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The Evils of Ponding Water

What is ponding water?  Ponding water as defined by the NRCA, National Roofing Contractors Association, as water that remains on a roof surface longer than 48 hours after the termination of the most recent rain event.

Long-term ponding water on a roof surface is one of the most destructive conditions that can adversely affect the [...]

The ABC’s of Green Building

Who can keep track of all the acronyms out there? Many products bear labels not well know to consumers. Here is a cheat sheet to the most common abbreviations when searching for green building products:
CARB | California Air Resources Board | Maintains healthy air quality, protecting the public from exposure to toxic air contaminants and [...]

Insulation Materials… or “How to build a better house” – Part3

Part3 in my series – "How to build a better house". Last week we talked about advanced framing techniques, which in simple terms replaces lumber with insulation material and maximizes the wall that’s insulated. This effectively improves the thermal resistance or R-value of a wall. As a reminder on how important advanced framing is, let's [...]

Bottled Water is neither Cleaner, nor Greener

As I was looking on the web for some information about bottled water, I stumbled on to this article. I feel that there is a bit more to building a green project, than products or services. I believe its a “Life Style.”  Wanting to do our part as individuals, check out this article below, and [...]

How Much Does Green Building Really Cost?

HOW MUCH DOES GREEN BUILDING REALLY COST?

All the time, I hear people say— "green building is still too expensive to use on my project". When you actually break it down and explain the cost and environmental savings over the life of the product based on the time they will be in the house/ office etc. [...]

Out With The Old & In With the New! R-22 vs R-410A Refrigerant

For the past 40 years R-22 has been the refrigerant of choice for most residential H.V.A.C. equipment. R-22 is a chlorine based HCFC. An HCFC molecule is made of chlorine, fluorine, carbon and hydrogen atoms. It has been tested and is believed that because of how R-22 is produced, that it plays a part in [...]

Think of it as “Sheep Rock,” Wool Wall Panels

 If you're going to hike in the snow, you'll probably want to wear your wool socks. Not only do they insulate your toes from the cold, but your socks will still do a good job if a little snow or slush gets into your boots. That same principle applies for insulating wall cavities in places [...]

Caulking Improves Energy Efficiency

Caulking is a form of waterproofing which is essential for keeping your home safe. Not only is it crucial on the inside but also as protection from the elements and other intrusions from the elements and other intrusions from the outside.
 
Think of caulking as putting a force field around your property. This force field protects [...]

What Impact Does your Countertop have on the Environment?

 
One of the broadest spectrums of product lines when finishing out your home comes when selecting countertops. One way to narrow down your options is by choosing a material that is more sustainable. Many natural products are deceivingly more harmful to nature than their artificial counterparts. A way of exceeding a natural product is by [...]

Advanced Framing Techniques… or “How to build a better house” – Part2 of 7

Last week’s post on "Thermal Bridging" kicked off a series of articles that I have wanted to share for a long time. These articles cover issues, techniques and solutions related to how we build exterior walls and the impact of some of those decisions. Today’s article is about one of the solutions to minimize "Thermal [...]