Energy Star Goes Above and Beyond

You know that cute little blue star that we see on all kinds of appliances today? It's the Energy Star logo and it's actually a joint program between the Environmental Protection Agency  and the U.S. Department of Energy. Energy Star has helped saved enough energy just in 2009 to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of 30 million cars. Moreover, Energy Star appliances saved users nearly $17 billion on their utility bills.
Let me get to my point. I'm sure you are all aware of Energy Star's Appliances. But did you know that cool or green roofs are now earning the Energy Star label? Yup. Über reflective Energy Star roofs:

• reflect more of the sun's rays. This can lower roof surface temperature by up to 100F, decreasing the amount of heat transfer into a building.
• can last longer before needing replacement, because high temperatures, among other factors, shorten the lifespan of roofing materials. Cool roofs also help lower the air temperature surrounding houses, which helps fight the "heat island effect"—increased air temperature (2 to 8 degrees Fahrenheit) in cities versus rural areas.
• can help reduce the amount of air conditioning needed in buildings, and can reduce peak cooling demand by 10-15 percent. 

So I should buy an Energy Star roof, right? It's the perfect time to install one since the house needs a roof anyhow. BUT and this is a supersized-MacDonald's-rear-end kind of BUT - these roofs cost a pretty penny.

They are approximately 50% more than what you'd pay for the composition itself on a standard roof. The installation costs are the same for Energy Star and standard roofs. So I ran the numbers on the house to calculate my yearly savings with an Energy Star roof. I also took into consideration the 30% federal tax credit that people receive when they install an Energy Star roof.

If you too are trying to figure out what's what in the world of cool roofing, you've also got to think about:

-- engineered lumber for framing (engineered wood is made from wood fibers bound with adhesives, resulting in less wood waste than solid-sawn lumber).
-- low or no formaldehyde strand board.
-- recycled newsprint or recycled newsprint and agricultural fibers for roof decking to eliminate waste.
-- Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) for building a roof. This reduces the amount of framing lumber and cuts energy losses.
--roofing felt made from recycled paper products reduces landfill and saves on the demand for natural resources.
--metal roofing from recycled steel or aluminum utilizes wastes and saves energy, and the durability reduces replacement and maintenance costs. 
--shingles made from recycled materials such as sawdust, cement, recycled rubber etc. puts waste to good use and provides lasting performance.
-- using different materials depending upon the pitch of your roof. Solar Reflectance Index requirements for an Energy Star rating are different for low and high pitched roofs.

So, I'm still in a quandary. I know it's the green thing to do, but I've got a budget to consider and lots of other projects and tasks to finish before using up all of my cash. So let me know, what do you think I should do?






A recent picture of our ceilings after the exterior and interior have been stripped. I wonder what will cover those rafters...

I'm In Heaven

Bungalow Heaven, that is. This is a landmark district of Pasadena that is saturated with Craftsman bungalows. In the early 20th century, lots of folks from the midwest decided to visit Pasadena because of it's lovely climate and, slowly, many people began to permanently settle in the area known as Bungalow Heaven. Instead of building large, Victorian homes, many families built affordable single-story structures suited to the warm climate, with verandas for outdoor entertainment, overhanging eaves and multiple windows to provide shade and cross-ventilation in the days before air conditioning. Typical Craftsman built-in cabinetry was also a space-saving innovation for these modest sized homes.

So I attended the recent Bungalow Heaven Home Tour in the hope of being inspired and spending a nice Sunday afternoon outdoors. I didn't expect a lecture on William Morris, the English reformer, poet, and designer who initiated the craftsmanship, simplicity, and quality materials associated with the Arts and Crafts Movement. But I certainly wasn't wowed. Nevertheless, it was nice to see so many quintessential elements of the movement on display. Everywhere I turned, I saw exposed beams and river rock foundations and impressive chimneys. Most of the homes were truly in harmony with their natural environment. The bungalows included low horizontal lines to integrate interior with exterior, expansive porches and  French windows to invite the outdoors in. California Craftsmen had a mish mosh of influences and I could see lots of Spanish and Japanese flourishes in some of the cottages that I toured.

As a whole, I was sorely disappointed by the tour. Many of Heaven's denizens must be turned off by the hordes of earthly mortals that want to sniff around this Craftsman empyrean. I suppose I wouldn't want curious souls stomping on my garden, treading on my hardwood floors, inquiring about the source of materials and touching my hand-crafted moulding and cabinetry. I think all the truly magnificent homes probably had sage owners who kept their doors closed. I did get a peek at some kit homes which were interesting predecessors of modern-day pre-fab buildings. In the future, I'll skip the formal tour and just walk around the area. Maybe I'll try to befriend one of the homeowners and ask for a private tour.

For the time being, I'll have to continue looking at photos in my various books on Craftsman architecture and the Arts and Crafts Movement. Currently, my favorite page turner is Craftsman Style by Robert Winter and Alexander Vertikoff.

Time to Squeeze

If you're not interested in making lemonade but you've got a lemon on hand, why not buy yourself some time? Bedol is a company that is making eco-friendly timekeeping possible with a simple squeeze of lemon and a splash of water. Their small, water-powered clocks and alarm clocks don't require batteries, chemicals or external power. All you need to do is fill the tiny tank with tap water and add a squeeze of lemon juice. After that, you've got an accurate clock for up to 3 months - no pollution created and no added electrical cost. Plus, you won’t lose time when changing the water because of their clever built-in memory chip! At under $20, this is a great gift for green friends and design geeks alike. Curious about how it works? Read this article.

Spoiled Soil

I'm at Starbucks this morning and no, I don't drink coffee. The barista gives me a sympathetic smile as she hands over a hefty Hefty bag of spent coffee grounds. She too lives in the area and has clay in her backyard instead of real soil. Oh, the pain!

Since first setting foot on the property, I suspected that the soil was less superb (check out the picture of the garden), but I wanted to investigate. I didn't want to install a grey-water recovery system to enrich soil that was no good... So, I did a pretty straightforward test that you can all do at home:

 The Squeeze Test

In general, soils are classified as clay, sandy or loamy. Clay can be nutrient rich, but slow draining. Sand is quick draining, but has trouble retaining nutrients and moisture. Loam is generally considered to be ideal soil because it retains moisture and nutrients but doesn’t stay soggy. To determine your soil type, take a handful of moist soil from your garden, and give it a firm squeeze. Then, open your hand. One of three things will happen:

1. It will hold its shape, and when you give it a light poke, it crumbles. Lucky you—this means you have luxurious loam!
2. It will hold its shape, and, when poked, sits stubbornly in a ball shape in your hand. This means you have clay soil.
3. It will fall apart as soon as you open your hand. This means you have sandy soil.

Look at my impressive souvenir from the squeeze test. This is a ball of petrified clay - so I know I've got even more work ahead of me. If you can learn about your soil’s texture, composition, drainage, pH level and mineral density, you will avoid disappointing results that can occur when your soil is unsuitable to produce even the hardiest of weeds.

I also did a home soil test on 9 separate areas of the garden in order to map the nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus and pH levels of the garden. Overall, there were little to no nutrients in the soil - probably because of the poor drainage of clay. Amazingly, the soil was slightly acidic - which many plants like.

Which is why I'm now at Starbucks picking up large soil particles (spent coffee) to introduce into this soil which has the finest clay particles this side of the Mississippi. Coffee grounds are also supposed to be great for growing roses - take note rosarians. So if you've got fine textured soil and would like to fix it for free, go to your local Starbucks and let them know when you'd like to pick up coffee grounds. One caveat: some Starbucks are better than others about follow through and not putting old filters into the mix... but hey, it's a free service.

My next adventure will involve increasing the nutrient levels of the garden. Get ready to enter the odiferous world of composting!

It's a Dirty Job But Somebody's Gotta Do It...

Guess who? Alliance Environmental Group Inc. will be doing the less than dainty job of cleaning up the hazardous waste in the house. There are many guidelines that must be followed in order to safely remove hazardous waste. Because Alliance has been doing this for over 50 years, they are a company I can trust to create a safe environment for residents and neighbors. Since the future inhabitants probably don't have any desire to produce children with three eyes, Alliance will first remove lead paint from the exterior of the house. As if this weren't enough, they will be removing asbestos ridden, 80 year old vinyl flooring from the kitchen floor (that's ancient stuff for you tweeting surfers of the net). In order to remove these materials safely, Alliance seals the home and creates a negative pressure to insure that hazardous particles are contained. The Alliance team dons fancy lead dust respirators and haz mat suits to boot- watch out VALENTINO! This keeps workers at Alliance from ingesting and contacting the nasty things that lurked in the old home.










An unfortunate example of stucco on top of the original wood siding of the home. Good riddance!