Earth Love Home - A Diary of an Eco Friendly Home

Well, there have been a lot of developments in the direction of our Earth-Love-Home. In early July I had the opportunity to listen in on a lecture series at NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory). The talk was about solar electric systems and was put on by http://www.sunelectricsystems.com. It was awesome! The four biggest things I learned were:

• Xcel energy gives solar eclectic users a $2 per watt cash rebate.
• On top of that, Xcel gives a one-time cash payment of $2.50 per watt for the systems lifetime renewable energy credit. (The average system costs around $8.50 per watt, so the first two rebates offset the cost by more then 50%)
• There is a 30% tax credit for photovoltaic systems.
• Business solar electric systems can be depreciated on a 5 year accelerated basis, improving cash flow and overall rates of return.

The timing of this was awesome because I will have the opportunity to speak with the commercial landlord at my office about installing a system next week! Wouldn’t it be cool if I could get my office to go solar!!!

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Tara and I also went to a Xeriscaping class at the Denver Botanic Gardens this month. This was a continuation of their on-going series on Water-Smart Gardening. While I wasn’t keen on everything our speaker Marcia Tatroe had to say, she did talk about our ongoing need for water conservation.

Some of the highlights of her talk were:

• Know your soil. If you live on land that doesn’t have top-soil, like most of the people in the metro area, grow things that make sense to that soil.
• Denver is a smei-arid desert, averaging between 2-10 inch of rain fall annually. Know where sun-baked slopes or hot corners are in your yard so that you can eventually plant water-smart plants in these spots, leading to less of a struggle in maintaining them in the heat of summer.
• Determine where long winter shadows will create snow banks and cold pockets in winter.

If you live in the Denver area or similar geo-climate, check out http://www.plantselect.org or http://www.ext.colostate.edu/ for plants that grow best in our areas.

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My last quick update is about our current location. Just this week I was able to refinance the Condo that we live in, which will help us on our road to our ideal Earth-Love-Home. I also learned from the NREL class that HOA’s cannot prohibit you from setting up solar power and I plan to investigate more ways to turn our current situation into a more eco-smart home.

While we are very excited about building and moving into our very own Earth Love Home, cutting down on our carbon footprint and living in an environmentally friendly way can start sooner then that.

In fact we’ve already started.

Why just the other day Tara and I replaced all the lights in our home with energy efficient bulbs – well, all the bulbs that we could. Some of them were already energy efficient! Go us. Anyhow, we were able to replace eight light bulbs in our house, saving us between 57 and 42 watts per light. I’m not sure how much electricity this will save us in the long run, but everything helps.

We already pay extra each month to offset our electric bill with wind energy and we look forward to finding more ways to help safe our beautiful planet!

Xeriscaping has been around since at least 1978, when Denver’s Water Department registered both the idea and the logo.

The idea is simple; landscaping without supplemental irrigation. Nature does the work.

One way for this to happen, and the one that I favor the most, is the use of native plants. This can be tougher then it sounds but I hope to highlight our hunt for native plants in the future. we’ve got to find the property before we decide what’s native.

Let’s look at some of the basic principles:

1. Size matters when you’ve got a giant hardwood in your front yard. You’ve got to know how large the root structure could get, the potential shade it could offer, or new drainage patters that will be created.

2. Get some dirt time. You’ve got to know what is in your soil. The smallest environmental footprint will be created if you use what you’ve got. If that is not conducive to some great flora, look for local, organic compost. It retains moisture faster as it the rain or snowmelt drains into the porous material. But always beware if you have an outdoor garden or your land drains towards a water supply - some compost can cause food contamination.

3. Perennials are the backbone of water-efficient landscaping and in dryer regions, such as the elevated semi-arid desert called Denver, and there are plenty of native plants to go around. Xeriscaping is not limited to desert areas though.

4. Plan for the long term. A native plant, non-irrigated yard takes time to grow and some work. Yes, work. You have to invest yourself in the world around you. I’m sorry. You’re just going to have to act locally while thinking globally – and you’ve got to do it all while experiencing the outdoors.

5. That last part is not entirely true. Well xeriscaped land can start indoors. Plant some baby seeds and nurture them until they’re ready for the big room! Stay tuned for more on our indoor plant cultivation.

This is one of the most exciting Earthdays I can remember. For years now I have been arguing with people over the debate of global warming, the green house effect, mankind’s role in climate change and the need for environmental stewardship. This year is the first year that I have really felt heard!

Times are a changing! Yes sirree! Al Gore won an Oscar for his power point presentation. Big business is being forced to postulate green practices. Everywhere you turn, people are talking about alternative energy resources, conservation, and green living. It’s awesome!

Just the other day I was talking with my boss, the owner of our company; telling him that we should install solar panels on top of our building – and he was actually thinking about it! How cool is that?

So what does this mean for our Earth-Love Home?

For one, it means that other people are thinking about living green too and that means demand for green home products. Once demand goes up, so too does supply, and then prices come down. It’s basic capitalism. In the end, it means that building an Earth-Love Home will be more affordable.

It also means that more people will support what we are doing. This may be a factor when trying to attain building permits and generally pleasing the neighbors. Getting permits will be a large mental task for me – there are few things I find more distasteful then government paperwork. Ensuring that our neighbors are supportive of our project could make or break the whole project.

Lastly, the trend toward environmental awareness will drive innovation, making our home even more earth friendly. It would be truly awesome if we could find a way to not just lower our ecological footprint, but to actually go beyond removing it – to the point of global healthy contribution. There would be nothing more fulfilling then to reach a point in my life where the world around me benefited from my existence.

On this Earthday, when I bake a little organic cake made from locally grow ingredients and let the wind blow out the candles, I think the Earth will be wishing that human awareness trends will continue in the direction they are currently heading; that and for a new bike.

Another book in our pile of eco-home reading material was Your Naturally Healthy Home: Stylish, Safe, Simple by Alan Berman. This book talks not only about natural building materials, but decorative instillations and furniture. It covers everything from blinds to bedding! I’m going to start posting a series of tables provided in the book (modified slightly in order to better fit this blog) that show the environmental impact and value of certain materials over their other options. The following chart shows a variety of different home flooring options based on environmental standards.

+ = Good 0 = Medium - = Poor	Resource Depletion	Energy Used	Emissions During Manufacture	Effect on Indoor Air Quality	Capacity for Recycling
Wool Carpet	+	+	0	-	0
Organic Carpet	+	+	+	-	+
Synthetic Carpet	-	-	-	-	-
Grasses/Rushes	+	+	+	-	+
Linoleum	+	0	+	+	+
Vinyl	-	-	-	-	-
Cork	+	+	+	+	+
Cork	+	+	+	+	+
Rubber	0	0	0	0	0
Softwood	+	+	+	+	+
European and U.S. Hardwood	0	+	+	+	+
Tropical Hardwood	+	+	+	+	+
Ceramic	+	+	+	+	+
Mosaic	+	+	+	+	+
Stone	0	+	+	+	+

Of course, these aren’t the only things you want to consider when you’re putting in flooring in your home, either for the first time or just as part of a remodeling project. For example, while ceramic flooring rates very well for these standards, you’ll also want to consider that you may need a better insulation system, if you live in an altitude where ceramic floors are likely to get cold and stay cold. A mosaic or stone floor is going to cost more than cork, but will also probably add a beautiful touch to the room it occupies. Can you afford to have a variety of floor types in your home, or should you find one that you like and use it for your whole house? In any case, it’s always a good idea to keep these environmental factors in mind. Healthy furnishings mean a healthier home for you and your family.

-Tara

The earth-sheltered house is another great facet of eco-friendly homes. It’s a type of housing that is built into or underneath the earth! I first discovered the idea when I came across this website from Simon Dale on their Low Impact Woodland Home in Wales. It’s a really great way to become one with your environment (you can’t avoid hippie terminology on this blog), which means you won’t be a part of the industrial virus that humanity tends to be. Imagine a landscape full of rolling green fields, flowers and critters… where a fully developed community of families and artisans live, in a happy aesthetic balance with nature. If you can’t imagine it, try reading Malcom Wells’ The Earth Sheltered House: An Architect’s Sketchbook. Wells certainly has the vision, and is eager to share it. This book is an easy read by nature - it pulls you inside the mind of the architect to see how design can pull function and environmental economy together… and also how it sometimes doesn’t work, and why. One of the interesting things that stood out to me in Wells’ book was how hard it was in earlier years to get funding/interest in his projects. Being environmentally savvy is a new thing, but thankfully the Gen X’s and Gen Nexters have a much clearer vision than their hippie and “Me Generation” predecessors. Anyway, on to some good news and bad news about earth-sheltered houses…

Good News

Earth-sheltered homes are pretty… if you’re into that sort of thing. Earth-covered homes look mysteriously earthy and enchanted. Which would also make them perfect for any hard core Lord of the Rings fans. Their look might take some getting used to for a large group of the population, but I don’t think there’s any denying that they’re charming. Malcom Wells does provide a more modern, industrialized take on earth-sheltered houses and buildings than Simon Dale does on his Hobbit-home - he has designed anything from houses to airports to concert halls using his earth-shelter ideas, proof that style is only limited to the creativity of the individual. Besides which, I really like the Hobbit-house.

You can find your inner hippie, druid, woodland elf, or what have you… I may make jokes of it, but living in a way that actually promotes cooperation with the earth instead of paving over it is a beautiful thing. More green, less tar.

Bad News

Earth-sheltered houses may create uniquely expensive complications. While it’s true of all construction that faulty preparation can lead to nasty inconveniences in the future, I think it’s important to realize that you’re facing a whole new level of things to be aware of with earth-sheltered homes. As with the straw bale homes, moisture and insects are something to be keen about, which includes making sure your home DOES NOT have insects or excessive moisture before you pile the earth on it. Unlike the straw bale homes, the incredible weight of the earth and all its critters is another force to be reckoned with. You’ll need to be extra, extra careful that your structures will be able to hold an estimated weight for dirt, plants and creatures.

There are plenty of other things to consider when planning for an earth-sheltered home, so doing some extensive research before you get all excited and start drawing your plans is a good idea. The experience can be extremely rewarding however, as I’m sure Simon Dale would be happy to tell you about - in person, if you’d like! (They take volunteers for future earth-sheltered and low dwelling projects, so you can have a hand in building next time you’re in Europe.) Don’t be daunted by the idea of earth piled on your home, Norway’s green roofs have been serving their country successfully for thousands of years.

-Tara

When I was first thinking of building materials for our Earth Love Home, I almost immediately jumped to straw bales. The finished effect of a straw bale home is beautifully earthy, with smooth warm walls and curving contours. In the end, we decided a straw bale house is probably not for us, due to some structural questions and Troy’s hay fever. Pictured to the right, The New Strawbale Home by Catherine Wanek, was one of many books I looked through in order to get a good handle on the effects of straw bale homes, and whether or not they’d be practical for us. It features photos o’ plenty of what different things people across the U.S. have done with straw bale structures, in styles ranging from southwestern ranches to modern duplexes to new-age two story homes.

Here’s how we weighed the facts with straw bale homes, in terms of good news and bad news.

Good News:

Straw bale homes are really, really pretty. There’s no denying the beauty of straw bale walls. If you’re looking for an earthy look that can still be just as elegant as any modern home, don’t let straw bales slip your consideration.

They are extremely cost efficient. Which translates to: cheap! Well, cheaper than a lot of other options, anyway. “One California study indicated that such a “super-insulated” straw bale home could save as much as 75% of heating and cooling costs,” (Catherine Wanek). Straw bales also significantly cut down on construction costs, for obvious reasons. Do you think the little pig with a straw house had to pay extra for labor or lumber and other materials? Straw bales are cheap materials that require no building expertise whatsoever. For many straw bale homes, the walls can be erected with a small party of helpers in a single day.

Straw bale homes are somewhat easier to construct. I’ll repeat it for you: For many straw bale homes, the walls can be erected with a small party of helpers in a single day. Straw bales are lightweight and easy to manipulate and fit into a post-and-lintel system; they’re like giant, lightweight bricks. There’s a variety of ways to use straw bales, but in many cases no bonding agent is required between bales.

They are totally safe and eco-friendly! Straw bale homes seem to have a reputation for their clean, airy nature. Like many natural fibers and materials, straw bales do not give off air pollutants and harmful toxins. While with some fibers there may be an element of natural bacterias to consider, straw bales can be very friendly to you and your family when kept in good condition.

They last a long time. It may seem unusual, but some straw bale homes have lasted for over a century. Think of old adobe ruins; they incorporated a lot of straw into their design…

Bad News:

You have to be careful when you’re constructing/maintaining the home. While straw bale walls have proved extremely flame-resistant (the “skin” added to the surfaces of the straw bale walls starves fire of oxygen) there is a chance that your walls can catch a-flame mid-construction, and then your entire project would be over. This can be avoided with simple caution and common sense. However, the rotting element of straw is another factor entirely. It is highly important that you test all straw bales being used for any signs of wetness, because moist straw has a tendency to rot, creating all sorts of biological problems that you just don’t want. This can be avoided in the future by ensuring that the “skin” you put on your walls is water-proof. It is also good to note that insects can be a nasty factor in straw bale homes - this is also prevented by making your walls water-proof.

They may not be the best option depending on your location/budget. This goes for any material you build with. You have to add in what your costs are going to be and how well your materials will serve you in the elements you face. For us, straw bales are an interesting option, but may not be our best. For our climate, we may need something a little more durable due to our wet winters and dry summers.

So do the research before you begin to think about materials - but don’t leave out straw bales as an option just because the Big Bad Wolf blew that one piggy’s house down.

-Tara

About eleven years ago I was in one of those phases where books became part of my everyday diet. I could not get enough information and my mind was raw enough that subject matter, didn’t matter. I started with classics and Pulitzer prize winners, floating around from topic to topic. Many of the books I read at that time, shaped my future considerably.

One of those books was, The Diversity of Life, by Edward O. Wilson.

I realized that the survival of every living thing on the planet was dynamically connected and that I had a responsibility to help, in whatever way I could, for my own survival.

Everywhere I looked backed this point of view.

Sometime thereafter I learned about Global Warming but in 1996, Global Warming was still a heavily contested theory; despite the fact that the IPCC (The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), an organization comprised of 2,000 of the worlds leading climatic scientists, had already determined that mankind was responsible for the global warming trends.

I knew I had to do something and Ghandi had the best advice; “Become the change you want to see in the world.”

As a citizen of the most powerful and economically rich nation ever, my ability to effect change is dramatically increased. I can effect change with my buying power, with my education, with my words and with my way of life.

This includes where I live…

…since my discovery of global responsibility I have meet and fallen in love with the most amazing and wonderful woman since the creation of time. Together we are beginning to learn and embrace the opportunities of ecological, autonomous construction and we hope someday to build and live in our very own earth friendly home. A home built with love for the earth.

This website will be a diary of our research, construction and eventual move in to our very own, Earth Love Home.

We hope you enjoy your visit here.