Green Building with Square One Design

Certify Green at the lowest cost!

2012-01-30T12:12:00.000-08:00

My clients often wonder how much more it costs to build their next home green. My builders are always trying to get the best green product at the lowest end cost. That's the way it has been and that's the beauty of green. Competition helps drive prices down! As a member of the Homebuilders Green council (Columbia SC) we are always working to make going green as inexpensive as possible. To that end we have re-developed our own local Green building and remodeling program. Our program is now based on the NAHB Green building Standard ICC 700-2008. With this system you can get as green a home as any of the other nationally administed programs, but a reduced program cost. That's how we roll in South Carolina, making green as affordable as possible! You can now get your home certified through this program for as low as $50 in administration fees! And if you've looked around at programs, that's incredibly cheap! Now you still have to build a green home and go through testing and verification to qualify, just like the other programs, but we feel like lowest cost is a good motivator. If you agree and are interested in this program contact Bin at www.columbiagreenbuilders.com to get your green project started! You can contact me at www.squareoneplans.com also!

Energy Saver Home cuts your power bills.

2011-08-29T12:42:00.000-07:00

For those of you that follow my posts, I love helping people save money on their power bills. The new homes have been pretty easy, we design build them energy efficient from the start. The older ones haven't gotten the same attention. Some one needed to figure out how to apply all that "green" knowledge to the existing housing stock. Lots of guys before me have tried. The government has tried. They have developed program after program, focusing on how to measure and regulate the results. Lots of my customers really don't want to be certified under a program. They just want the lower power bills for their existing home. They just want to be comfortable in their home while enjoying lower power bills. They just want the home fixed. Now through a joint venture through me and my buddy Craig, over at Cutter's Insulation, we've figured out how to do it efficiently and cheaply. We use the concepts outlined under my 10 tips to lower power bills, and do the installation for you in the Columbia, SC area. We call the company Energy Saver Home. If your bills are too high, let us implement a series of fixes for your home. We have all of the test equipment to identify and rectify your problems. And you won't have to go in the attic or under the house yourself! Check out the new website at www.ensavr.com and call me for an appointment. You'll be glad you did.www.ensavr.com

Womack home takes shape

2011-08-10T13:54:00.000-07:00

It's nice when I get to ride by one of my designs as it is beginning to take shape. Even more fun if it's a green home. This one is in Manchester Park section of Lake Carolina. Even though this is Tuttle construction's first "green" build, my rater Joseph Gilmore says they have taken to this like a duck to water, so to speak. Should be a real comfortable energy saving home. And maybe finished in a little over a month. The home just looks great. And from what I've seen on the jobsite so far, I don't think this builder will build any other way again.

Great green article

2011-07-02T06:13:00.000-07:00

Got interviewed for a great article last month for Columbia Business Monthly on the topic of Green building in our area. Best in depth look at the progress we are making to date. I think the majority of the public will soon be exposed to how green building is giving us the tools to build and renovate homes in amazing new ways. Read the article and see how some of the front runners in this field are building vastly superior houses. After getting a feel for how well these new homes perform, maybe you will want a better performing home for your family! See the article at http://sctrend.net/

Green spec. homes selling faster

2011-07-02T05:44:00.000-07:00

Well at least the last one I drew did. A great builder I know was looking to update his product line for a specific market in the Columbia area. He had a great lot in a great neighborhood, just needed a great home plan. The fact that he's one of my greenest builders didn't hurt either. He called to tell me that he was under contract before the windows were installed. He was excited. I was too! I went to take a few pics, and they were textbook green construction. Sealed crawl space, trusses and Tji floor joists, sealed shoe at exterior walls, great insulation job, tech shield sheathing on the roof,and zip wall sheathing for the walls. Energy star windows correctly flashed and sealed, and tight ductwork. Of course I'm super proud of the plan I drew him, but just as proud of the construction job he did. The new homeowner will easily have half the power bills of his neighbors! (more pics posted on my facebook page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Square-One-Design-Service/227662113916039

Green is changing the way we build.

2011-04-12T06:26:00.000-07:00

Green building is having a huge effect on the way we build homes in South Carolina. Smarter home buyers are realizing that homes with energy saving features built in can save them tremendous amounts of operating and maintenance costs later on. Builders are realizing that buyers are really beginning to value superior construction again. I guess it took a little time, but savvy buyers are learning that all homes are not created equally, and builders are learning that better built homes do sell better than their energy inefficient counterparts. I am seeing this trend more often in the upper end market where I'm doing most of my work. Buyers have always looked for quality and have been willing to spend what it takes to get there. It the past, all you could buy was better trim, counter tops, cabinets and finishes. Nobody had the knowledge or the tools to measure the energy efficiency of a homes construction. We just did what the code said to do, and figured that was good enough. Now things are different. Programs such as Energy Star, LEED, and NAHB Green have taught builders and designers how to assemble the parts better resulting in energy savings sometimes as great as 50% lower power bills. That's really great considering that most of the time we're using the same materials and paying the same installation costs that we were before, we're just doing a better job at quality control, and getting a vastly superior performing home for about the same cost as before. The better builders are recognizing that attention to detail doesn't necessarily drive up the cost, but yields a vastly superior product. The buyers are agreeing with their pocketbooks. Smart home buyers are opting for the better built and performing product. How do you get in on the action? When you are looking for a builder, look for a builder who has experience in "green". He has the extra knowledge and training to build a home that performs to a higher standard.

Home repair fix #1 Change your light bulbs

2011-02-28T11:25:00.000-08:00

The easiest way to save power in your home is to change the way you think about light bulbs. To be honest when the compact fluorescent light bulb came on the scene I was not a big fan. But that was only until I read what was on the box. It said 13 watts=60 watts. That's the same amount of light for 22% of the power used. That's a lot, folks! Not only do you use less power, you get less heat, and that makes your air conditioner run less. So why would you not check this out and start saving money. They make lots of types, regular swirly bulbs, can light replacement bulbs, lights for your vanities, and lamps, even dimmable bulbs (although they don't dim all the way down yet.) You can get also get CFL lights for your floodlights outside. They make different colored light options too, I like the soft white ones at the home depot, because they are closest to the color of my old bulbs. I replace almost every bulb in the house with a couple of exceptions. I left the light over the master bath vanities alone, we don't leave them on when we're not in there. But I did do the kid's bathroom and closets because they leave lights on all the time. So if you can't change you kids, change their light bulbs and everybody will be happy and your power bill will be lower too!

Home repair tip #2 Missing or unsealed insulation

2011-02-28T11:06:00.000-08:00

Of course older homes in the south are poorly insulated as a rule. If your home is an older one you might need insulation installed beneath your floor or some insulation added to your attic. Now, that said, you guys with insulation can still have some problems by today's standards. One of the coolest things I learned about insulation is the "sealed on six sides rule". When insulation goes in your walls there's usually only 3 1/2" of it. This insulation works a lot better if it's sealed on six sides. The top, bottom, sides, front, and rear. In a regular wall this happens normally. What you need to look for is places where this does not happen naturally. Places like "knee walls", bonus room walls in the attic, unfinished rooms, places like that. If you can go in your attic and see unfaced insulation on the walls in places, then you have this problem. The wind blowing around in your attic could cause this insulation to not properly do its job. To fix it you need to seal the backside of your insulation in these spots. You can do it with 1/2" foam board, 1/8" plywood, or even a roll of housewrap. Just seal it up so it's enclosed on all six sides. (I wouldn't use plastic sheeting for this, as moisture problems can arise in certain situations.) Once your wall insulation is sealed up tight it will begin to do its job properly and your power bills should go down!

Home repair fix #3 Window and Door leaks

2011-02-28T10:54:00.000-08:00

Lots of people think they need new windows. Sometimes they do, but lots of times they may not. Replacing your windows is a big budget item for sure. When looking for leaks you have to remember it's not just the window, it's also how well the window or door frame fits in the wall. When they built your home chances are that the rough openings for the windows was an inch or more larger than the actual window unit. In the new green homes this space is sealed with spray foam for a tight fit, but on the older ones this is a major source of air leaks. While I don't recommend taking off the window trim to seal it up, at least run a clear bead of silicone around the edges. The sides are usually caulked well, but the top and bottom are usually overlooked by the painter and lots of air can come in there. Also check the door trim, the door frames and how well the doors seal up inside the jambs when the door closes. Might have a little work to do here as well. If the operable parts of the windows have leaks it might be time for some new windows, but lots of times it's not the window itself but how well it's sealed in the hole.

Home repair fix # 4 Chimney flue

2011-02-16T07:14:00.000-08:00

When we hook the blower door up to homes for a test, lots of times the fireplace is the first problem area we find. Sometimes the damper has been left open. Sometimes it leaks. Some older homes don't have a damper at all. That's a problem. Find a way to seal up your fireplace when you're not using it and you can save a lot of money on your HVAC bill. I've seen a cool fireplace cap with a chain attached that seals it from the top. I've seen some inflatable bags that seal things up also. For those small coal burning fireplaces with a small flue you could even inflate a beach ball in there to close it up. Find the solution that works for your application and get started on it today. The less ways for air to get in and out of your home the lower your next power bill will be.

Home repair fix #5 Plumbing penetrations

2011-02-16T07:07:00.000-08:00

Another place air leaks in and out of your home is places where the plumbing pipes go through the walls or the floor. If you can pull back the little cover, spray some foam in there to seal up the penetration. That's good for toilets and sinks where pipes go through the wall. For your tub you might have to crawl up under the house. When they put your tub in they probably cut a big square hole for it. Air can get in and out. Take some foam and maybe a piece of styrofoam cut to size and seal that thing up. While you're down there look around for any other pipes or wires going up through the floor and seal that stuff too. Your home will be a lot tighter and use a lot less energy.

Home repair fix #6 Sealing your outlets

2011-02-15T13:39:00.000-08:00

What we've found about insulation is really cool. Insulation sealed in a box (six sides) works really well and insulation in a space where air blows through works really poorly. Now whatever the situation in your walls sealing up the holes makes them work lots better. You can't always get to the outside of the wall, it has siding or brick, or something in the way. But what you can do is seal up the holes on the inside. Outlets and light switches, and ceiling fixtures are places where air can and does come in and out when the pressure changes in your home. The fix is relatively easy, even for do it yourselfers. Got to the home depot or lowes and get some outlet gaskets. Take off the covers, put the gaskets in and you're good to go. Then take some clear silicone caulk and seal up around your leaky light fixtures. I've seen how much these things leak during a blower door test, and the good thing is that it's an easy fix.

Home repair fix #7 Sealing "can" lights

2011-02-15T13:26:00.000-08:00

Man when I figured this one out I stayed awake for four or five nights wondering how we could have been so stupid for so long....Recessed or "can" lights can be notorious energy wasters because only recently has there been available anything like a "sealed" can light fixture. The new "green" homes like mine have them but I bet you don't. And depending on how many you have in your home, it could be leaking air like swiss cheese! I've fixed these leakers two different ways. For the ones that you can get to in the attic, we use a styrofoam minnow bucket, about $3.00 at wal-mart. Cut a slit in it where the electrical wire comes out, then foam it into place, and seal up the slit you cut also. Works like a champ! For the other ones, like in a floor or a vaulted ceiling, I've taken them apart from the bottom and sealed up all the holes with that aluminum duct tape. After you get done with each method I'd recommend changing out the bulbs to a compact fluorescent version. They look the same, but don't put out any heat like the old bulbs do. And they use 25% of the energy of the old bulbs too. You can spend about $12 a bulb instead of the $6 for the regular ones and get dimmable if you need them. They don't dim all the way, but they do dim about half way. And you fixed one of the biggest potential leaks in the house!

Home repair fix number 8 Bonus access door

2011-02-15T07:35:00.000-08:00

Do you have a bonus room in your home (some guys call it a FROG finished room over garage). There are usually some attic access doors up there and they usually are big energy wasters. Here's what to look for. Check to see if they have gasket material around the edges to seal them up. See if they have insulation on the back. If they don't you can easily apply styro board to the back by gluing it on. Use spray foam or some construction adhesive that goes in your caulking gun. Last, check to see if the latches work right and hold the door tight when the wind blows.

Home repair fix #9 Attic Stair or Attic Fan

2011-02-15T07:26:00.000-08:00

One of the worst leak offenders in your home is your attic stair. Does it shut correctly? Probably not. Does it have a gasket? Probably not. Insulated? Probably not. Big energy waster. Fix it by building a syrofoam box over the top. Put a handle in it so you can seal it tight from the bottom. You can glue the pieces together with foam, or caulk. If you have a whole house attic fan build a box for that too. You can remove the box if you ever want to use the fan, but when you aren't, it isn't leaking huge amounts of air into your attic. And by not removing the fan altogether, you don't have to fix the hole in the ceiling either.

Home repair fix # 10 "Leaks in the ductwork"

2011-02-10T13:00:00.000-08:00

Your heating and AC system is the biggest power user in your home. Lot's of focus on replacing that "old" unit with a better, more efficient one. But did you know that a poorly installed HVAC system could be losing 20% of the air due to duct leakage? No wonder your unit can't keep up. Before you even think about replacing the unit have someone take a look at your ductwork for leaks. Places to look are where the unit is connected to the supply and return ducts, all of the joints, and where the ducts connect to the registers. Look for duct mastic, that's the thick grey goo that seals the joints. If your ducts don't have it you probably have a problem. Other places to look at are uninsulated trunk lines, joist pans,(that's where they make a duct out of your wall cavity, or floor system, instead of a four sided duct), and leaky air returns. Open where your filter grill goes, if you don't see mastic on the joints you could have a big leak. Fixing your HVAC ductwork might be the biggest step you can make toward fixing your power bill. Have your energy rater do a duct leakage test as soon as you can to find much your's may be leaking!

Top 10 ways to lower your power bill 50%

2011-02-10T12:45:00.000-08:00

Staring a new series today, talking about things I've learned while helping people lower their power bills. Ive got 10 different things you can do to your home to turn it into an energy miser. Each day or so I'm going to post one on this site untill we've covered all ten. Some are things you can do yourself, and some are things that you might want to get outside help with. Everybody's home might not need everything on this list, but I bet you need at least a few to get your home comfortable and your power bill where you'd like it. The best way to find out which ones you need are by an energy inspection and an energy audit.

First step: Energy Testing

2010-10-19T12:08:00.000-07:00

While we at Square One are really into green building, most folks I talk to live in an older home with outrageous power bills. When I talk to those folks, they don't have any concept of how to fix things. All they've heard is that their windows might need replacing, or their old HVAC needs replacing with a newer, more efficient unit. It would be a shame to spend that kind of money on a solution that may not work. Especially if the fix is in repair of a much less expensive area. How are folks going to find out what solution is going to fix their home? By doing actual physical testing on their residence. The same on site testing that we do on the new "green" homes being built today. With tools like blower door units and specialized computer programs, energy raters can identify problems in existing homes too. They can tell where the actual leaks in your home are, whether in the shell, or in existing duct work. That's awesome. But you need one more thing, and that's a team to do the actual fixing of the problems that you may have. A team trained in the latest air seal techniques and how to do them properly. That's why Energy Saver's was formed, to combine the science of testing with the actual implementation of the the correct solution for your home. Check them out today at http://www.ensavr.com/ and see if they can help you lower your power bill today!

Lower your power bill!

2010-09-29T11:48:00.000-07:00

I know you've heard lots of tips for saving energy by now, unplugging things, raising the thermostat, things like that. But none of it saves as much energy as those new green houses do. What if there was a way to make your home as energy efficient as the new green ones? Now there is. I'm affilliated with a new company forming in Columbia SC. that's going to be doing just that. Fixing older homes using the same concepts that we use to build the new ones. The website is called Energy Saver's . I won't personally be able to cover all of America fixing existing houses, but you will be able to follow our progress here. Read how the common sense fixes can restore your energy independence by lowering your power bill. Good luck with your energy saving project!

Sealing your ductwork

2010-07-15T06:26:00.000-07:00

I have found that the biggest savings on your electrical bills can come from the simplest things. Every time you turn on the media these days there are ads that tell you to upgrade to a more efficient HVAC system. There's a lot to be said about investing in a better unit. What's not mentioned so much is the ductwork for the unit. But when you want to save money that's the place you want to look first. I'm not sure about the rest of the country, but there's a lot of leaky A/C ducts around Columbia, SC. Everytime a friend of mine complains about the power bill, I suggest that we look. Some of them have the ductwork under the house. We open up the crawl space door and stick out heads under there. Cool under here isn't it? That's your air conditioning leaking out of the ducts. Usually I get an incredulous stare. What? That's not the real reason my A/C isn't working right is it? Can't be! For you guys that have your ductwork in the attic, crawl up there and have a feel around the joints while it's running. You might actually feel the air coming out of the cracks. Now think. If the air is leaking out up here, and the return air comes from inside the house, and there's not quite enough.... then the extra would get sucked in from .... outside. Viola! Now you realize that the best HVAC system that leaks maybe 15% of the air into the wrong place, is at least 15% less efficient than it's suppossed to be. Horrifying, but fixable. They make a mastic that the HVAC guy uses. Just start painting it around the leaks in the pipes. Don't forget the inside of the return where your filter goes, and the gaps around where the ducts enter the conditioned part of the house, either in the ceiling or in the flooring. If you really want to get serious about it, an energy rater can test the integrity of the ductwork with a ductblaster test. A trained HVAC guy can seal it up, and then they test again to see how much better it is. Best money you may ever spend.

Taking the first step to green.

2009-11-03T13:15:00.000-08:00

Lots of people have been asking me about green lately. Almost everyone I design a home for says to me "if it saves me money on my power bills I'm interested." Then they start reading all of the stuff and become at least a little overwhelmed. So many choices. So many new ideas. Which ones work the best and which choices are more cost effective. You're gonna need some help and advice so you can spend your money the best way. A couple of great sources are your designer (like me), your builder of choice, and your energy rater. That's the guy who does all of the energy calculations for your project, and inspects the work for compliance along the way. I can tell you the path I took to go green, and your builder can tell you how they take the path to green, but the rater can compare different strategies to tell you the most cost effective path to green and that can be a great help. He can calculate before hand how much energy you'll save with a certain amount of fiberglass insulation vs a certain amount of spray foam insulation. When you compare that kind of information along side the builders price quotes for going either way the green path for your project starts to emerge on its own. The same concept can be applied for all of the green choices along the path. Window selection, appliances, HVAC equipment, all of that stuff. Remember to involve your energy rater early on and use his expertise and the expertise of your home designer to help you make decisions that will save you money. That's part of what you're paying him for.

Sealed fireplace units.

2009-07-13T11:16:00.000-07:00

Those old woodburning fireplaces we grew up with sure were pretty. They made nice flames and a good crackle, but most of the heat went up the chimney. They also used oxygen from inside the house, which wasn't really a big deal, since there were lots of places for it to seep back in. Things are different nowadays, with a tight home you don't want anything taking the oxygen from your inside air. That's why they make sealed combustion units now. I got a great one by Majestic. It really looks great with a large opening and nice logs that run on propane. It's a sealed unit too, with a coating on the glass that makes it virtually invisible. Lots of people have tried to reach right through it! The outside air intake makes for sealed combustion and nice big flames. My wife just loves it.

Introducing fresh air

2009-07-13T11:05:00.000-07:00

Another key component to green building is the periodic introduction of fresh air into the living space. There are several ways to do this, but I chose the Honeywell fresh air circulation unit for my new green home near Lexington,SC. It has several dials that your rater sets up for you based on your home's tightness, and other characteristics. The knobs adjust for cfms required, the number of bedrooms, and total home square footage. We ran a duct from the outside through the unit and into a shared supply for my two air units. The wiring hooks up to the HVAC air handler unit upstairs where the bedrooms are. Now the correct amout of fresh air is metered into the residence. Other things that are important are those energy star bath fans we talked about earlier, and a good range hood that vents to the outside.

Filtering the Air

2009-07-13T10:38:00.000-07:00

Clean air needs filtration to stay that way. If you check out what you're filtering the air with now, it's probably those blue return air filters that they call "rock catchers" in the trade. A lot of guys switch to those pleated filters from 3M, and they're better, except if your HVAC unit wasn't designed for that sort of flow restriction. Green experts recommend that you opt for at least a MERV 9 filter. They really filter down to the really small stuff and they have a lot more surface area so they don't restrict the flow of air through the unit. Another way to go is the way I went, and that's electronic cleaning. The particles in the air are charged, then collect on a metal screen inside the unit. There's also a pre screen that you can take out and wash off and re-use. I cleaned mine the other day and it was easy. The unit I used is the American Standard Accuclean system. Their website says that it cleans 99.98% paticulates and over 99% of the common flu virus. We have 3 cats and a dog now and it seems to be doing a great job for us. They even make HEPA units that install into your sytem also, so make sure you address proper air flitration, when you think about HVAC.

Indoor Environmental Quality Stategies

2009-07-13T10:23:00.000-07:00

For the next couple of posts we're going to talk about indooor environmental quality. When we built green near Columbia, SC we wanted clean safe, quality air inside. There are several ways to ensure this. One of the easiest is to control the moisture of the building components. When materials are delivered to the site, take steps to ensure they do not become exposed to the elements by covering them. Another great idea is to seal up your ductwork vents during construction. They make some duct caps for that, but I used some fortiflash tape to cover the floor ones. For the attic vents, my rater put some plastic over them when we tested, and I just left it there until time to install the register covers.

Water saving outside the home.

2009-07-01T07:53:00.000-07:00

The exterior of a home can use as much water as the inside. Strategies include planting native vegetation that doesn't need supplementary water. If you're irrigating, you need to set up your turf zones separately from your planted areas, and use drip irrigation whenever you can to cut down on evaporation. Also, containing the rainwater from the roof for reuse is a cool idea. I'm not convinced rain barrels are the ticket, although I'm experimenting with one at my Gilbert,SC residence. I saw a program on TV where they said one inch of rain from a typical roof area can total 700 gallons. That's a lot of barrels. Of course they make underground tanks, and I saw a real cool bladder that goes under your deck and can easily store that much. I think for my situation it makes more sense just to get water from my pond and work with that. If I see some new products in this area I'll keep you posted...

Other inside water saving strategies

2009-07-01T07:40:00.000-07:00

We talked about washers and water saving toilets, but there are some other things that save water in the home. Low flow fixtures for the sinks and showers, of course, but there are some other cool things you might want to think about. Green programs like for you to keep the water run distance under 30' between the water heater and the fixture that they serve so you don't waste water waiting for the heat to get to you. That could mean multiple water heaters or maybe a point of use model at a particular location. Another option is a recirculation valve. What these things do is pump the water from the hot side back into the cold side until the hot water reaches the fixture so none is wasted. You put the unit at the farthest fixture away from the heater. I heard that when they first started using them they had a little motion detector so that everytime you went into the bathroom it would come on automatically. Since you don't always use hot water on the way to the closet or to brush your teeth, a better option would be to just have an electrical button in a cabinet somewhere to manually operate it when you need it.

Energy star washers save water!

2009-06-30T12:41:00.000-07:00

I thought those new washer dryer combo's looked pretty cool. They are pretty expensive though, lets look at some of the advantages. First they use lots less water. Lots. And with the super fast spin speed lots more of the water is removed already when they come out of the washer so there's less for the dryer to do. And you can get a lot more in it so there's less loads. As for the other advantages you'd have to ask my wife, because truthfully, she won't let me near it. Looks like I may have gotten the better end of this deal. We went with the Maytag EPIC Z. There were two series when we bought, the 400 and 600 series. We bought the 600 series. Also got those little boxes they sit on that raises them up higher. That's cool too. It's got more buttons and settings and sensors than the space shuttle. Can't really tell you about that stuff, but what I can tell you is make sure you take out these four special packing bolts in the rear or it will jump all over the room when the spin cycle starts up. An 11pm call to customer service got that worked out. Oops... Oh, one more thing, make sure you put the washer on the left and the dryer on the right, so the doors open correctly and not back to back. Happy washing from Gilbert, SC!

Water saving toilets do just that.

2009-06-30T12:19:00.000-07:00

Water is a precious resource. Actually I should say clean water is a precious resource. The treated filtered kind. The kind you have to pay the utility company for. The same utility company that charges you again to get rid of the waste water. So using less water puts less stress on the water system, the aqufers and all of that, but using less water cuts down on your water bill. There are lots of ways to save, If you buy the right products you can save water and not even know it. Used to be that toilets had to have as much as six gallons of water to flush right. The unit I bought does the same job perfectly with only 1.6 gallons. I bought the TOTO brand because that's what I had in my old house and I was very pleased. When I was getting started I thought I wanted the dual flush one with two buttons, one for #1 and the other for#2. My supplier said they were having trouble getting them (Sept 2008), and said I'd be just as happy or maybe more with the ones that I got. Well all I can say is that I'm extremely happy, they flush just like my old ones except they only use 1.6 gallons. All in all I'd have to say that saving water by using a different toilet is pretty painless. Make sure you look for a water saving model when you are shopping

Energy Star dishwasher

2009-06-23T05:50:00.000-07:00

Before I built my custom home near Columbia SC,

I hated my old dishwasher. Didn't matter that it wasn't my job to load it or unload it or anything like that. Thing was just too noisy. Couldn't even watch tv in the next room while it was on. Whenever I did dish washing I always used the sink so I didn't have to even turn it on. My new one is whole new deal though, energy star rated and super quiet. Our plan has a really open kitchen/great room area so a quiet dishwasher is really important, and this one is! You almost have to look at the indicator lights to tell it's even running. And with the energy star rating it uses less power and water than the one in my old house. Make sure you set aside some of your budget for one of these babies when you do your kitchen.

Energy Star appliances

2009-06-23T05:37:00.000-07:00

I was reading the other day that some people were learning to live without a refrigerator. I can't quite figure out how you can save the planet turning off a device that only uses $70 worth of electricity in a year! That's all one of the new Energy Star refrigerators use each year! Much better than the old kind. All of the energy star appliances perform this way so make sure you look for them when shopping. I don't think they have energy star ovens yet, but every thing else you can find. One of the big mistakes people make though, when they get that new refrigerator, is putting the old one in the garage to keep beer in. That kinda defeats the purpose. Don't mean to say cold beer isn't a good thing, just look for another energy star fridge for the garage too! And then just to make sure you're doing your part to save the planet, maybe turn off cable news for a year, that ought to do it...

Energy Star bath fans

2009-06-18T12:02:00.000-07:00

An easy way to pick up some points on your green project is to use one of the new Energy Star bath fans in your project. Since energy efficient homes are tighter bath fans become more important for removing humidity. These new ones are lots quieter too. Lots of builders install them with little timers so they run the correct amount of time before turning off. Some of the special ones are integrated with the fresh air recirculation aspect of the HVAC system. If you're building a new home, or remodeling your bath, don't put a $10 fan in it, get a nice energy star one

Energy efficient lighting

2009-06-18T11:35:00.001-07:00

One of the easiest things you can do to save some bucks and go green is to replace your light bulbs with green ones. When I built my new home in Gilbert SC, I was skeptical of CFL lights before I got used to them. Now I'm a fan. Mostly because of what it says on a typical package-"17 watts=65 watts". What this means is that you're getting 65 watts of light for 17 watts. Think about that. That's getting the same light for right at 25% of the money spent. That's great! But the next part is even better. Typical light bulbs put out about 10% of it's energy as light and the rest is heat. So if you're trying to keep your home cool in the summer the lights are working against you. So the 75% power savings is actually more! They have several types. The "energy star" lighting has prongs on the bulbs instead of screw ins, so you can't change back and forth. I've seen some really cool LED lights for cans but haven't bought any yet because of the cost. I went with the screw in CFLs. They make the little spiral jobs for regular stuff, lamps and the like. Then they make one that looks like a floodlight bulb for your can lights. Then I found some that are dimmable, because we like to dim all the can lights. Those are a little more pricey. And they don't dim down all of the way either. But, keep thinking about the energy savings and you'll get over it. In the beginning I was upset that they don't instantly get to their full brightness when you turn them on, but when you get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom it turns out to be a big plus. I got most of mine at the home depot, and they have a little display that shows the different colors of light that the different bulbs put out. The soft white ones are the ones closest to what you are used to. I was at Lowe's, and they had some with the candelabra attachment for ceiling fan lights, so I've got a few more to buy and try out. Anyway, start your conversion to CFL's and get started on lowering your power bill. And when your kid leaves the light on in his closet you don't have to scream and yell anymore 'cause it's only 15 watts! What a blood pressure saver!

Energy efficient equipment

2009-06-17T13:55:00.000-07:00

Today I'd like to talk about some of the cool equipment that you can get for your new green home or remodel. This pic shows my Rinnai water heater next to my 16 SEER variable speed heat pumps. In the Southeast it's all about the AC baby. The great thing about these Rinnai units is that they only heat the water when you are using it so not only are they economical, you never run out. I got the R94 model. They can run on natural gas or propane. I've got propane. My distributor wanted to be safe and get me two of the smaller units since I have three baths and the master shower has all of those heads like a car wash, but the propane rep and I decided to chance it on the one big unit since they're not giving them away. Works great. Comes with a little indoor keypad so you can adjust the water temp up or down to where you like. I just set mine on 125 degrees and left it. My heat pumps are 16 SEER by American Standard. They have two stage drives so most all of the time they run at 70 per cent I think. That's when they run at all. Over the winter they didn't come on much, in the spring I hardly heard them at all. Now that it's June and 95 outside every day I'm starting to notice them. They still use a lot less juice than at my old house. As good as they are, I really think that most of the efficiency is in the fact that all of my duct work is sealed and located inside the building envelope. I've been going on remodel jobs from Forest Acres all the way to Lake Murray, where people are buying new units and not even checking the ducts for leaks. Nobody even mentioned it to them....Of course not! Fix the duct work and they might not even need the new unit!

Correctly flashing windows

2009-06-11T06:59:00.000-07:00

In an earlier post we talked about the drainage plane and why it's important. Windows are an obvious penetration to the drainage plane and you want to flash properly to keep the moisture on the outside of the structure instead of inside. Green builders in Columbia SC are being re-educated about flashing during their green training. Here's how it works. There are two kinds of rubber tape flashing that they use. One is ultra flexible and goes in before the window unit. It bends around the bottom corners of the opening. Watch your installer the first time so he stretches it instead of cutting it with a knife. Then you install the window over it and use the other regular flat tape to seal the sides and top. By using the correct installation order, the window and the tape funnel the water down and out like shingles on a roof. Do it wrong and you help to funnel water inside and behind your windows. Now your windows protect your drainage plane, and look how well the openings have been sealed against air infiltration!

The drainage plane is critical to Green building

2009-06-11T06:40:00.000-07:00

A critical aspect of building a home, not just a green one, is keeping the water outside of the home, not inside. Some of the older flashing details like drip edges and caps are making a comeback in architectural design for good reason, they keep water on the outside of the walls where it belongs. With tight envelope building the drainage plane becomes more critical than ever. Green builders seem to understand proper installation and placement of materials inside a wall or other system better than the uneducated masses. Think of this example for a second. If you are in the hot and humid southeast, and your building is cool inside, and it's hot and humid outside, where the two temperatures actually meet, there's going to be condensation similar to a glass of cold iced tea on a warm summers day. Where this meeting and condensation takes place in your structure can make or break you. This place is called the drainage plane, and you want it on the outside of the wall instead of the inside. This mistake has been made in many variations over the past, for instance an earlier energy program directed builders to apply a film of poly to the exterior walls before the sheetrock was applied. This moved the drainage plane for condensation inside the wall rather than on the exterior. We've got it better now with the introduction of housewraps, greenboard with tape, and thermoply sheathing. The moisture collects away from the sheathing, instead of on it. And as many builders have discovered, OSB without the addition of housewrap makes a rather crappy drainage plane. Ask your buider if he understands the concept of the drainage plane and if he's building green he will give you the correct answers.

Choosing your windows

2009-06-11T06:25:00.000-07:00

Windows play a big part in any design project. You want to let views and light in but keep heat gain and loss under control. The newer low-e products use a very thin film of metal on one of the glass surfaces to keep the long wave radiation from passing through. From what I understand, windows designed for cooler climates use the film to keep the heat inside the structure, and windows designed for the south use the film to keep the heat out. Make sure that you get the windows specified for your area of the country. In my project, near Columbia, South Carolina, I used the Anderson 200 series, and here is one of the stickers from the window. There are three numbers on the sticker. The top left one is the U factor and for the southeast it should be a number lower than .40. Mine are.30. Next, the top right number is the SGHF or solar heat gain coefficient, and it should be .40 or less. Here we have a .34. Last number on the bottom is for the Visible Transmittance and it should be as high as you can get. Look for something over .50. All windows with the energy star label should get you the numbers that you are looking for. And as for numbers for your region of the country there is a great website,

http://www.efficientwindows.org/energystar.cfm that has maps and correct values for different regions of the country.

Sealing the envelope: Bottom sills

2009-06-10T11:22:00.000-07:00

When you're building, it's those green design details, that really make the whole project work.

A common place for air infiltration in any home is the spot where the stud wall meets the plywood on the floor, or the slab if that's your construction method. I sealed mine with fortiflash tape around the outside. Another way to go is to run a bead of caulking around the inside edge where the two meet. (Actually I did both, as well as caulking inside all of my electrical boxes where they meet the sheetrock.) I would suggest getting the little gaskets that go behind the electrical outlets instead of caulk. Don't forget the ceiling fixtures. Another area of concern is can lights (recessed lights). Look for the ones that are sealed units. The older style ones were actually ventilated to the attic so they wouldn't overheat! So, every time you turned on the HVAC, it was leaking out holes in the attic! If you have a home with these units in them my rater recommends building a little box around the can lights with styrofoam sheets to seal them up. Another place to work on is the attic stair. These units leak a lot of energy. They make some new products to help you out though, one is a little zippered enclosure ofer the top, and another is a styrofoam box that fits in place over the stair unit.

Moving the insulation envelope

2009-06-09T08:08:00.000-07:00

In the last post we saw how I was able to get my HVAC and ductwork inside my insulation box. Another option would be to move the insulatiuon box around the air handler and ductwork. This is usually accomplished by using spray foam insualtion. It's more expensive than batts or blown, but it's pretty easy for your contractor because it completely seals the cavities and cuts out the air leaks. And you can use it under the roof sheathing instead of at the attic floor. This moves the insulation envelope upward to enclose the HVAC air handler and ductwork. Now your unit operates in a cool enviornment instead of one that's 150 degrees in the summer, like we have in our hot Columbia, South Carolina climate. Think of the savings! In the crawl space we're starting to use something called the conditioned crawl space. They seal up over the earth with a real thick poly, and insulate the outside foundation wall instead of the floor system. That usually works out to less area insulated, and it's a lot easier to get it sealed up tight. They usually drop a small supply duct into the space to keep it under positive pressure and you're good to go. Using combinations of these and other stategies helps cut your heating and cooling costs to levels way under the levels you may be used to now.

Move HVAC inside the envelope

2009-06-09T07:53:00.000-07:00

Think about where HVAC units are usually located. Lots of times the air handler is in the attic or under the house. If it's in the attic you may be losing lots of energy, partly due to leaky ductwork, but partly due to the fact that you're pumping cool air around in a space that's over 150 degrees in the summer. In my new home near Columbia, I changed the location of the units and all of the ductwork so that it would be inside the box rather than outside. While my solution is not the standard one it worked out perfectly for my design. Since the whole underside of my house was the garage, The fire rated sheetrock sealed the lower side of my envelope for me. In the attic I used 2x10's and batt insulation for the floored area of my attic. I realized that I could use 2x10's in the rest, the same batt insulation, and cover the other areas with 1/2" OSB. I taped up the joints with fortiflash tape, although HVAC mastic would work even better. I could get my supply ducts inside the 2x10's okay, and I dropped the hall upstairs 1 foot to get my returns to work. This solution allowed me to use standard fiberglass insulation which is a lot cheaper than the sprayfoam kind. Like I said, this may not be the solution for your project, especially for remodeling, but I'll cover another option in the next post.

Lumber layouts help you go green

2009-06-08T13:24:00.000-07:00

When I design homes for my Columbia area clients,

I provide lumber layouts for all of my plans and have been doing so for years. They do a couple of things for the buyer. First, the contractor can see the sizes of material I'm using and make an accurate count of material. This helps the contractor bid the job closer and usually a little cheaper. Lots of contractors don't bother to do an accurate takeoff themselves, they just let the lumberyard rep do it. If your fellow goes that way, the layout drawing is used by the rep to get the right number, size and length of materials, and later the same drawing is used by the framer to see where all of those pieces go. If less material goes to the job, less material is wasted, or made into scaffolds, or lays around in the weather to go bad. Another thing these drawings do for me, is to help me calculate how the loads of the building are transferred downward through the building into the foundation. If you have a slab or basement, and you know ahead of time which walls carry the loading, you know where to thicken the slab before it's too late! Even with trusses or I joists or other components, care taken in the design stage means less waste on the job site.

Designing homes on a two foot grid

2009-06-08T13:05:00.000-07:00

There is an awful lot that your designer can do to help your next project get built green. One of the things to think about from the start is designing on a grid. Commercial guys can use any size grid, five feet, ten feet, or whatever, because concrete and steel works great in any dimension. For homes built out of lumber a two foor grid works best. Why? Well, that's the lengths that they sell the lumber in. So you are going to get better results using those dimensions. The inside walls aren't so critical as the outside ones. It takes the same amount of lumber to make a house 29' deep as it does 30' deep, you just throw more of it on the ground. Using a 2' grid for general building layout will help a lot in getting the most for your building dollar. Cut outs and bays are okay if you don't overuse them, and rectangular boxes are more efficient than "L" shapes and "H" shapes. Don't compromize your design, just think about ways to make your design greener!

Sealing the box.

2009-06-02T15:17:00.000-07:00

Sealing the box is one of the most important things you can do if you're going green. In the old days builders said "a building has got to breathe." Now we say "seal it tight, then ventilate right!" Sealing your envelope up properly makes your home like an Igloo cooler. You don't lose heated or cooled air to the outside environment. Your power bill is less. But, that said, now you're sealed up in there with everything else inside. That's where green building differs from just "energy saving" building. In a green home we bring in metered amounts of fresh air for the occupants through the HVAC system. We also look at factors that can affect the indoor air quality. Carpet and floor covering outgassing. Low VOC (volatile organic compound) paints, and low formaldehyde plywoods in the cabinets. Even the standard cleaning stuff that you used to use may need to be thought about in a new light. Anyway here are some of the areas that need to be sealed up. The place where the wall meets the floor at the exterior perimeter. Places where plumbing and electrical penetrate the envelope. Mechanical too. Those older can lights are ventilated to the attic-very bad. And new solutions for that old timey attic stair! If you're building in the Columbia,SC area contact me for any green info you may need!

Sealing cavity areas.

2009-06-02T13:55:00.000-07:00

Another big place air leaks through your insulation is behind your factory firebox and any tub units on the outside wall. If you catch it while you're building, you can nip these problems in the bud. Before you install the firebox or the tub, insulate the wall. Then seal the insulation up with a layer of 1/8" thermoply. Then install the unit. I'm sure someone's going to say "but the insulator comes after these things are installed." That is something you just have to work out with your subs. I compensated by having a roll on hand during framing for my framers to stuff in my house corners at framing. I did the fireplace and tub unit myself to keep things on track. If you're using a builder who has built green before, they will have already worked these little things out ahead of time. Remember that after the drywall goes up it will be too late to address these areas at all!

Sealing your insulation box.

2009-06-02T13:20:00.000-07:00

When I began building my home near Lexington, SC, I became a certified green professional through NAHB. One of the statements that stuck with me when I took one of my green training courses was one that went "insulation does a better job when it's sealed on six sides." It turned out to be incredibly true, and one of the first thing to look for when you are inspecting your insulation package. What the rule says is this: your insulation needs to be sealed up in a box on all sides. In the wall the box would be made up of the studs on each side, the top plate and the bottom plate, the drywall on the inside, and the sheathing on the outside. Six sides. Usually that happens naturally inside a wall cavity, so you need to look other places to look for it also. Places like knee walls in the bonus room, or wall height changes inside your structure's attic. If you see unfaced insulation that's pink or yellow or whatever color it may be, you realize that as the air moves across it it also can move through it. And if air moves through it it can't do its job. Those of you that are more experienced with construction will begin to think of other places that this may be happening. Floors of bonus rooms. Walls where the upstairs is next to the attic. One solution is to switch to foam insulation that seals the holes in the cavities where it is installed. I like foam insulation, but it costs more than fiberglass batts. You can make the batts work just as well by sealing up that last side with foamboard, or thermoply, or another material. I did my whole house this way by sealing the floors up with drywall over the garage (my garage was under the house,) and putting plywood down over the batts in my attic. That won't work for every design, but the key is to use the solution that works for your situation. In another post we'll explore sealing behind your factory fireplaces and tub units on an outside wall.

Going green with a wood chipper.

2009-06-01T13:33:00.000-07:00

One of the first things I bought was my tractor. Every man needs a tractor. Especially if he's got 3 acres so thick he can't walk on it. It really helped me clearing my building pad when I was building on my lot near Lake Murray. That and my chain saw. The other best thing I got was a used wood chipper. I cut down all of the small trees and limbs from my pad area and drive area and piled them in a big pile. It was about 8' high and 30' long. Then I fed it all through the chipper. The one I got takes limbs up to 6" diameter. Stuff that big or bigger I cut into firewood for the neighbors. Didn't have to burn it or haul it away. And you'll find great uses for all that mulch. During construction you spread it around to keep the mud at bay. And more importantly, it's great for erosion control and keeping runoff out of the streams and storm drains. They make a sleeve that you can pack with the chips for the storm drains in subdivisions. Also if you have some scrap framing lumber left over which you will, trust me, it can go in the chipper too. Later on you can use the mulch for landscaping. I do want to get a smaller chipper like the troy built one to further reduce the size of the chips so they look better in my planting beds. All in all I saved many trips to the dump by having this thing onsite. Sure worked for me. And if you're a developer think about starting a community storage area for wood chips. Your builders can contribute to the pile and the residents can get free wood chips.

Using recycled materials when you can.

2009-06-01T12:54:00.000-07:00

Some of the points awarded in green building programs pertain to using recycled products in your home building or remodeling project. In this post I'm going to show how I applied these concepts in the exterior areas of my project. The first product that I was able to use was crushed concrete in my drive areas. I was real excited about it because, not only did I get some early points, I saved some money, since crushed concrete is cheaper than regular crushed stone. The fellow that brings my sand and fill said that it would pack in and be more stable also and that turned out to be true. Fixed my access drive up real well and it held up to those big trucks coming in and out.

Another way I saved some money is by recycling a keystone wall. My brother saved it for me when they took it out during a commercial remodel in Charlotte. It went to my house instead of to the dump. I re-installed it and pressure washed it to get the red mud off. It was a pretty tough experience, and I drove a little too far to haul it home economically, but in concept it all worked out. Another thing I scored was some recycled rebar for my foundation. My buddy in construction was demolishing a bridge, and had some real heavy stuff, except it wasn't real long lengths. We wire tied it all together and it worked out great. Even had enough to go vertically in the pier walls. Saved some more bucks and every little bit helps. Your situation will warrant different solutions than mine for sure, but the key is to get creative and do things differently than you used to. The willingness to innovate sure makes green building easier.

Proper placement of your green home

2009-05-29T07:15:00.000-07:00

Sun angles and climate conditions are a big part of green building. One of the first things your home designer looks at for you is your lot in regards to home placement. Where are the major views, where does the sun come up and go down. Usually the best placement for a home is for the longer sides to face North or South. That way most of the glazing is not facing East or West. When looking at my situation, since my home plan was more square than rectangular, the most normal situation would be to face the front of the home toward the road. As you look at my site plan though, facing my home to the street would not take advantage of the best views, or the sites topography. And I'd have eleven windows facing West, and most of the rest facing East. By turning my home 90 degrees to the right, I can accomplish multiple objectives. My driveway crosses the stream at the head end for minimal impact on the site. I get an entry statement when you approach the house. I'm able to take advantage of the deep view of my lot and see my pond from the rear porch. I'm able to drive under my home for parking without having to go completely around it. In new home construction or in remodeling, a good site analysis is usually the difference between good design and not so good design.

How does the NAHB program award points?

2009-05-28T08:57:00.000-07:00

Before we begin, let me state that I built my home using the NAHB Green Guidelines, before the Green Standards were published. So I'm going to get into that point system now and I'll update you with the newer system later in another post. Basically, (that's a word I learned in Architecture school), the program is divided into seven sections. Lot Design/Prep/Development,Resource Efficiency,Energy Efficiency,Water Efficiency,Indoor Envionmental Quality, Operation Maintenance and Homeowner Education,and Global Impact. You need a minimum number of points in each part, and then you must add another hundred points from any sections you choose. There are three attainment levels, Bronze, Silver, Gold. The book tells you what you have to do to get the points in each section, and there are lots of choices, so you can decide for yourself how you're going to get there. You can get points for solar, or geothermal heatpumps or rainwater containment systems, or none of the above. I used none of that stuff in my home, and you'll find when you get into this that by making your home super efficient, you really can get by without some of the expensive stuff. After I got my bills from $400 a month and over down to $120 a month, solar is a goal, but I think I can wait untill the price comes down a bit more. Anyway here's a chart from the book that shows how the points work...

What exactly does that rater do?

2009-05-28T08:31:00.000-07:00

One of the keys to following a green building program is the third party testing and verification. These guys are called "raters" and in some programs "verifyers". I was lucky enough to get one locally that was HERS and NAHB certified. His name was Joe Gilmore. Great guy who helped me out a lot. Lots of people ask me how this sort of process works, and what goes on. I'll try to fill you in by telling what happened on my job. First, Joe took my plans and specs and used that information to build an "energy model" of my residence. The model takes into account all of the exterior envelope of the structure in relation to its surroundings. So you have the physical shape of the home, the normal operating temps inside, the average temps outside, the relative position and arc of the sun, and prevailing winds etc. Also included are the r-ratings of the surfaces, the walls, the roof, the flooring, and how much heat they transfer over time. Also you put in the locations and sizes of the windows, and the heat loss characteristics that are on the label from the manufacturer. Next then program accept values for overhangs and porches and their locations. Then we put in the internal loads, people, pets, tvs, appliances, etc. The output from the program can be used to tell you the loads on the building and how well it will perform. If you change the r-factor of components by changing the amount of insulation or the number of windows, the load on the structure changes also. It's a great design tool, because now you can get the feel for what upgrades get the best bang for the buck. Just by rotating my home 90 degrees and moving the western exposure from eleven windows to two had a huge impact on the amount of energy I'd save. Later during construction, the rater returns to inspect the air sealing of the shell and installation of the insulation. At this time we tested all of the ductwork that would be covered up for leaks. At the end of construction we test again for tightness of the envelope, final test of the HVAC systems, and if your rater is your verifyer also, he can affirm that you used all of the products required to get your points. Raters are the key to telling you how well your choices will perform, and helping you spend your green dollars in the right places. And they have the equipment to see things that will not be seen otherwise.

Finding your path to green

2009-05-26T11:46:00.000-07:00

As you begin to learn about the process of building or renovating green, you will quickly discover that you can't get there by youself. You are going to need some guidance and some expertise. A way to sort out the the costs and benefits of each green strategy and product. And a way to measure how green your final product may or may not be. This means that you'll probably be looking for a green building program to help you along. The choices can be daunting. I hear that there are over 75 in use in the country today. Some of the ones available in my area of the Southeast are LEEDS for homes, offerings from NAHB green, Earthcraft, Enviornments for Living, Energy Star, and others. Depending on your location and desires, one of these programs or others may be right for you. Most of the national programs have modifications to conform with the climate in your area. (A home in the northwest is subject to a different enviornment than one constructed in the southeast.) I chose the NAHB program from the National Association of Homebuilders, since I'm a member, that's what our local council was leaning toward, I could easily be trained, and could easily understand this one. It builds a great green home for sure, but I don't want to detract from the others, either. I used the Green Building Guidelines, that is now being replaced by the Green Building Standards, which has recently been ANSI certified. You need a third party rated program though, that means the testing and scoring is done by an independent third party. Locally our program uses HERS raters that regulate the Energy Star program and others. I'll get into rater duties and stuff like that later, but it's great to have a guy on the team that can accurately predict the consequences of your energy and green choices befor you make them. I suggest that you look into what programs are available in your area and see if one will do the job for you.

How green do you want to be?

2009-05-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

This entry deals not with how green is green, but how green do you want to be? Green Building and living means different things to different people. Some of the guys I work with regularly call it the "shades of green" discussion. For some guys cutting your power bills by two thirds is enough. Others are interested in the sustainable green discussion, knowing that their home will last for 100 years instead of 20. Then there's less stuff to the landfill green, I take great pride that my new home sent almost nothing to the landfill in an industry that sends more to the landfill than almost any other. There are discussions on less water wasted green. This can be accomplished by a variety of means, more efficient devices, or by using water more than once, or saving water in the exterior areas of the residence. Lots of people realize that a green home can be a healthier home for the occupants because of measures taken by the builder to keep harmful chemicals removed from materials used to build the home. And then there are those that take certain pride that through the way they construct and live in their homes that they are playing a role in saving the planet.

Deciding green is for me.

2009-05-22T11:59:00.000-07:00

Most, (well, some),of the people who have built a green home remember a defining moment when they discovered that this green building thing is real and really delivers as advertised. I was planning a new home for my family back in 2007. We wanted to move a little farther out and get a little more space for ourselves. Found a nice little piece of land with a pond. Being a home designer, I now had to figure out what we wanted in the way of design. About this time, I was serving on the board of the local HBA (homebuilders association) and this builder at the board meeting was going on about this new thing called "green building". Never heard of it. Was it some Al Gore carbon credit scheme? We all thought the guy might be crazy, or struck by lightning, but what got to me was his raw enthusiasm, he certainly had drunk the Kool-Ade. Said there was a better way to build houses. Well I was getting ready to build a house...and my electric bills were pretty embarrassing, might want to at least take a look at this... Well, I went to an EEBA seminar that the HBA set up. Oh, my, that was a shock. There really is a better way to design and build homes! Smarter, safer, more comfortable and more energy efficient. A way for me to afford the power bill without sneaking around behind the wife and changing the thermostat, no more yelling at the kids "turn off that light and close the door were you raised in a barn?!!" It wasn't us... it was the house! Didn't sleep for four or five nights...remembered all those duct sizing classes in architecture school they told me I'd never need again. Those calculations for thermal transfer and solar gain...man this stuff just might work... Well needless to say I drank the Kool-Ade and became a believer. Joined the green building council, became the chairman, learned how to design it, build it, teach it, preach it. Got a killer house! Got a super low power bill! Now I'm the only guy I know that can't wait for the power bill to come to see how low it will be. Yeah, I might be crazy but it's a good kind of crazy. Learn to be green, get a better home, life will be good!

Going Green with Square One

2009-05-22T06:17:00.000-07:00

In November of 2008, I completed construction of my new green residence in Gilbert SC. The results so far have been nothing short of phenominal. Thought I'd start this blog to fill everyone in on how to design, construct, and what it's like to live in a green home. We'll meet some of the guys who helped me along the way, and helped me figure out just what "green" is. We'll see some of the products and techniques that helped me design and build green in Columbia. SC. And we'll explore a little of the building science that makes it all work. Maybe after seeing what I was able to accomplish, you'll be intrigued enough to either build a green home for yourself, or green up the existing home that you have now. Keep checking back for updates on my progress in transferring updates to this site, or you can get some more info at my regular website http://www.squareoneplans.com/ . Just click on the "going Green" link.