Building Green

What Choices Matter When Building Green?

In less than 6 minutes in a short, fun, data-packed talk at TED U, Catherine Mohr walks through all the geeky decisions she made when building a green new house — looking at real energy numbers, not hype. What choices matter most? Not the ones you think.

05 / 19 / 2010
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May is National Home Improvement Month

National Home Improvement Month was started by an organization called the National Association of the Remodelling Industry (NARI). NARI was founded in 1935 and focuses on promoting the remodelling industry and keeping high work and ethical standards within the industry.

NARI has 3 suggestions to homeowners for Home Improvement Month:

Think your project through from start to finish. Careful planning allows you to achieve the remodel you want while keeping costs down.
Look over your property carefully. Homeowners should ask themselves what repairs or improvements should be made to their home.
Review your homeowner’s insurance policy and make adjustments for the added value of the work being done.

What are you doing to improve your home?

The possibilities are endless. You can start by going small and inexpensive. How about just cleaning out the clutter? Research shows that 80% of what we keep we never use. Do you have items you don’t use stored in the closets, the garage, the attic, a storage building? Offsite paid storage is a huge industry in this country. We have way too much stuff we will never use. Pass it on!

How about your yard. Clean out flower beds and cut back shrubbery, or, go bigger – add trees and maybe a water feature. Your yard is a wonderful place to add value to your home.

Does the roof need to be replaced or do you just need to clean out the gutters and downspouts?

Is it time for an interior face-lift? Painting, new carpet or appliances?

If you’re considering green energy alternatives, there are government tax credits available for systems installed by December 31, 2010. Last year, we put in an energy efficient heating and air unit and received a $1500 government rebate. And, check for home improvement rebates available in your community from your local power company.

If your plan is small, get started. If your plan is large, get organized! May is National Home Improvement Month!

05 / 06 / 2010
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Amazing Use of Space!

Watch as this 344 square foot Hong Kong apartment transforms into 24 rooms! Think outside the box. What can you add to your space?

05 / 04 / 2010
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Saving Water, the Water Pebble

It’s April, “Earth Day Month”. For me, that creates even more awareness everyday that we need to be taking steps to preserve and protect our planet, our real estate.

My big passion is water. I’ve written a number of posts about it. Here, again, is a wonderful site devoted to the preservation and protection of water.

This article focuses on something new and so easy to use, the Water Pebble. This device simply sits near any water drain and times the water usage. It “teaches” you to reduce the time you have the water flowing. Waterpebble could help reduce the average shower to less than 6 minutes saving over 20 litres of hot water every time.

At this time, I’m not planning to buy a water pebble but, because of reading this, I am going to be more aware of the time I spend in the shower, rinsing dishes, washing my hands, any time I run water.

Isn’t it great to be aware? We hold so much power in our own decisions, our own actions. What will you do to make a difference to the Planet?

“When the Well’s dry, we know the Worth of Water.”
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790), Poor Richard´s Almanac

04 / 23 / 2010
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Winston Salem’s Hanesbrands recognized for green programs!

Congratulations to our very on Winston Salem Hanesbrands for being green.

Hanesbrands has been named the Energy Star 2010 Partner Agency of the Year by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in recognition of its energy conservation programs.

Beyond that, Hanesbrands announced new goals to increase it’s use of renewable energy and reduce its emissions.

I’m impressed that Hanesbrands has been tracking its carbon footprint since 2007. Goals for reductions in energy use, carbon emissions and water use by 2012 are to:

Government Sponsored Energy Breaks for Homeowners

Did you know that the government is paying to weatherize homes all across the nation? They’re also offering tax credits when you make your home more energy efficient.

Who qualifies for government funded repairs? Right now, individuals with an income of no more than $21,660 or a family of four earning up to $44,100 qualify for the weatherization-assistance program. States are allowed to give priority to people over 60, people with disabilities and families with children. It’s all part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which allows the government to help Americans make needed home repairs.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program has $5 billion that has to be spent during the next 1 to 3 years. The Department’s goal is to reduce fuel bills in 1 million homes a year while putting an estimated 87,000 people to work fixing up older homes. Reducing energy costs, creating jobs, reducing pollution and moving the country toward energy independence! Go Uncle Sam!

Don’t qualify for direct government assistance? The Recovery Act provides incentives to make repairs by offering tax credits. We just put in a new HVAC (heating and air system) and will get a $1500 tax credit this year! That’s a huge savings off the cost of the unit.

To find the weatherization-assistance program in your state, go to the Weatherization Assistance Program and click on your state.

To learn more about the energy efficiency tax credit, go to the IRS web site.

09 / 09 / 2009
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Green Walls by Nature!

Green roofs have beautifully proven themselves to be a resource against global warming. There is one problem with the green roof in all its beauty and function… very few people can see it!

Green walls, however, allow us to raise living plants in a whole new way while providing some physical advantages. For one thing, what a wonderful position as a gardener to work standing up!

For the most part, the needs of the plants will be the same as if they were planted in any horizontal plane. More good news, weed seeds have a harder time rooting on a vertical plane.

Check out these green walls! Once again, they challenge us to think outside our own box. I love that!

Starbucks makes a lot of efforts to be “Green”. They are considered one of the most socially and environmentally responsible companies in the world. Now, at many stores, they’re sprucing up their drive-throughs with green features.

Green walls can be used indoors.

Green walls are found most often in urban environments where the plants reduce overall building temperatures which helps reduce energy consumption. Living walls are especially suitable for crowded cities as they allow good use of available vertical surface areas.

How about this amazing building by Korean architect Minsuk Cho! It is the Ann Demeulemeester Shop in the Gangham district of Seoul.

I hope these photos have inspired you like they have me! Another wonderful way to grow gardens! I, for sure, am going to try one.

Imagine raising an edible crop wall. For starters, I think I’ll try growing wheat grass. My husband loves energy shots of wheat grass from Jamba Juice. Wheat grass shots are pretty expensive so now I can try to grow my own. I’ve heard they’re pretty easy; don’t know about on the wall!

Whatever you try, good luck and let me know how it turns out!

07 / 17 / 2009
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Green Roofing Systems

Green Roof by Convert

Have you heard about Green Roofs? Check out the wonderful site for Convert.

“Convert is dedicated to implementing green roofs as sustainable strategies for storm water BMPs, energy efficiency, and urban heat island mitigation.”

What a wonderful way to go green!

05 / 07 / 2009
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What defines “Building Green”?

Building Green

I own a beautiful lot in the mountains of North Carolina, the Appalachian Mountains. If you want to sit and appreciate one spectacular wonder of Earth, visit the Appalachian Mountains.

My goal for 2010 is to build a home there and I plan to Build Green. In beginning my research, I’ve found that there’s no end to the research! So, I’ve started by asking what exactly is “Green”? What makes a product Green? How do you evaluate product Greenness? Can you make a product Greener? And, how do I find Green products?

Green Building

I was reading an article today and it made me think differently (I love when that happens) about green building.

We hear often that building green is much more costly than traditional building, the main reason more people don’t do it. Have you ever stopped to really question why? Lloyd Alter wrote an article I found on TreeHugger discussing this very topic.

First, we build homes the traditional way, then we add on energy efficient technology which, of course, adds to the cost of the home. The problem is, we continue to build homes the way we always have then we modify them, alter them, add onto them, all in an attempt to make them efficient. So, we pay to build the house then pay again to in our efforts to make it efficient. As the house gets greener, the cost keeps going up.

We need to expand our thinking. Determine how do we build an efficient house? The traditional way doesn’t do it. We need to rethink and redesign architecture as we’ve known it. Rather than putting on a roof and adding solar panels, how do you redesign roof systems? Look at the tankless water heater. Water heater redesign. No more water!

Rather than building a house then rebuilding it to make it efficient, we have to redesign ground up! What does efficiency look like?