Category Archives: Energy
29
Dec
Dec
Thanks to Agnes Jimenez, for providing this post on how to build your own solar panels. There is no second opinion about the enormous benefits of solar electricity. With the ever rising prices of fuel and hence the on-grid electricity, the only viable option we are left with is to switch to the off-grid solar…
17
Dec
Dec
Is your garden waste or rubbish attracting foxes and vermin to your home? Are you worried that, perhaps, these unwanted critters will find their way to your yard where you store your rubbish? There are a few things you can do to prevent your area from attracting unwanted and unhealthy pests. By investing in a…
06
Dec
Dec
Special thanks to Ed Ryan, developer of the circhouse, for providing GBE with this guest post. The circHouse is a durable, easily constructed, multi-use building which has been designed to serve many functions, among them, humanitarian and relief housing, offices for medical facilities, storage and logistics applications, and recreational, resort and lifestyle uses. The basic…
05
Dec
Dec
Here is an interesting way to approach building an easy-to-assemble living space, configured to be as small or large as you wish. HIVEHAUS, a new concept in the modular building space – “inspired by nature- influenced by modernism and constructed using unconventional building techniques,” writes the UK-based company. Each hexagonal HIVEHAUS cell is a self-contained…
04
Dec
Dec
In the name of sustainability and sanity, the era of the oversize home is hopefully giving way to the small home, becoming a phenomenon of the past, where little regard was given to energy, materials, and land consumption. As the economist E. F. Schumacher once opined: “Small is Beautiful.” The following three designs (220 to…
25
Nov
Nov
Walk into the lobby of the Neot Semadar Art Center on the Neot Semadar Kibbutz in the Arava region of Israel, and you’ll feel like you’ve just walked into an air-conditioned oasis in the middle of a scorching desert. Which you have…except for the A/C part. As part of Kinetis-organized tour of Israel’s key sustainability sites,…
23
Nov
Nov
Light Clay Infill a.k.a Leichtlehm Leichtlehm, said from the throat easily by any native German speaker, translates directly as “light loam”. Loam is a composition of earth including relatively equal parts of sand, silt, and clay – which makes Leichtlehm easily translated to “light clay”. Light Clay Infill is a fairly old building technique, and…
18
Nov
Nov
Last Friday was National Recycling Day. Today, we honor a recycling pioneer, Colorado architect Doug Eichelberger, who designed and built an outbuilding in 1995 made from salvaged materials that otherwise would have ended up in a landfill. Doug Eichelberger’s Trash Barn
07
Nov
Nov
Tony Denzer recently wrote to see if we were interested in writing something about his new book, “The Solar House – Pioneering Sustainable Design.” We are glad we came across this pertinent work, especially for those wanting to know more about the history of solar. As Denzer aptly points out, “Few people are aware of…
05
Nov
Nov
The number #1 reason why homeowners pay more As any homeowner will know, maintaining the appearance and integrity of your home can be a demanding task, requiring hands-on application and extensive personal research to find not only the best products for your home, but also the most effective ways in which to apply them. Windows…
01
Nov
Nov
The Green Building Council’s Leadership LEED system is no longer the only program the General Services Administration (GSA) endorses for federal building construction and renovation; now there is Green Globes. The Green Building Initiative’s Green Globes has received a recommendation from the GSA during a scheduled review of the building certification system. Government construction is…
29
Oct
Oct
This guest post about solar panels has been written by Kurt Dowdle at Hayden Homes. Thanks much for adding your perspective. If you ever want to jump into an argument so heated it could turn into a bar fight, start talking about solar energy. If you want to skip the brawl however, just go to…
24
Oct
Oct
Read Sammy Medina on Fast Company for the story on this storm-proof bamboo house design from H&P Architects. Photos: H&P Architects
21
Oct
Oct
The search for a homes for sale or rent can be a grueling, time-consuming – “can’t be forgotten soon enough” – endeavor. Or it can be made into a very smart shopping trip. Point2 Homes is a newly developed real estate listings portal. This website has been designed to serve as an online search tool…
10
Oct
Oct
Any commercial activity that relies on heavy plant machinery also has a vested interest in making sure that downtime, whether due to maintenance, improvements or repairs, is kept to an absolute minimum. Continued operational effectiveness has to be maintained if disruptions to production processes are to be avoided and this can present particular problems depending…
04
Oct
Oct
VENICE UNIVERSITY EXCEEDED HARVARD AND US TREASURY The Venetian Gothic palace overlooking the Grand Canal received the prestigious certification from the U.S. Green Building Council Ca’ Foscari, Venice University’s headquarter, is the oldest LEED-certified building on the planet. The Venetian Gothic palace, built in 1453 on the Grand Canal, exceeded two American buildings, Fay House…
03
Oct
Oct
Whether you are thinking about constructing a new building, you have already entered the planning and design stages for your building, or you are renovating a building, you understandably want to take a closer look at what it takes for your building to qualify for LEED certification. This is a special type of certification that…
30
Sep
Sep
The Story of Eagleyew: A High Efficiency Natural Building on Vancouver Island, B.C., Canada I’m pleased to say that I have been building Natural Buildings for a number of years now. My work has taken me up and down the West coast of North America, with a focus in the Pacific Northwest. I’ve been calling…