Interiors

I love dwell magazine and those modern, clean lines, glass with stainless steel etc. but am also very much in love with the traditional craftsman bungalow. Maybe a bungalow on the outside with a modern inside? Heh. Anyway, I was reading the November issue of dwell, which has to do with green building/energy/etc., while my computer was broken (husband figured out how to fix it – yay for online help forums!). I have lots to comment on from that issue, but wanted to start with afmsafecoat.com paints, an ad found at the back of that (and other magazines I subscribe to such as Natural Home Magazine) issue.

When we moved into this place we painted our room with a low-VOC paint. I’ve long thought when we build I could at *least* do low- or no-VOC paints for the interiors. The ad caught my eye as I’ve been considering interiors lately so I checked their website out. I was surprised to find not only no-VOC paints but other products such as carpet care and sealers, shampoo, caulking, lacquers, etc. And guess who my some-what local retailer is? ecohaus seattle, of course.

A link on ecohaus brought me to their product page about occupancy sensors, like the ones you find in Starbucks bathrooms. I was just thinking about those the other day, so it was interesting to come across them. Seems like that would be a fairly easy thing to incorporate. Anybody used these in their houses? Even though I expect them in Starbucks they still surprise me a little when I walk in. And do they go off, like outside motion sensor lights, when you don’t move for awhile? I’ve never had them go off on me at Starbucks, but I detest when that happens outside at night. Maybe they work differently.

radiantpro.net

Have been googling and found a some-what local company called www.radiantpro.net that deals with geothermal and solar systems. My husband and I were talking on our trip home today and he wondered how well the geothermal/radiant floor combo would work in the summer for cooling needs. Would it be adequate, or would you also have to have some sort of AC system? I don’t understand it well enough at this point…I’ve been on radiant-heat floors (particularly in bathrooms) and “get” that, but I’m not sure how the cooling part works…would only the floor feel cool, then? And then the air would be cooled by the coolness of the floor? Or is there some way to have a forced-air AC associated with it?

So many questions. I’m contacting the sales department at radiantpro. I’m sure they’ve dealt with folks like me before, heh heh.

Got a haircut today

And what does that have to do with dreaming green? Well, my hairdresser and I were chatting and I told him we’d bought a piece of land and he said, “Oh, are you thinking of anything “green,” like solar or geothermal?” and I said, “Actually, yes!” We got to talking and he was telling me about a couple clients of his who had installed geothermal units in their houses recently and have loved them. Also, the city hall where his business is has installed a geothermal heating/cooling unit.

I know only the bare minimum about geothermal (pipes filled with fluid going underground to keep a constant temperature) and have seen diagrams, but have never really taken it seriously because I thought it was cost prohibitive. Now I’m thinking, hmmm. What a great idea in the desert, where it would help so much on cooling costs in the summer. Hmmm.

ecohaus seattle

Definitely looks worth a roadtrip when we get closer to actually building anything. Found this when searching for a distributor for recycled denim insulation. A friend is using it in her cabin, says it seems to be about double the cost of conventional. Looks great for someone with asthma and has been something I’d really like to incorporate.

More info about R-factors and stuff like that from the Department of Energy.

buildinggreentv.com

Really, my own TV show? I’ll have to check the site out more when I get a chance. Has anybody seen this show?

The catalyst for this blog…

was this heat reclamation system. I’ve long been interested in greywater systems and found this the other night. Makes perfect sense to use some of that “waste” heat to preheat your incoming line. Seems as though they’re only effective on water that drains continuously, such as when using a shower. Any experience with these? I love the idea but I’m wondering about the statistics for actual heat reclamation. Is that a percentage for the times you use the shower, or in general? Seems high if it only works for continuous use things. Seems it would be fairly easy to incorporate into a new-build.

Make sure to check out the fabulous and informative video. Heh.

Starting to dream green…

We recently bought a piece of land in the desert of central Washington (yep! WA has a desert!) and plan to build in a few years. I started this blog to keep track of my research and thoughts on “green” building while hopefully connecting to people with similar interests. Welcome!