SanJoseGreenHome.com

The mkLotus prefab green home - the latest design by Michelle Kaufmann Designs

Prefabricated homes aren’t really that new of a concept in the building market. For many decades now, modular prefabricated homes have been built and sold as a less expensive alternative to buying a home on the market. The difference today is that prefab has become trendy. With a bit of an aesthetic facelift and a rebranding scheme, modular homes have become the hot new thing in home building and buying. As statistics on unemployment, a failing economy, crippling debt, soaring college costs, and so much more bombard our views, the thought of owning a house is almost impossible. Many young professionals struggle to pay off college loans well into their adulthood and years after they have completed their degrees. This causes major adult life steps like getting married, buying a house, and having children to get pushed back further and further. But, the prefab homes that are on the market today may be just the answer. Keeping many modern-day issues in mind, prefabricated eco-friendly homes have a lot of offer the young home buyer.

1. Inexpensive

One of the most enticing things about prefabricated homes is that they can really cut back on the price of purchasing and owning a home. Though not all prefabricated models are a cheaper option than buying an existing home, they can offer many aspects of financial relief. For one, many prefab eco-friendly home companies are focused on using reusable and highly efficient materials. By working hard to create the most energy efficient constructions, prefab homeowners can actually save a lot of money in the long run. Builders (and therefore owners) save money on materials using (more…)

QUESTION:

During my work with High Energy Homes, I’ve run into several homes with radiant floor heating. Most seem to use quite a bit of energy due to various factors from insufficient thermostat programming to poor insulation. Does anyone know of a contractor who can do an audit of this type of system?

ANSWER:

There are many companies that can do an audit, but none can actually make the radiant heat itself more efficient if it is the embedded concrete type. There, typically the pipes are closer to the ground than to the room – and contrary to common belief – heat does not rise. It follows the shortest route is.

One of the best things to do with these systems is insure the boiler is efficient, that the pipes are clean and not leaking. But the most productive change that I have found was getting a smarter thermostat. Basically it takes nearly 3 hours for the typical radiant heat system to actually warm the room after the thermostat says it is too cold. So a timed thermostat is essential.

It takes some experience figuring out how best to use these. You need to know the (more…)

However, without the proper knowledge, searching for a portable air conditioner can become an overwhelming experience. Between trying to figure out a plethora of acronyms like EER and BTU and wading through numbers all over the 1,000s, the confusion can multiply. But, with a basic foundation, a confusing and/or time consuming experience can quickly become a simple formula that leaves you lingering in the comfort and bliss of a perfectly cooled and de-humidified room.  And not only that, purchasing the right AC, the first time, will save you now and over the long run.

Basic AC Terms

“W”  – A “W” is a watt, which is the standard unit for measuring power.

“BTU” -  A BTU stands for British Thermal Unit and measures thermal heat energy. In terms of ACs, they will generally rank in the 1000s.

“EER” – EER stands for the Energy Efficiency Ratio of any given appliance and basically tell you exactly how much cooling your AC will be able to provide you based on the amount of electricity it’s using. The higher the EER rating, the less energy it consumes. As a basic rule, anything over 10 is deemed “good” in terms of energy efficiency.

You will often see “energy consumed” represented by a “W,” and EERs can also be listed as BTU/W.

This means if you (more…)

After World War II, houses and buildings were erected quickly and cheaply as a means to rebuild Germany. However, many people living and working in these houses and buildings soon became noticeably ill, with all signs pointing to the new buildings as the cause. It was this phenomenon that inspired the baubiologie movement in Germany, and has since been infused in other parts of the world as well. Below are the 25 principles of baubiologie.

1. Building site without natural and human-made disturbances
2. Residential homes away from sources of emissions and noise
3. Low-density housing with sufficient green space
4. Personalized, natural, human- and family-oriented housing and settlements
5. Building without causing social burdens
6. Natural and unadulterated building materials
7. Natural regulation of indoor air humidity through humidity-buffering materials
8. Low total moisture content of a new building that dries out quickly
9. Well-balanced ratio between thermal insulation and heat retention
10. Optimal air and surface temperatures
11. Good indoor air quality through natural ventilation
12. Heating system based on radiant heat
13. Natural conditions of light, lighting and color (more…)

If you had to imagine the greenest home in California, what images would spring to mind?  Would it be some clay, dome shaped structure perfectly exposed to solar angles, or maybe an ultra chic, boxy looking modern beauty with massive windows facing a valley?  What if I told you that this home sits on a pretty standard residential street in Santa Clara and an untrained eye wouldn’t even notice any “greenness” about it if they drove by?

Meet the “Bluebird” residence.  This Earth Bound Home’s show house  is also the personal residence of founder David Edwards.  Rated as the Greenest Home in California by Build it Green organization, the original 1400 sq. ft. ranch style home was added to and remodeled, creating a 3100 sq. ft. 4 bedroom, 3 bath home with an office and workout room.   Awards range from Acterra’s Business Environmental Awards Built Environment Award to Build It Green’s South Bay Best New Home award for the 1996 Green Home Tour. Come with us on a video tour to explore all the ingenuity, design and careful choice of materials that went into this project.  (Also see a list of “green” features below the video.)

This home’s many green features include:

• Small 2.7 kw Photovoltaic solar electric panels provide all of houses electrical needs
• Solar thermal renewable energy systems
• An inexpensive and no maintenance Grey water system waters the only plants in the entire landscaping that require water, the clumping Bamboo.
• A 1400 gallon underground rainwater cistern collects rainwater every winter
• All FSC wood framing and FSC certified Brazilian Cherry Flooring
• Home built with Structural Insulated Panels(SIPs)
• 65% more efficient than Californias’ Title-24 Energy Efficiency requirements
• $155/year gas bill, $4/year electric bill, $132/year water bill
• 93%  recycling and reuse of building demolition debris
• Half of all windows were purchased from salvage yards, saving over $10,000 over new windows
• All doors on the first floor were salvaged, saving $3,000.
• All trim throughout the house was salvaged from old redwood decks, fences and the siding on old houses. It was milled on site and the shavings used as mulch on the landscaping.
• New One Lawn Synthetic Lawn contains no heavy metals and requires no maintenance or water. None of the landscape requires supplemental water and saves approx. 50,000 gallons of water a year.
• House uses 31,285 gallons of water a year, for 5 people. This is approx 84% less. than the average household uses(~110 gallons per person/day- including irrigation)

Photo and home description courtesy of Earth Bound Homes

When most people think “green” homes they imagine solar panels and fancy energy saving gadgets.  It doesn’t have to be this way.  We invite you to explore with us a passive solar home in Saratoga (Bay Area) designed by a local architect Hari Sripadanna.  The home has achieved a LEED Gold rating and truly stands as a model for sustainability in our community.  After all, Hari bought parts of his house on Craigslist! 

Obviously, we could not cover all the fascinating details in the video so if you want to learn more, please read Hari’s comments and see design plans right below the video.  Enjoy.

by Hari Saripadanna (parts of the article was originally posted on the GAB Report):

With increasing popularity of green building and passive solar design, it is important to understand that sustainable design is more than a collection of credits. The key is to create synergy between building systems and practices that multiply each other’s benefit. One can create more value simply by choosing two or more complimentary sustainable design elements that play off of each other. The combined effect is more than the benefit when these design elements or systems are used alone. 

I would like to share with you some synergistic concepts used in the design of my house and show you how (more…)

So do green homes cost more? When comparing construction costs of green homes there seem to be all sorts of figures floating around.  Some builders say it does not cost much more to build sustainably, and some say it could cost anywhere from 5-20% more to build a truly green home.  Much of those added costs however, can be recouped via numerous rebates and long term operational costs as in the case of this newly build home in Menlo Park.  Come with me on a tour and meet Bill Lacs from Lacs Design and Construction and see this newly constructed property that boasts many elements of sustainable design and technology.  Perhaps you will be surprised why this home owner decided to spend a “few” extra bucks at the end…

This was fun.  A beautiful day on a roof of an Eichler home in San Jose (off Meridian and Curtner).  I met up with my friend Jarom Ferriante and learned a few cool things about solar panels and foam roofs.  This is a home of a crafty clay artist – Harriet, who’s art is shortly featured in the video as well.  Hope you enjoy!

Jarom can be found on: www.dura-foam.com
More of Harriet’s art is featured on her website: www.AcrylicAndClay.com

Here is a great example how one can take an older home and make it more energy efficient with an element of smart design.  These home owners in San Jose could have built this sun room addition in an old fashion way but instead, they decided to incorporate a passive solar element that not only made their home more comfortable but also chipped off a few bucks off of their energy bills.  You will also learn a few more benefits of a cool roof and see a couple of them in action.

The technical info is fun and educational, however, your favorite part might just be the very end, where Sigmond shares a message with us all from his heart.  Enjoy.

If you have any questions for Sigmond feel free to leave a comment here or give him a call direct at 408-353-6727.

In a market where hardly anyone is building green in San Jose, this newly constructed house in Milpitas area stands as a monument of energy efficiency and inspiration.  

It is about 35% more energy efficient than a standard home and prides itself on green elements like engineered lumber, radiant barrier roof, solar water heater, energy star furnace, extra thick insulation, excellent indoor air quality and much more.  

Come with us on a video tour and discover for yourself what makes this property truly unique.

This beauty is a five year project by Green Earth Construction, a Milpitas based and family run company.  Sylvia Leung and her husband had a vision to go green 15 years ago and are finally able to marvel at the fruits of their labor.  In addition to what you’ve seen on the video, keep in mind that the home is wired for solar and if one decided to invest into solar panels, one’s utility bills for the most part of the year could be virtually zero.  Now that’s a good number, isn’t it? 

Building green normally commands higher costs so perhaps the most pleasant detail about this home is that when considering a dollar per square foot basis, the home is priced comparably to a 25 year old home.  If you like more details, you can find all the info under Featured Listings on http://GreenHomeParter.com.  Feel free to contact me directly with any questions.