an outspoken proponent for rapid reductions in greenhouse gases. He will outline his five-step plan for solving the global climate emergency at upcoming forums in Charlotte and Chapel Hill.  The forums are called “AVERTING CLIMATE CATASTROPHE: Power Plants or Clean Energy – Who Decides?”

The Charlotte event is hosted by Carolinas Clean Air Coalition and will take place on November 16 at 7pm at
Queens University of Charlotte.

The Chapel Hill event is hosted by NC WARN of Durham and will take place on November 17 at 3pm at The Friday Center.

Dr. Hansen’s leading recommendation: a moratorium on coal-fired power  plants such as one planned by Duke Energy at Cliffside, North Carolina. Mike Nicklas, an internationally recognized green architect and leader in renewable energy, will join Dr. Hansen in laying out a societal
     path that can cut global warming pollution rapidly through clean energy and by avoiding dangerous new power plants.
    
    

Admission is free but seating is limited so reserve your seat now by visiting the respective sites linked above.

* Post event article in the News & Observer here

Green Community in the heart of Charlotte

Celadon is a unique community with a green vision. Developer James Funderburk seeks to "lessen our footprint on the Earth by promoting smarter development," according to  their website.  There’s no denying it’s a very slick urban development. And it’s obviously struck a chord as the 24 units are nearly sold out, with only two remaining.

Celadon’s location is directly on the Wesley Heights Greenway with extensive walking and biking trails. Plus it has a dedicated bike trail that runs directly uptown on the 4th Street Extension. 

The units will feature Low VOC paints, bamboo flooring with low VOCs meeting the European E1 standard, dual flush toilets, tankless water heaters, high efficiency HVAC, "cool roof" technology to reduce the heat island effect and many other green features.

Water conservation becoming more and more important

One of my regular reads, Treehugger, carries a post today titled A New Era of Water Conservation, and it makes specific reference to North Carolina.

That puts me in the mind of an excellent product, Brac grey water recycling systems.  There are simply no other viable competitors in North America for what they offer, apart perhaps from Aqus, which is simpler but doesn’t offer nearly as much savings or as much safety. Brac’s systems not only capture water from sinks, baths, showers and even laundry if needed, but they have state of the art purification in place to deliver clean water to be used for either toilet flushing or irrigation.

It should, and may someday, become mandatory to have such systems in place for new construction. Certainly builders today have every reason to consider using either a grey water recycling system like Brac or a rain water collection system, like Brae or both.

Vented Attics?

I’ve spoken to quite a few homeowners recently about insulating attics with spray foam insulation like Icynene.  Many worried about keeping the attics properly ventilated.  Here’s another area where the building science has evolved. Particularly here in the South, ventilating attics is not necessarily the right thing to do, as with crawl spaces. And, attic fans are not helping either.

The better thing to do is seal the attic and insulate the roof deck with spray foam. With new construction a radiant barrier like TechShield should also be used.

The basic thinking has been to cool the attic with ventilation. But what we now realize is that almost all of the heat transfer into the attic space is through radiation directly through the roof deck. Vents will do nothing to stop this. And when it’s hot and humid outside all vents do is draw humidity into the building envelope.

For a good article on this see "Joe’s Top Ten List of Dumb Things to do in the South", on the Building Science website. A great general resource.  And take a look at Arnie Katz’s article on this subject at the Advanced Energy site. Another great resource.

Making your square feet work harder

I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately about our general trend toward larger homes. Why do homes keep getting bigger? "McMansions" is a wonderfully appropriate term I’ve heard used. My guess, and it’s not particularly researched, is that people see their peers buying larger homes and are sucked into "keeping up with the Joneses".  To some extent home builders are to blame for starting the trend and for not pushing back against demand for bigger homes by educating buyers or showing them how a well designed smaller home can deliver greater benefits. Whatever the reason, more and more builders are now starting to realize that investment in good design yields many tangible benefits including better value for money, part of which is appropriately right-sized homes.

In my idle web wandering I stumbled across this excellent article on Oikos Eighteen Design Principals to Make  Square Feet Work Harder, excerpted from the wonderful book The Art of Natural Building. If you don’t already have the book, the article is a good read on its own.

Nov 3rd is the National Day of Climate Action

This November 3rd has been declared the National Day of Climate Action in a campaign organized by Step It Up, which is a small team based in New Hampshire.  Hundreds of local actions are being encouraged and posted on their central site so you can fine one near you.

Around the Triangle there are two events. One in Carrboro at the Town Commons from 2-4 pm and another in Raleigh at Blue Jay Point County Park from 12-2 pm. So it’s possible to attend both.

While I think it’s vital to do everything we can to reduce CO2 emissions, I worry sometimes that this is taking some of the limelight away from the many other pollutants that are the result of our high reliance on petroleum. It also seems to drive some people to conclude that Nuclear is the answer (but don’t get me started on that). Basically, and I say this as someone who worked with the oil industry for many years, oil is completely poisonous. The many byproducts and pollutants have permeated our lives over the past 60+ years that we’ve been growing wildly. And people wonder why cancers, asthma and so many other illnesses increased over that period. Well, I had my little rant so now let’s go out and cut some carbon emissions.

Climate Change a Boon for NC?

Today’s News and Observer ran a story about a new study from Appalachian State University which asserts that fighting global warming could be a boon for North Carolina’s economy.  If
the state implements a host of strategies to cut greenhouse gas
emissions, more than 325,000 jobs and $20 billion could be added to the
state’s economy by 2020, says the study.

The findings were part of a study
that will help state lawmakers decide whether to join 17 other states
that have set standards for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The
N.C. Climate Action Plan Advisory Group, one of two statewide panels
studying the issue, last week recommended a set of 56 strategies that
would return the state to 1990 levels of greenhouse gas emissions
within 13 years. The strategies include reducing tailpipe emissions,
tightening efficiency standards for new buildings and appliances,
upgrading to cleaner technologies at power plants and preserving farm-
and forestland.

Read the full story in the News & Observer here.

UNC Campus Sustainability Day this Friday Oct 26

The UNC Campus Sustainability office has invited everyone to come help them celebrate their accomplishments over the past year.

The event takes place Friday October 26 from 8:30 am to 1:30 pm in the Johnston Center for
Undergraduate Excellence in Graham Memorial Hall on McCorkle Place, off
East Franklin Street.

At 9 a.m., the 2007 Campus Sustainability Report
will be presented to Chancellor James Moeser, who will speak. Then at noon,
state Sen. Janet Cowell will discuss new high-performance building and
renewable energy legislation.

There will be staffed exhibits on a wide range of sustainability topics
from stormwater management to recycling to social justice. There will
also be free Segway rides and refreshments.

See Cindy Shea’s Article in the Chapel Hill News.

New Solar PV material based on Carbon nanotubes

A new process
for manufacturing thin film solar panels is being employed by Vanguard Solar Inc. in Sudbury MA.

Vanguard says its process for growing
flexible solar material — using carbon nanotubes — means that its
thin-film material can be manufactured in almost any roll-to-roll
printing plant.

By changing the cost structure of producing solar materials,
Vanguard officials say they can make solar a much cheaper source of
energy for commercial and residential buildings.

See the full story on Mass High Tech. News.

Germany wins the Solar Decathalon competition

The winners of the Solar Decathlon competition were announced today as the German University, Technische Universität Darmstadt. See the full report on Inhabitat here.

NC Energy Star Conference

November 15-16 in Durham NC at the Civic Center Marriott will be this year’s NC Energy Star Conference, a gathering of building professionals and people interested in energy efficient building practices.

The event features a full day of presentations on a wide range of topics, exhibitors, a keynote presentation from Danny Parker of the Florida Solar Energy Center and a reception Thursday evening. For full details see their website.

Apricus Solar Hot Water featured on 9 Solar Decathalon homes

Apricus Solar Hot water systems made with evacuated tubes are incredibly efficient because their design captures sun throughout the day and because the vacuum insulates so well. That’s probably why 9 of the 20 teams competing in this year’s Solar Decathlon have selected Apricus collectors for their houses. The Solar Decathalon is
an international competition between 20 collegiate teams who plan, design, build,
and operate unique houses that incorporate high energy efficiency
products powered by solar thermal and PV (photovoltaics).  All 20 houses are being showcased on the National Mall in Washington DC October
12-20.

One of the main advantages of the Apricus evacuated tube collectors is that they can achieve very hot water even in cloudy or overcast conditions. Their higher efficiency makes them best suited to the climate from North Carolina and Northward, where we experience some cooling and some overcast conditions during Winter. Areas like Florida and Texas are better off with traditional flat plate collectors because they get strong sun year round and so it’s not worth the extra premium for them.

 

Natural Homes Design Build – timber frame green homes

Joi and Ron Tannert who run Natural Homes Design Build are earnest and passionate about building quality homes. They also build very elegant homes that don’t skimp on luxuries. Joi’s interior design experience means they can deliver the whole package with interiors if that’s what you want. Ron’s 30 years of construction experience means they really know their stuff.

While they’re not fitting solar panels the house I saw was solar ready, which is very smart and will save someone a bit of money if they want to fit solar hot water later on.

They certainly do build them tight and insulate them well which is great. And while the timber frame components are typically shipped from the West Coast with all that embodied energy, that might be something I would live with given the sheer beauty and luxury that they create.

Forbes’ Greenest States Rankings

I’m seriously disappointed that North Carolina came in smack in the middle of the rankings table at No.26. Forbes’ ranking of States for greeness is constructed from six equally
weighted categories: carbon footprint, air quality, water quality,
hazardous waste management, policy initiatives and energy consumption. Their full table puts us above our neighbors to the South and West but just a few notches below Virginia. We should be making an all out effort to increase our standing in this table over the next few years. Anyone want to float this idea to the State Senate?

Off-Grid.net 20 ways to eco-pimp your home

Off-Grid.Net just ran and article titled "20 ways to eco-pimp your home" The title made me laugh, so I had to read it and pass it on. Though much of the article is very UK-centric and some of the points, I’d argue with, it’s a nice piece with some good tips. 

Of course the bias was for heating rather than cooling climates, but the best tips I thought were:

1. low energy bulbs or CFL
2. turn your thermostat down (or up in Summer)
3. turn off monitors/pcs when not in use and unplug TVs etc.
4. get Solar Hot water
5. insulate your attic more/better

Recycled cotton fiber insulation

UltraTouch Natural Cotton Fiber insulation is made from 85% post-industrial recycled natural fibers. Much of that from denim manufacturers which makes for that characteristic blue shade.

It comes in Batt form at 16" and 24" widths, and 3.5" or 5.5" thicknesses to provide R13 or R19 insulation respectively.  Some of its advantages include great sound absorption and the fact that it handles easily without causing any itching.

Also, it contains no chemical irritants, no VOC so it has no warning labels and you can be sure that it is a perfectly safe and environmentally friendly product.

I might still personally tend to favor spray-foam in most applications, but there’s a serious appeal to this product that not only appeals to the "hippy" in me but, uses no petroleum products and is probably safe enough to eat (well maybe a little tiny bite). So, I can see lot’s of situations where I’d want to use this. It certainly knocks the socks off of Fiberglass batts.

UltraTouch is manufactured in Arizona and I’m still wondering why it isn’t made here in NC where we’ve got lots of textile manufacturing, including denim, and a source of the raw material. 

But if you want to use this product, there’s now a local distributor, BJ Green Insulation run by Polly and Joe Jones out of Wilson NC.

Durham Solar Homes tour

I went round the homes on the Durham Solar Homes tour Saturday and enjoyed one in particular. It turns out to have been designed by Sophie Piesse a local Carrboro architect who specializes in green building. What struck me most was the elegance of the interior spaces and how well laid out everything was for a comfortable life. Then I started noticing how sustainable all of the materials are and the solar PV and the icynene spray foam insulation. The walls are made of Agriboard an 8" thick panel of wheatstraw sandwiched between sheets of OSB – a sort of SIP really. And the exterior finish is a natural hydraulic lime stucco – a wonderfully sustainable material.

It was also very inspiring to see the work of Greenfire Development
who are renovating many buildings in downtown Durham including an old fire station and next door to it the pharmacy building. They’re installing a deep well geothermal system to condition the space using three wells dug 1500 feet below the courtyard between the two buildings. In addition, they’re practicing many good green building concepts like minimizing waste and recycling materials.

Unfortunately the tour had some issues with their literature and the driving directions. I found myself with a glossy brochure for the larger NC green building tour but which gave me no information relevant to the immediate Durham tour, plus several other sheets that I had to juggle to find my way around and a detailed set of directions from each stop to the next. I’d rather have less paper next time guys, and a map would be very nice indeed. Sometimes one wants to skip a stop or two and/or find one’s own way with a more visual reference. Had I not had someone else with me in the car I wouldn’t have been able to follow those meticulous directions.

wind belt

In a conventional wind generator, gears help transfer the motion of the spinning blades to a turbine where an electric current is induced. The Windbelt is simpler and more efficient in light breezes—a magnet mounted on a vibrating membrane simply oscillates between wire coils.

Products we offer …

These are a few of the more popular products I can supply in North Carolina:

Building Envelope

• E-Wall (www.e-wall.info) a hybrid of SIPs and ICF that creates a tight, solid envelope in record time
• FasWall Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF)
• ACTech Panel – revolutionary steel structural insulated panels (SIP) for fast, tight, durable construction
• Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC) blocks

Insulation

• Icynene (www.icynene.com) spray foam insulation
• Biobased (www.biobased.net) soy spray foam insulation

Interiors

• Kirei Board (www.kireiusa.com) – a unique panel for cabinetry and furniture making
• Earthweave carpets (www.earthweave.com)  – a pure and natural wool carpeting
• EcoTop (www.kliptech.com) – a new kitchen counter top made from bamboo and wood
• Plus other counter top materials

Wood flooring

• FSC certified Teak, recycled rubber tiles, recycled glass tiles, bamboo, marmoleum

Indoor Air Purification

• RGF and Ecoquest (www.jochum-air.com) using Space certified technology to provide pure air naturally

Paving

• APT permeable pavers – advanced paving solution to reduce storm water run off
• Flexi-Pave – Porous surface system made from recycled tires
• Eco-Rubber permeable pavers and flooring

Solar Hot Water & Photovoltaics

• A wide range of products including Solahart, Apricus and other solar hot water solutions, as well as Sharp, SunTech and Uni-Solar photovoltaic panels.

Mechanical Systems

• Nature’s Aire – True low temperature dehumidification
• ThermaFlow – water cooled air conditioning units operating at 16 EER.

Lighting

• Tubular daylighting solutions for residential and commercial application
• Solar lighting for residential and commercial applications including street lighting

Water Conservation

• Brac – grey water recycling systems for residential and commercial construction
• Lawn sprinker control systems

See www.Eco-Smart.com for a complete listing of products

Back to the Practical Eco Blog

Greenbridge development breaks ground in Chapel Hill

Greenbridge, broke ground this past Monday. If you’re not
from around here or just don’t know, this is a mixed use residential
development in the heart of Chapel Hill. It has been designed by William McDonough and will offer 98 condos and retail establishments,
green roofs, solar panels, rainwater runoff systems, and a community learning
center.

The six partners behind this development are all local with
strong ties here. Still there has been ongoing debate about the appropriateness
of a 10 story structure in this little university town. And the units carry a
pretty steep price tag with 1 bedroom apartments starting at just over 300k.  However you can’t really argue the benefit of
a green flagship development to attract attention to the issues.

Charlotte Energy Solutions

My latest "Green Hero" discovery is Charlotte Energy Solutions. Mark Englander, the owner, is a dedicated purveyor of environmentally sustainable alternatives for both homes and transport. 

For home energy, they offer solar hot water, solar photovoltaics (PV), tankless gas water heaters and corn stoves. 

As alternative transport they sell, Segways, Electric Scooters, and Straight Vegetable Oil conversions for diesel cars. They also have the only B100 Biodiesel filling station in the area. 

Mark started this business because he had been living a green lifestyle driving his own veg-oil powered car and heating his home with a corn stove. He finally realized that he needed to spread the word more aggressively so he opened the store which has been amazingly successful.

Green Home Building Guidelines & Certification Program

Offered by the Green Building Council of the Home
Builders Association of Durham, Orange, and Chatham Counties (HBADOC)

Presenting sponsor: Newland Communities

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Registration /Continental breakfast – 8 am
Seminar – 8:45 am – 12:30 pm

Location:

NC Biotechnology Center, RTP

Fees:

HBADOC Green Building Council member – $75/person
HBA member – $100/person
Non-Council or -HBA member – $125/person

You’ll learn:

• What’s contained in the National Association of Home
Builders’ Green Home Building Guidelines
• How our program compares to other green building programs
• How a builder can get started in the program
• What the certification process involves
And more!

The 90-member Green Building Council of
the Home Builders Association of Durham, Orange, and Chatham Counties has built
a rapidly-growing program, with more than 60 homes certified in the first year.

Presenters:
Michael Chandler, Chandler Design Build
Randy Lanou, BuildSense
Bill Beasley, Red-B Construction
Jamie Hager, Southern Energy Management

Two homes (one at the bronze level and one at the gold level) will be used as
examples during the session, giving attendees an understanding of how to
participate in the program at the entry level and also at the top. The
instructors will describe the different program areas (i.e., site design,
resource efficiency, energy and water efficiency, indoor air quality, and
global impact) and will explain the point system and documentation items needed
to achieve bronze, silver and gold levels.

Questions? Contact Leigh Scott at 919-493-8899 or leigh@hbadoc.com.

 

Metropolis Next Generation Design competition

Metropolis is once again sponsoring a sustainable design competition "Next Generation Design".
The 2008 competition focuses on WATER. Underlining the fact that water is a finite resource, they are calling for better design solutions that
account for potable water, gray water, black water—its uses, re-uses,
controls, management, efficiency, and conservation.

 

Pledge to Stop using Bottled Water

The Carbon Conscious Consumer (C3) group at the New American Dream are raising awareness of the rapidly increasing impact of plastic water bottles. I have to admit I was a bit numb to this issue until recently. After all, I can only focus on so many eco issues at one time.  But I’m now convinced it’s real, relevant and takes very little effort to change.  My wife and I bought ourselves reusable water containers and have completely stopped buying bottled water.  Along side, we installed a Multi Pure water filter to ensure we’ve got the purest tastiest water straight from the tap.

Here are the key facts surrounding bottled water.  Americans consumed more than 31 billion liters of bottled water in 2006 – nearly
28 gallons for every man, woman, and child. Manufacturing all those bottles
required 900,000 tons of plastic, which in turn required 20 million barrels of oil, and emitted as much greenhouse gas as
500,000 cars. Trucking a bottle of water 500 miles can double
its climate impact – and some are shipped much, much farther. Water is a very heavy product to ship and trucks can not carry a full load of it.

We also know that both Coca Cola and Pepsi have owned up to selling tap water in their bottled waters at thousands of times the cost. Democracy Now did an interesting story on this recently, which is full of compelling facts.

So join me in rejecting bottled water and saving millions of barrels of oil and millions of tons of CO2 emissions. Take the C3 pledge.

Retailers Flocking Toward Green ?

The first one I noticed was Best Buy, then Staples and Office Depot very quickly were saying they would build stores to LEED standards. What great news. Retail may not be the worst contributors to energy consumption, or CO2 emissions but their efforts will be very visible and get good publicity for the causes of green building and energy efficiency.

Then I noticed a story that Kohl’s would be putting rooftop solar PV on 63 or its 80 California stores. Hey what about NC and the other 754 stores they run?  Next I read that JC Penny is about to open a store in Denver in a LEED certified shopping center development and that they will seek LEED certification for two more stores opening over the next two years.

All great news. So it seems the new LEED for Retail program is working well. The program consists
of two rating systems – new construction and major renovations version 2.2 plus LEED for commercial interiors 2.0.  It’s still in pilot but the 2nd draft of the program was issued this past April.

On a related note, I came across a study on the City of Seattle website which shows that stores with increased daylighting, not only save energy costs, but enjoyed increased sales – 30% or more $/square foot improvement in fact. I found that interesting since I’ve heard retailers say they must have certain types of electric lighting to showcase their wares effectively and achieve better sales.

More anecdotally, I’ve heard of a few smaller retailers putting up solar hot water around NC, so it must be going on a lot. After all it’s practically a no-brainer given the accelerated depreciation and uncapped tax credits available to commercial applications of solar, and the fairly rapid payback period for solar thermal.

Local NC countertops made with New River aggregate

I’ve finally found a locally made sustainable counter top solution. The New River Concrete Countertops company makes beautiful counters in Jefferson NC using local gravel and sand which is collected from the regular low impact dredging of the local dams on the New River.

The company typically takes a template onsite then makes a mold in their shop to pour the slab from a mix that includes the gravel, sand and recycled materials such as fly ash and fly ash iron oxides. The slabs are ground down
to expose the beauty of the aggregate. They can then be sealed with either a no-VOC sealer, that will need regular waxing or a low-VOC sealer which
requires no maintanence.

The company do installations throughout NC and VA. They are the latest addition to my growing list of building heroes who do great, local, sustainable work bringing beauty and integrity to home building.

Cleaning Your Home the Natural Way

The Scrap Exchange in Durham is holding a course on Wednesday October 10th from 7-8pm on how to make your own less-toxic cleaning products.
 

Learn how a few simple ingredients can be combined to form a
wide range of products to meet all of your cleaning needs. Save money and reduce the toxic chemicals
in your life.

Everyone who takes the class will
receive a course pack with information and recipes.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007
7:00-8:00 pm
$15 per household (bring your housemate for no extra charge!)

APT permeable pavers stop storm water runoff

The Advanced Pavement Technology (APT) Ecological Paver System reduces storm-water run-off while it promotes rainwater infiltration and natural groundwater recharge.  The Permeable Pavement System
is engineered to support heavy axle loads for roadways and parking
lots. Yet, it’s a flexible, paver system that adapts to
changes in the ground and changes in the weather that would damage
conventional pavements.

The Bio-Aquifer Storm System, BASS™, method of construction integrates specifically designed
pavers in an engineered system that will allow for collection of
stormwater runoff and support heavy axle loads for roadways and parking
lots. In addition, due to the types of aggregate used, a natural
filtration process will occur and pollutants that are removed from the
runoff will be broken down by bacteria contained in the aggregates.

For housing developments this system can reduce the requirement for retention ponds and make more land available for building. That means it can far more than pay for itself and that should be music to the ears of developers and municipal storm water personnel too.

My Home Building Help LLC helps owners build their own sustainable homes

Bill Klotz found his mission in life, helping people to build their own homes. Best of all he’s steering people toward sustainable, high-performance building that save owners money.  Bill maintains that it doesn’t have to cost much more to build a high performance home. It can be done by following good building practices and paying attention to detail. His company, My Home Building Help, started helping self-builders achieve better results at the start of this year. They offer services from Building Science Plan Reviews for clients anywhere in the country through to a complete General Contractor Package that takes on the full responsibility of the build for a flat fee.  They’ll even act as agent when the owner chooses to build with a contractor, and ensure the owner gets what he wants.

What makes Bill Klotz so right for this role? He’s not only worked for one of the largest builders in the Country, but he worked with Advanced Energy, a cutting edge national construction consulting firm right here in Raleigh. There he learned about the latest developments in building science and helped builders diagnose and solve problems. And he developed methods to simplify the construction management process so anyone could do it.

Jochum Air expanding into the Raleigh-Durham area

In response to customer demand, Jochum Air is now installing the RGF Photohydroionization® (PHI) cells in the Triangle area as well as the Triad, where they are currently based.  It seems mold and mildew are an expanding problem thanks to the building practices of the past three decades. As air conditioning cools your house it can also draw moisture through crawlspace vents and breed molds in ducts, floors and other parts of the house causing numerous health problems for the residents.

The PHI Cell kills mold, bacteria and viruses in the air, leaving only fresh pure clean air that smells a bit like the air after a storm. Its proprietary technology has been used extensively in controlling the spread of SARS in China and more recently in combating avian flu. It’s also used widely in commercial buildings and schools to reduce the spread of disease or combat sick building syndrome. Recently Jochum Air supplied several units to an organic cheese manufacturer who has had excellent results in controlling the growth of unwanted molds.

While good building practice should always include a tightly sealed envelope with a well designed ventilation and filtration system, a PHI cell can greatly improve air quality, reduce smells and eradicate virus, mold and bacteria in the air, leaving you with a healthier home.

Construction Resources exceeds Energy Star standards by 350%

Local builder Construction Resources, has built a home that has been independently rated at 350% above the Energy Star standards for energy efficiency. And no it hasn’t been done with any fancy new technology, or at least not much. Basically it’s just a solidly build home that has been sealed tight and insulated well with the addition of a solar hot water system.  Of course, it has a sealed crawl space.  Sealing it tight (and this house rated 178% better than Energy Star in the Blower Door test) is all about the details. They’ve caulked everything including the cabinetry and sub floor.

The walls which are simply framed with 2x6s are insulated for an R21 with fiberglass batts, but the attic has a whopping R-62 from cellulose. And another little detail, there’s an R49 hatch cover for the attic stairs, where you’d otherwise have a great big heat loss.  Tech Shield sheathing also does a great deal to hold back the heat in the attic. 

So, according to the independent raters at Southern Energy Management, the home which is about 2500 square feet will cost about $25 per month for heating and cooling over the year. 

Construction Resources’ Tom O’Dwyer has shown that attention to detail, good building practices and most of all just caring can do a lot to make homes super energy efficient. 

My new book store on Amazon

I’ll keep on writing about books I like or come across, but I’ve just set up my own ‘store’ on Amazon which basically just lets me compose my own selection of meaningful and useful items. 

Just for fun, I’ve included a selection of music too. My musical collection used to be something awesome when I had records and CDs – and my taste remains broadly ecclectic. Now it’s all digital, so all I can say is the 60gig on my Ipod is barely enough now.  How does one manage two Ipods? I’ll need to look into that one day.

Inside the Not So Big House

Sarah Susanka is doing everyone a service by highlighting the irrelevance of square footage as a measure of a home’s worth. I’m tempted to say the stupidity of the modern obsession with a home’s size.

Having lived in New York City apartments, or central London houses most of my adult life, I was shocked when I moved back to the US at how big homes have become here. What on Earth does a four person family need with 4,000 square feet or more?

Susanka rightly points out in her original work, The Not So Big House that it’s not all about square footage, but rather good design, space utilization and adaptable spaces. 

Now in this new work she promises to expand on the message and by collaborating with design writer Marc Vassallo and visiting 23 houses where they illustrate how attention to detail rather than raw footage makes the real difference to you experience of a home.

This new book is due out on October 2nd, but you can pre-order your copy on Amazon now.

Southern Ideal Home Show coming up this weekend

The Southern Ideal Home show is on at the State Fairgrounds in Raleigh this Friday, Saturday and Sunday September 21-23.

I’m not sure how recently they started the Green Building category but it’s clearly growing. I count 18 listed companies at this show compared with 12 at the previous show.  That seems to show either an increasing interest in Green Building from the public (which I think is true anyhow) or a realization on the part of vendors that the show helps them grow business – possibly both. After all I’m now considering if I should be an exhibitor at the next show. 

This year show I’ll be there working with one of my partner companies, Healthy Home Insulation. So if you’re at the show, drop by and say hi.

Mortgage Lenders Get Behind Green Building

Greener Buildings is reporting that several major mortgage lenders are now offering rewards to buyers of energy efficient homes. Citigroup and Bank of America are both offering $1000 off of closing costs in certain cases. Full Story

Spray foam insulation seals tight

You have many great choices of insulating material these days. Most builders use fiberglass batts, which is the cheapest way to meet the code requirements. But if all you want, or want to build, is a house that meets the code requirements you’re probably not visiting this website. After all, code simply defines the cheapest house that can be build without going to jail.  One the other hand, I have known good builders who favor fiberglass, with the huge caveat that it be installed correctly – and that can be a "big if".

Spray foam offers some tremendous advantages over batts, or even blown cellulose. Firstly it’s an air barrier, so in one swoop you seal the house tight and insulate well. Secondly, there’s a lot less concern about the quality of installation because there are simply a lot fewer things that can be done wrong. Thirdly, if offers the added benefit of superior sound insulation too, so you’ll enjoy a quieter home as a bonus.

Solar Hot Water from Solahart

There are several different systems for solar hot water. The Home Power web site has an excellent primer on the different types and benefits of each. For residential applications in this area (NC), I tend to favor the Solahart Thermosyphon models. Though the Home Power prime summary says Thermosyphons are not freeze tolerant, the Solahart is, making it well suited to a climate like ours where there are occasional freezing days.

Simpler Flat Plat collectors may be cheaper but they’re much less efficient. In places like Florida where there isn’t much of a Winter, that can be the right choice.  Evacuated tube collectors are also great, but a bit pricier. They’re so efficient that they often need a heat dissipator to prevent over heating. They’re excellent where there are a lot of cloudy or rainy days or where there is a need for very hot water. I recommend them for many commercial situations in this climate, or larger homes.

One of the great things about the Solahart Free Heat series thermosyphon systems is that they’re passive which means there’s no need for pumps and fewer moving parts. That also means less maintenance and longer life span. Some people really like the fact that it comes with its own tank, so in a new construction you can avoid installing a hot water tank at all. Just rig a tankless hot water heater, like the Rheem model discussed earlier, saving space, money and time.

Advanced Framing – no brainer

Any framing contractor or home builder who doesn’t used what’s called "Advanced Framing" techniques should be ashamed.  It’s simply a better, faster way to frame a stick-built house because the techniques mean less wood is used and there are fewer  thermal bridges so the walls are better insulated.

For example 2x6s are typically used 24 inches on center, rather than 16 – that’s about 50% fewer studs to measure, cut, position and nail. That’s also fewer studs providing thermal bridges and more insulation for the whole wall.

Other techniques include using less wood in headers within non-load bearing walls, aligning the loads from floor joists directly to the studs below, and where interior walls T onto the exterior wall using a ladder assembly to permit insulation of the exterior wall at that point.

The US Department of Energy has a fact sheet on the techniques here.

The Conserv Membrane ERV

Indoor air quality is of increasing concern since we build houses tighter now. By cutting down on ventilation we’re trapping countless contaminants in the home. One way to deal with that is to ventilate more, but you loose the energy you’ve put into conditioning your air whether warming or cooling.  That’s where Energy Recovery Ventilators, or ERVs, come in.

The best one available is made by Dias under the brand ConsERV. It uses a patented membrane that utilizes nano-technology to achieve incredible results at reasonable prices. 

Employing an ERV as part of a good HVAC system design means you can typically afford to downsize your units because up to 30% of a typical system’s load is used to condition the outside air. An ERV preconditions the outside air by transferring the heat from inside air as it gets exhausted out. So you can stop cooling, or heating, the great outdoors.

Whether for residential or commercial construction you should consider a ConsERV unit as part of any well considered Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning design.

Timeless Way of Building

I was lucky enough to study architecture at UC Berkeley where Christopher Alexander teaches. Any while I was only there as an undergrad and he only taught grad courses, I was exposed to his work through other professors there.

Christopher Alexander’s book The Timeless Way of Building is one of those books that changes the way you look at buildings, but also the whole process of design. It emphasizes a holistic view of design that is only now coming into vogue with the emergence of LEED methodology.

I see C.Alexander and the whole team involved with the development of A Pattern Language as the original ‘Green’ builders. They encouraged us to view design as something that involved and affected the whole community, the whole world. 

If you’re the least bit interested in buildings, architecture, design then you must read this book. If you’ve already read it, read it again.

E-Wall makes for a stronger tighter building

The Efficient Wall Systems, or E-Wall, solutions makes for strong and tight buildings that go up quickly and are easy for trades to finish.  This system is growing rapidly in Texas and Florida. A lot of builders here in North Carolina are now interested in E-Wall because it can save costs, reduce waste and deliver a better, tighter building. It’s as practical for residential or commercial construction and can go up several floors in height.

The basic concept is a panel construction a bit like SIPs, but the walls are hollow to be filled with concrete on site, like ICFs. The fact that it’s filled on site provides a tight monolithic structure which means you don’t have to spend a lot of effort to seal gaps. The insulated panels provide for a finished wall with R14 or more. Combine this shell with a spray foam insulated roof structure and you’ve got a tight well insulated house with minimal effort and at a very reasonable cost.   

The building owner or resident can save 20-30% on energy costs. Plus they can save on insurance because the structure is fortified. And there are savings in pest control because the monolithic concrete structure is pest resistant and termite proof.

EcoTop™ – the greenest kitchen surface yet

The latest eco counter surface to hit the market is EcoTop™, which I’ll have available from September.  I’m very excited about this new manufactured product because it comes with such a pedigree already.

EcoTop™ is the newest product from award winning eco product innovator Joel Klippert. It is the most durable & eco friendly counter top surface product in the world.

EcoTop™ is made with an FSC Certified 50/50 blend of post consumer recycled demolition wood fiber and rapidly renewable bamboo fiber. The bamboo fiber which is much longer and stronger than wood fiber, gives the product incredible dimensional stability.

The resin system used to bond the fibers is a water based proprietary product. It’s free of petroleum, has no VOC’s, and E0 formaldehyde emissions.

EcoTop also uses an industry first two stage color system where the fiber and the resin are colored separately. This system gives much improved color consistency and color stability over other paper based products. The initial product offering with have 6 colors, Jet Black, Charcoal,Walnut, Safari, Khaki & Sand.

EcoTop’s compressive strength of 50,000 psi & water absorption of less than 1% make it the most durable surface product available.

EcoTop can cantilever up to 4’ and span 10’ with no deflection at 300 lbs.

EcoTop has the greatest ease of fabrication; it can be cut, routed, sanded and finished with normal wood working tools much like butcher block.

*Addendum (11/15/07) After much delay the manufacturer has chosen to launch this product only early next year and then only on the West Coast. So it looks at the moment like I may be able to offer this only in the second quarter of 08 now. So perhaps this original posting, though well intended and based on the information I had at the time, was quite premature.

Chandler Design Build

"Green" doesn’t work well enough to describe the homes Michael Chandler builds. I think "authentic" gets closer. Certainly his work is authentic in terms of expressing his character as well as the materials that go into the buildings. Things like soapstone fireplaces, shingle siding and gorgeous wood details throughout showcase the materials for their natural beauty. The designs are all very easy to love and easy to live in as a result of the time and care he and his wife put into understanding each client.

What most impresses me most is the build quality and the engineering. They’ve learned to build very tight and energy efficient homes that are generally 60% better than code standards. Of course, code should be simply unacceptable as a standard for any homeowner today, but this is a commendable achievement.

Michael is also very active in the National Association of Home Builders’  (NAHB) Green Building Initiative (GBI). As a caring thinking person, he wants to work for more improvements in building standards across the board. But as a lifestyle choice he limits his team to 4 homes per year. To reconcile that Michael takes a role as co-chair of the GBI educational committee, which gets him out talking to groups of builders who want to improve their practices.

Strawbale Cafe now open in Islington, London

A straw bale construction that I worked on back in London is finally complete. It went slowly because everyone involved was a volunteer, but we built a small straw bale building within a city farm in central London. It’s now a cafe and open to the public. Highbury Builders Collective was involved and documents the build on their site. I managed to squeeze into one of the photos of a Christmas party.

It was a great experience and I’m grateful to the team and for the friends I made there.

The structure is a timber frame (many callouses from all of the chiseling out of mortise and tenon joints) somewhat inspired by the Segal Trust methods with a green sedum roof, a raised floor and most of the walls were filled in with straw bales and lime plastered.

Composite Decking outlasts and outperforms

MoistureShield® Composite Decking never needs staining, painting or sealing. It maintains its natural beauty and deep wood grain texture far beyond any wood deck in even the most severe conditions.  Their 50-Year Limited Warranty against rot, decay and
insect damage is transferable once and demonstrates the manufacturer’s confidence in their product .

What makes this product different from other plastic or composite decking is their patented process that encapsulates every recycled wood fiber in polyethylene plastic making it resistant to moisture, termites and rot.

MoistureShield also produce an Exterior Trim product that works great with vinyl siding combining the positive
features of both wood and polyethylene to produce a material that will
not rot, crack, split, check or absorb moisture, and is not subject to
termites.

Environmentally Responsible product
manufactured using recovered wood fiber and recycled polyethylene
plastic. A.E.R.T. was the 1999 recipient of the EPA’s Region 6
Partnership for Environmental Excellence Award

Anji Mountain Bamboo rugs

We’ve just started to represent the Anji Mountain Bamboo rug company who make a beautiful line of rugs in a variety of sizes and designs.

These unique floor coverings are sustainably made in China in the Anji Mountains from fast growing Bamboo. The region is well known for producing the finest most durable bamboo. The backing is a mold resistant vinyl that ensures a long slip-free life.

Bamboo a perfect flooring material for
the Ecologically Sound and Economically Smart Consumer.

Recycle Laser and Inkjet Cartridges

• It takes about a gallon of oil to make a new laser cartridge.

• 70 percent of used printer cartridges throughout the world are currently being thrown out.

• Almost 8 cartridges are thrown away per second in the United States alone. That’s over 350 million cartridges per year straight into our landfills, and that number increases by 12 percent
annually.

• A laser cartridge thrown
into landfill can take up to 450 years to decompose. Some components
made of industrial grade plastics will take over a thousand years to
decompose.

It is important that the message gets out to the 70% of printer users who dispose of their printer cartridges.

Recycle and save!  Most
printer cartridges can be remanufactured, refilled or reloaded. Take cartridges to Cartridge World, or Rapid Refill Inks  shops for collection and recycling. You can buy remanufactured or refilled cartridges for substantially less than the price of the name brand ones at these places too.

 

Solar Lighting makes sense

You hear over and over that solar photo-voltaic (PV) takes a long time to pay back the investment. That is sometimes true, but there are some cases where the pay back can be incredibly short. One of the very best situations it with outdoor solar lighting, particularly street lighting. Where the cost of laying power cables can be outright avoided the cases is very strong for solar lighting and they can pay back the investment in as little as a year.

EcoSmart represents a wide selection of solar lighting solutions from garden lights to street lights and even artistic lighting.

If you have a situation or know of one you think could benefit from solar PV lighting, get in touch for more information about the many advantages.

Remember these lights are powered by rechargeable batteries that need occasional replacement and should be disposed of responsibly.

tubular daylighting

Skylights, which were once very popular, make no sense at all from an energy point of view. While they may bring daylight they also bring heat gain – particularly in the Summer when you’re trying to cool your home. Then in the Winter they let the heat you’re paying for escape straight up.

The solution to bringing valuable daylight into awkward areas of the home is tubular daylight units like this one.  The light comes in but not the heat. And in Winter they’re still effective without losing your inside heat to the atmosphere.

This model, the Sun Dome by Daylighting Technologies, which we represent, offers the highest light output with lowest heat gain available on the market.
It’s also very durable. Having been designed for Hurricane weather in Florida it carries Miami-Dade missile impact and wind pressure approvals as well as a 10 year
warranty against cracking or yellowing.

So if you’ve got an area of the house that could use more natural light, before you install more electric lighting or even worse, a skylight, contact me for more information.

Eco-Rubber Pavers, Tiles and matts

Eco-Rubber Impact Absorbing Pavers provide a slip resistant, comfortable surface for patios,
decks, and walkways.  These Pavers are suitable for indoor or outdoor applications in apartment complexes,  office
buildings, schools, senior centers and hospitals, even private homes. They’re light-weight, impact absorbing, slip-resistant and low maintenance,  But most importantly from the environmental perspective, they’re water permeable, so can reduce run off into storm drains. Plus they’re made from recycled rubber, so reduce the pollution of incineration and the waste of landfill. 

Interlocking, self-aligning tiles are easy to
install and require no adhesive, making them ideal for installation
over existing surfacing materials. Manufactured from recycled
materials, Eco-Rubber Surfacing products are impact absorbing on the
environment as well and qualify for LEED credits. 

Save money on hot water

Your hot water heater accounts
    for about 20% of all the energy used in your home. There are a few simple things you can
    do to save energy and save money.

First, turn your water heater down to 130 degrees F, which is
    hot enough to kill deadly bacteria, and still save energy. Also, insulate your heater with
    a pre-fab ‘blanket,’ but be careful not to block off air vents on gas heaters. This can
    save you 7-8% of your energy usage.

Another idea is to wash hand in cold water. Letting the tap run till it gets hot wastes water and energy. Unless you’ve been handling meats you will probably get your hands just as clean with soap and cold water anyhow.  And it’s surprising how much water is wasted as we let the tap run while brushing our teeth.

But if you’re in the market for a new water heater consider a tankless heater from Rheem. In most cases this will save considerable energy, plus you’ll save space too. The water is heated instantly as you require it rather than keeping a tank hot all day and night. Contact me for more information.

earthweave

For anyone looking for a green and healthy carpet, Earthweave is the only real choice – particularly if you have children or are concerned about chemical sensitivities.

 

Earthweave is the only American made carpet made entirely of natural materials. That’s why I put this carpet for my own home and feel completely at ease when my little 11-month old Lucia spends half her day rolling around on it. I know she’s not getting exposed to any of the toxins like VOC-laden adhesives, dyes, moth treatments, stain repellants etc. that other carpets have. 

Get in touch if you want to know more about this wonderful carpet.  I’m the distributor in North Carolina and can connect you to installers or retailers in your local area.  Or if you’re in the Raleigh, Durham area I have my own installers to ensure your happiness and a job well done.

Kirei board: a distinctive and contemporary look

Kirei board is a gorgeous product with a fantastic sustainability story. It’s made from the stalks of sorghum, a food grain grown around the world. Then manufacture it in China in the very center of the growing region, thus reducing raw material transport and contributing good jobs to the agricultural economy. 
The waste stalks are gathered and pressed into boards with a low-VOC adhesive. This ensures a strong yet healthy product.
The finished boards which are available 3’x6′ in 10mm, 20mm and 30mm thicknesses, can be worked just like wood and have been fashioned a wide variety of furniture and cabinetry products.
So if you’re in search of a distinctive look for an interior, whether residential or commercial, Kirei is something to consider seriously. Get in touch with me if you’d like to know more about its properties.

crawlspaces breeding mold, rot and disease

For decades homes in the Southeast have been commonly built
on crawlspace foundations. All the while the codes and general wisdom have said
to ventilate these spaces to reduce moisture and its related problems such as
mold. However more recent research and studies have shown that this actually
makes matters worse for homes here in the humid Southeast of the country.

What we now know is that in the hot humid months these
crawlspace vents are simply sucking moisture into the area and creating a
wonderful environment for mold to grow wild. Common problems related to
moisture in the crawlspace or home include mold damage, musty odors,
condensation on air conditioning ductwork, buckled hardwood floors, insect
infestations and rot in the home’s wooden framing members.

The latest evidence shows that a home with a fully sealed
crawlspace perform better all year round, staying dry, saving energy and resisting
mold. By ‘sealed’ what is meant is no vents and that both the ground and the
walls are covered in thick poly that is properly joined to create a lasting effective
moisture barrier. 

The website www.crawlspaces.org,
offers extensive and detailed information on how to properly design a sealed
crawlspace and the science behind the new thinking.  Though local building codes are changing, most new homes with
crawlspaces continue to be built with vents. So if you’re building a home or planning to this is a very important issue to be aware of as it can save you money on cooling and maintenance as well as protect your family’s health.

If you already own a home on a crawlspace in a hot humid region, then the question has to be to seal or not to seal it. It’s not an easy straight forward question to answer since any change you make to an older home will have impacts elsewhere in the system.  I just bought an older house with a crawlspace so look forward to further discussion on the subject as I assess whether to seal it and how.

Green Remodelling

Another great book on Green building, or in this case remodelling.  I think there’s a case for remodelling being greener than new build because it’s recycling. Besides older homes tend to have more character, though you have to weigh that against the possibility that the building practices of the time were less energy efficient and may be less healthy. For instance, did they insulate or can you insulate now, or is there a vapor barrier under the foundation.

Green Building 101 continues

The excellent Green Building 101 series continues today on Inhabitat.
Nicki Mellado and Kyle Martin have done a splendid job of distilling the dense wording of the LEED standards into easily understandable text that clearly conveys the spirit of LEED and sustainability in building.

This week they look further into sites and site planning and they give us five key measures that can be taken to make a site more sustainable. They are 1. keep the land as close as possible to how it was, 2. use local vegetation, 3. shade, shade, shade, 4. manage water run off, and  5. avoid pesticides, consider instead using organic methods.

The Green House by Alanna Stang and Christopher Hawthorne

The Green House: New Directions in Sustainable Architecture, explores many of the different ways builders and architects have delivered sustainable homes. It features around 30 homes from all over the country, cities and rural, and serves as an inpiration for anyone interested in building green homes. It’s well worth the $45 list price, but it’s about 30% less expensive on Amazon if you follow the link.

Green Building 101

Inhabitat has launched a series of articles on Green Building which they call "Green Building 101".

Their new summer series, will be updated each Wednesday morning, and intends to cover the basics of green building and offer tips and tricks for applying sustainable design principles to your home. The first installment today, breifly introduces the LEED rating system and tucks into the subject of "location and linkages" which is a LEED term relating to site selection.

Though it seemed very high-level the reality is they probably couldn’t have gone into much more detail on a blog. Anyhow, I’ll be looking forward to reading the coming installments.

“The Green House…” museum exhibition

The National Building Museum in Washington DC has opened an exhibition curated by Reed Haslach entitled "The Green House: New Directions in Sustainable Architecture and Design". The Exhibit runs through June 2007, so you have a year to get to DC to see it.

The 7000 square foot exhibit features a full size Glidehouse and examples of green design from around the world. Visitors also get to play with a helidon, which simulates the movement of the sun and shows how it’s seasonal and daily movements affect a building design. And a material resource exhibit features around 60 different eco products for the home.

Lew Sichelman has written an extensive piece about the show which has been syndicated in several newspapers around the country. Click here to read it in the LA Times.