Renewable Energy
Originally Published in the Winter Park Home Magazine: Issue 2, 2010
My focus in green building has always been to look at the costs and benefits of different technologies to help make educated decisions in the building process. Sometimes, clients want to go above and beyond in their effort to minimize their energy consumption and overall environmental impact. Renewable energy provides an avenue for all clients to help achieve their sustainability goals. Some clients are driven to achieve a net-zero energy home – one that generates as much energy as it consumes, while others offset their electricity consumption by purchasing renewable energy credits. These two techniques vary significantly and offer every Winter Park resident the opportunity to invest in renewable energy a sustainable lifestyle.
Improving Water Efficiency
Originally Published in the Winter Park Home Magazine: Issue 1, 2010
Water use at a home can be divided into two different areas: use inside the home and use outside the home. Surprisingly, residents of the City of Winter Park use approximately twice the amount of water for irrigation than they use within the home. City residents use about 17,000 gallons of water each month in irrigation, while they use about 9,000 gallons of water inside the home. Improving water efficiency is something every resident can do – even those who don’t plan on remodeling or building new homes.
Moving into the Evergreen: Green Living
Originally Published in the Winter Park Home Magazine: Issue 3, 2009
Now that the house is complete and we’re ready to move in, the furniture and interior furnishings have begun to arrive. We have been considering the interiors since the design phase of the Evergreen. The interiors of the home are what we feel, see and smell everyday so making sure they are green is just as important as creating an energy efficient home–it is a way of life. We found that hiring a good interior designer was the key to our success at the Evergreen. Rob Turner, of CRT Studio helped with all of the interior design aspects from the concrete stain to the furniture, bedding and draperies.
Building the EVERGREEN, The Finishing Touches
Originally Published in the Winter Park Home Magazine: Issue 2, 2009
The EVERGREEN has earned LEED Gold certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) from the US Green Building Council, an independent nationwide organization devoted to fostering sustainable building practices. This certification and the home itself clearly demonstrate that GREEN homes can be economically designed and built to blend into existing Winter Park neighborhoods. For any green building project to succeed, the architect and contractor must be open to new ideas and willing to adopt new technologies and approaches to the overall construction process. With that caveat in mind, I thought it would be appropriate to wrap up the series of columns that focused on the EVERGREEN by reviewing a few of the finishing touches that we made to the home, including the green roof and water storage systems.
Building the EVERGREEN, Part 4
Originally Published in the Winter Park Home Magazine: Issue 4, 2008
Building a GREEN home in Winter Park is possible today and doesn’t mean you have to spend much more than using ‘normal’ construction techniques. To do so, your architect and contractor need to change the way they do business and think about the structure and building process differently. This article builds upon the third issue about the building process of The EVERGREEN, by exploring work on the drywall, trim carpentry, painting, flooring, and cabinets.
Building The EVERGREEN, Part 3
Originally Published in the Winter Park Home Magazine: Issue 3, 2008
Building a GREEN home in Winter Park is possible today. To do so, your architect and contractor need to change the way they do business and think about the structure and building process differently. This article builds upon the second issue about the building process of The EVERGREEN, by exploring work on the plumbing, electrical, air conditioning, and insulation within The Evergreen. We were pleased to learn that our subcontractors continued to be excited about trying new products and building techniques. A few of the green ideas incorporated into the Evergreen even originated from them.
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