Green in Medusa

DIY-Bicycle-Mower, "The Mowercycle"

We saw this on Inhabitat and then searched around and found its an idea that's been around for a bit.  I want one. I just hope it goes hope it goes better than my clay pot smoker and DIY Wind Turbine yet to be built. It would be fun to get a workout and mow the lawn at the same time.

Green In Medusa goes for the Gold, Leed that is...

Happy New Year! We've been preoccupied with the baby and the holidays but now its time to get back on top of everything. After consulting with the Center for Ecological Technology (CET) about helping us with LEED certification for the house we figured we could acheive a high degree of LEED certification for our house as its designed now. While going for Platinum level would be great we're are not sure we can do it on the limited budget we are aiming for. So GOLD is our aim. Mainly it will be a matter of documentation and site management . We are still awaitng our septic system to be approved, something that has been holding up the process, then we can get our building permits final excavation an septic bids and then on to financing.... We will then put in our application for LEED and Energy Star Certification another goal we have. We'll give you an update on how this whole process unfolds. Its an involved but interesting process.

Net Zero Energy House

Among many of the lofty goals we have set for ourselves is for our house to be Net Zero or at least Near Net Zero. We would like to produce as much energy as we use . We may not achieve this on a daily basis but through out the course of a year instead. At the moment we have received bids that range between $30,000 and $50,000 for a 3-5 KW system. This is before rebates and tax incentives from the state which could pay for up to 50% of the cost. In order to take advantage of those incentives we need to tie into the grid. This would also help us achieve our net zero goal as we will be able to buy electricity when needed an sell it when we have excess. Our goal is to achieve a balanced system that is Solar Photo Voltaic powered and Wind powered. We have looked at a few systems for wind and have some issues with local ordinances as far as structures over 35' are concerned. Most wind turbines have to be on towers that are at least 35'. Add to that the fact that we would need a special variance to set one up. Matthew at LGA forwarded me a couple of interesting house mounted vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT) one by Wind Terra and the other by Pac Wind. In theory we would not need a variance for this type of wind turbine as it would be well under the 35' restriction and is virtually silent.

SIP'S vs. Modular - Insulation and the Building Envelope

The title of this post is me showing off some of the terms I've learned since starting this project. Matthew Radune at Lynn Gaffney Architect has been awesome at giving me lots of undiluted information.

In comparing both SIP's and Modular construction, insulation is a big actor. One of the points on our original brief to architects was that we wanted a well insulated house that would be warm in the winter and cool in the summer. This requires a well insulated and tight building envelope that would limit the amount of air moving through the walls thereby affecting the indoor temperature.

Here is a basic comparison using the materials we are currently looking at working with.

Pre Fab - SIP's vs. Modular

This project is a constant balancing act. Every decision has to be weighed against several other factors that are often in direct opposition to each other, how does it fit within our budget, how green is it, how much embodied energy is attached, how will it wear, how will it look, how much does it cost, how much will it cost "installed" , and then in the end again its how much is it going to cost? There is never a real answer and probably won't be until you pay the final bill. Estimates are just that, estimates. One of the main reasons for wanting to build this house out of SIP's or Modular prefab is that much of the variables of building are taken out because you know that those specific elements will be done hopefully to spec. in the factory at a pre-determined cost. Luckily we have a great architect that designed a house that would be flexible in the future and could be built in a variety of ways including modular.

The idea of Traditional or OVE (Optimum Value Engineered ) stick building, built by hand on site no longer has the appeal it once did. There is a tremendous amount of waste involved when building on site, even with a well intentioned and experienced builder who is committed to building "green". In addition there is the potential nightmare of cost overruns. Steph and I both work in a production environment where there is always a budget to adhere to and nothing makes us more upset than going over-budget, we both pride ourselves for coming in "on budget".

Heating and Cooling - Geothermal

We are not talking about that kind geothermal, the image is a bit deceiving. Residential geothermal is a highly efficient and renewable way to both heat and cool your home.Basically you run a set of pipes in what is called a loop, underground  where the temperature is a constant 55 degrees. In the winter the water and environmentally safe antifreeze solution is run through pipes and into a heat pump that extracts the heat and transfers it to a blower or radiant source to heat your home. In the summer the process is reversed and the house is cooled. It can also be hooked up to a hot water tank so that on warm days the heat can be extracted and used to warm household water. It explained really well at The Geothermal Heat Pump Consortium.

Solar Design - Passive Solar Heating

One of the main design principles we want to incorporate into our new home is Passive Solar Heating. The idea is that in the winter we will be able to harness the suns energy to heat or help heat our home. We will start by orienting most of the windows in the house and the house itself to the south this way we will have direct gain. Direct gain is radiant heat resulting from sunlight admitted directly to the living spaces through south-facing windows, which warms the interior surfaces (walls, furniture, floors, etc.). For direct gain, the south-facing window area must be sized for the climate, the type of window used and the amount of thermal mass in the home. For thermal mass we plan on having a thick concrete slab that will absorb as much of the heat from the sun as possible. Thermal mass allows saved solar energy to heat the house at night or on cloudy days. The combination increases the performance and energy-saving characteristics of the home, hopefully only for a modest cost increase. We also plan on slightly skewing the shape of the bottom level of this two level house so that the top level will create the the overhangs that are necessary to keep the house from overheating during the summer months when the sun is the highest. In the winter when the sun is the lowest the house will have the most amount of direct gain into the living areas. This along with radiant floor heating, a wood burning stove, highly insulated walls, windows with Low-E coating, and a properly ventilated house to distribute the heat evenly should be sufficient to keep the house warm and cozy in the winter. In the summer ceiling fans and open windows would be enough to keep the house comfortable and cool.

illustrations - North Carolina Solar Center