builder’s tips for green
While the home we designed in the east bay (which is due to be the first LEED platinum home in Piedmont) is under construction, it is great to check in with people on the team to learn from their experiences. Today we check in with Alex Hodgkinson of McCuthcheon Construction, the builder of the project. [...]
Equinox 2012 party
One of our favorite organizations, Vote Solar, is having their tenth annual Equinox party on April 17, 2012. If it was anything like last years party, it is sure to be a blast. And a great cause – the work of Vote Solar is super important and benefits all of us.
votesolar.org
more info / tickets
here comes the sun
It is so exciting to have windows and skylights installed. The construction instantly transforms into space with the natural light sculpting the surfaces. These recent construction photos of the Piedmont Residence capture that moment.
The design of the windows and skylights is critical to this remodel project. With so many large trees around the home, the [...]
smart fire
I love fire. I hate to admit it, but I do. When Kevin and I were designing and building our house, it was the one decision we really struggled with. While we knew that having a wood-burning fire place was not good for the environment by emitting ashes, soot and carbon toxins, we didn’t want [...]
green materials + systems
With all projects we work on, we use sustainable principles when designing, including:
thoughtful design (designing to use less)
material efficiency (materials that are renewable and recyclable)
energy conservation (with the goal of achieving net-zero)
water efficiency (reducing water consumption and recycling water for irrigation)
healthy spaces (materials that are low and no-VOCs and incorporating air filtration systems).
systems built (utilizing [...]
shady laundry
I have been fascinated the past few years with designing for the hanging of laundry (see previous blog posts). Dryers use a great deal of electricity since they rely on the heat to dry the clothes, therefore produces carbon emissions. Whereas clotheslines require no energy, create no carbon emissions, saving you money, and even helping [...]
green it yourself: LED twig chandelier
If you have any trees in your garden, chances are there is the occasional pruning, trimming and clean up. Typically the debris then goes to landscape waste or compost. However, you might consider giving it another life, allowing those twigs to provide beauty and function in something like this LED twig chandelier. The ones shown [...]
solar fabric
I love this this new solar fabric structure by FTL Solar. This innovative pre-fabricated Photovoltaic (PV) tensile structure integrates thin film PV with super strength fabric to create easy to deploy, move, install energy producers. They also are double-function by creating spaces of shade.
This can be something that you could add to your garden [...]
Saving money on Solar
It is with mixed feelings that Kevin and I open our Pacific Gas + Electric bill that includes data on how much energy our house created and house much energy we used for each month of the past year. PG+E calls this the “True-up” statement. While we are proud that our house (and its inhabitants) [...]
New life for old bulbs
This lovely chandelier appears grand and luxurious. But what is most interesting is when you look closer and see that it is actually made from bare old re-used incandescent bulbs. These out-dated inefficient bulbs are now being replaced with CFLs or LEDs by people wanting lower energy bills. But rather than having them go to [...]
The Plastic Journey
Today we had the great pleasure of visiting the Plastiki, an incredible boat and inspiring story. The Plastiki is a 60′ catamaran constructed out of reclaimed plastic bottles and will be sailing from San Francisco to Austrailia with a handpicked crew of adventurers, scientists and creatives. Visionary David de Rothschild leads this extraordinary team with [...]
Better Fire
I love fire. I hate to admit it, but I do. When Kevin and I were designing and building our house, it was the one decision we really struggled with. While we knew that having a wood-burning fire place was not good for the environment by emitting ashes, soot and carbon toxins, we didn’t want [...]
youtube shows us how to live green
In anticipation of Earth Day on April 22, YouTube has teamed up with Sun Chips to launch an entire channel devoted to all things green. The new Live Green YouTube channel is a one-stop-shop for videos devoted to helping you live a more eco-friendly life. In addition to videos from Live Green partners like Discovery [...]
