Green Building Elements

Instead of usual colors that we associate with wine such as white or dark red, our color paradigm might shift to say Gold. With the CADE Winery just about to open, this solar powered and organically farmed winery, hopes to garner LEED Gold status and if so, would be the first Estate Gold LEED certified winery in the Napa Valley.

When visiting a winery, people’s olfactory system normally goes into overdrive but instead of inhaling the aromas of vanilla, rosemary, oak and sage here we took deep breaths of the air. As in indoor air quality. No stuffy AC here as the building relies on natural ventilation. While others admire the wines, we admired the other green aspects. CADE will utilize 100% solar power and organic farming methods which both sound tasty to us.

From top to bottom, we got our buzz from the other building features like the concrete composed that contains a generous amount (30 percent) of fly ash, steel made up of 98 percent recycled material, FSC glass and wood, as well as blue jeans for insulation and its own concrete mass for cooling.

The Green aspects just don’t stop at the building. It’s too bad that we didn’t bike or drive our electric car (we did carpool) because the winery offers a plug-in base for hybrid electric cars; and bicycle racks. Even better, they offer a shower (hopefully with low flow showerhead) so cyclists can clean up before tasting or event.

One the eating side, they will have a full-time chef on site who will focus on organic, sustainable cuisine grown on site. We haven’t had the chance to sample some of the sustainable cuisine but we’ll report back when we do.

We, like many people, wondered about the name. The winery name CADE derives from a Shakespearean term used for an oak cask or barrel, — comprises more than 60 acres, 23 of which were planted as vineyards in 2003. Of the remaining land, 28 acres will be protected in a land trust to ensure that they will always remain open space.  Now there should be a big “Cheers” to that fact.

Improving Your Home Energy Efficiency

With all the talk of renewable energy and energy efficiency in the news these days it seems to me that having an energy efficient home is the way to go.

So why is there a need to improve your home’s energy efficiency?

A lot of homes these days are beyond energy efficient. In fact, if your home is over 10 years old, it was more than likely built with NO energy conserving features.

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The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act signed by President Obama includes an uncapped 30 percent tax credit for the installation of small wind turbines, such as Windspire, (www.mariahpower.com), a residential and commercial wind power appliance.

The tax credit, previously capped at $4,000, gives all American taxpayers (residents and businesses) credit based on the total installed cost of an installation of one or more wind turbines.  The legislative package includes more than $42 billion in energy-related investments.

“Wind power is critical to the President’s new energy initiatives, said Mike Hess, CEO of Mariah Power. “It is refreshing that the new administration recognizes the potential behind renewable energy as a part of this important new legislation. Windspire transforms an untapped form of power – wind – into a cost effective, practical, and smart energy solution that is well-suited to homes and businesses. This is the first step toward a future in which our daily lives will be powered by renewable energy.” Read the rest of this entry »

What do get when you mix four of the Bay Area’s top green stars, a LEED certified location, lunch and corporate sponsor wanting to spread its green wings? The spirited Sustainable Symposium sponsored by Ace here in glorious San Francisco. The symposium, in short, brought some energetic and often useful ideas from the knowledgeable and spry panel (not to mention moderator and Chicago Ace Hardware store owner Lou Manfredini) and created solid dialogue in what could have been one of another “How to green this and that discussion.”

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While we are on the topic of decreasing our energy footprints in small homes, I’d like to share the simple and small round yurt design, that has been around for ages. The yurt is a type of “Green Weefab Mini-Home” and can be customized into another kind of hand-built “Earth Sheltered House” for those on a budget.

Yes a yurt is a portable, felt-covered, wood lattice-framed dwelling structure used by the nomads in the steppes of Central Asia for centuries, and yes it is also a modern dwelling here in the west. I have often seen yurts perched on ocean side clifftops, in horse pastures for riders, and used as outdoor guest houses for those with big yards. Read the rest of this entry »

“Tiny houses” are starting to enter mainstream consciousness, due in large part to new companies dedicated to manufacturing and promoting tiny homes, especially Tumbleweed Tiny House Company. And for good reason, too: one of the most effective ways to decrease your ecological footprint is to buy a tiny house. For obvious reasons, a tiny house requires little energy to build, and less energy to keep comfortable. There’s also the benefit of not maintaining extra unused space. Ultimately, you can live more simply and happily in a tiny house.

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Here at Low Impact Living are big advocates for residential renewable energy. We’d like to see every home in the US being fed by solar, wind and/or geothermal power.  (And we hope that President Obama will be driving to make that vision a reality!)

But we also understand that very few of us Americans can afford $20,000+ for an installation of a solar PV system– especially these days!  That’s why we’re always on the look out for ways people can save on solar. So when I heard about what 1 Block Off the Grid (1BOG) is trying to do, I was intrigued.

1 Block Off the Grid (1BOG) is based in San Francisco, but they are launching a nationwide effort to create community-based buying clubs for solar power.  They claim that, “By aggregating consumers and negotiating on their behalf we take the fear out of buying new green technologies, decrease the purchase price, and increase the adoption rate of these technologies.”

If you’ve ever gotten and compared quotes for a solar installation, you know it can indeed be confusing and intimidating. Having a group discount negotiated by a third party sounds like a great idea to us.

1BOG did one set of installations in San Francisco in 2008, and they are just getting their 2009 group ready for another round. They are working with SolarCity for the new installations there.  The 1BOG website says they are launching a group for Los Angeles in February 2009.  Sign up quick!

I did some research and it seems that one of the participants in 1BOG’s inaugural program in San Francisco cut 43 percent off list price, according to co-founder Sylvia Ventura. But that is not necessarily a standard savings. For the average participant it would probably be closer to about 20 percent off.  For a $25,000 solar system, you could save $5,000 — and you’ll get additional goverment rebates as well.  Not too shabby!

We also want to remind everyone to always consider a solar hot water system if a solar electric system is too expensive.  Solar hot water systems cost in the $4-6K range and will still save you a TON off of your power bills.

Also, to find a solar installer near you click here.  You can also get quotes for wind power and geothermal power, depending on where you live.

With the economy in turmoil, a real estate prices dropping, green communities and green building will become more important. It’s easy to see how broken our current community model is in terms of the urban sprawl; the average American commute continues to grow longer. Between 1969 and 2001, the number of vehicle miles traveled for commuting jumped from 4,180 to 5,720.

The Sierra Club notes that today’s average American driver spends what amounts to 55 eight hour workdays behind the wheel every year. Gas won’t stay at the current level so we need to look at developing more sustainable communities.

San Francisco area architect Michelle Kaufmann & Kelly Melia-Teevan came up with a top 10 (sorry Letterman) EcoPrinciples for Communities.

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Do you want to get paid for saving energy? If so, then you won’t want to miss this all important webinar that covers a host of incredibly useful information for home owners and builders. Organized by Treehugger Consulting, reserve your seat now as space is limited.

Reserve your Webinar seat now at:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/861707592

Tree Hugger Consulting presents “Green Building Incentives 2009: Where and How to Get Them.” This webinar will cover tax credits and rebates available for energy saving building techniques and materials in the United States.  Where to find them, what to do to get them, and how to apply and receive them.

Both commercial and residential buildings will be covered.  Applicable projects include new construction, remodels, additions, and some building repairs.

Homeowners, building owners, designers, and contractors are all welcome to learn more about how to get paid for saving energy.

The webinar is scheduled for an hour and a half to allow plenty of time for questions.  The cost is $20.00.  After the registration form is complete, you will be directed to our secure PayPal site.  A confirmation email with the webinar details will be sent to you after payment is confirmed.  If you do not receive the confirmation email within two (2) business days, please send an email to treehuggerconsulting@comcast.net.

Title: Green Building Incentives 2009: Where and How to Get Them

Date: Thursday, March 19, 2009

Time: 8:00 AM – 9:30 AM PDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements

PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

If you have any questions regarding the webinar, please contact Dawn Killough at treehuggerconsulting@comcast.net.

Treehugger Consulting’s Dawn Killough is a regular contributor to Green Building Elements. Click here for a complete list of her informative and interesting articles.

Click here to learn more about Treehugger Consulting.

Send Vice President Biden and the other members of the Middle Class Task Force your ideas about creating green jobs and making buildings more energy efficient.

President Barack Obama announced today the formation of a Task Force to strengthen the American middle class.  As Vice President Joe Biden, a member of the group, describes the task force on the White House website, “This task force will be an important vehicle to assess new and existing policies across the board and determine if they are helping or hurting the middle class.  It is our charge to get the middle class – the backbone of this country – up and running again.”

First on the agenda for the task force is the creation of green jobs and the ways home energy efficiency can both save homeowners’ money and create green jobs that cannot be outsourced.  From the White House:  “If we create jobs that aim to reduce your energy costs – like your electric bill and your home heating bill – that means you have more disposable income for other things. Creating more green jobs has multiple benefits.  It helps the economy as a whole; it helps our environment; and it will save you money.” Read the rest of this entry »