Print written by Kelly Hart on Monday, June 22, 6:59AM
I sell a lot of books on my Web site Greenhomebuilding.com, mostly as affiliate links through Amazon.com. Recently, my wife, who happens to be a former librarian, did a search through our sales records of the last four years and discovered some interesting trends. Our top seller was 'Earthbag Building: The Tools, Tricks and Techniques.'
Close behind this book is 'The Hand-Sculpted House: A Practical and Philosophical Guide to Building a Cob Cottage.' Actually, books about building with cob are very popular, with two others showing up in the top 11 best sellers: 'Building With Cob: A Step-by-step Guide' and 'The Cob Builders Handbook: You Can Hand-Sculpt Your Own Home. This makes cob building the single most popular topic!'
Green building
General books about green building are also very popular, with 'Building Green: A Complete How-To Guide to Alternative Building Methods' selling about five copies each month. 'The New Ecological Home: A Complete Guide to Green Building Options' and 'The Good House Book: A Common-Sense Guide to Alternative Homebuilding' were also in the top 15 best sellers.
Underground earth-shelters
Two books about underground and earth-sheltered construction made the top 25:
'Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable Underground House'
'The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book'
Actually the first of these is more about cordwood building, so if you combine this with 'Cordwood Building: The State of the Art,' author Rob Roy has two titles among the top seven best sellers.
'The Stone builder's Primer: A Step-By-Step Guide for Owner-Builders ,' 'The Solar House: Passive Heating and Cooling, and Earthship: How to Build Your Own,' Vol. 1 all made the top 10 list, selling about three each month. Then, if you add to this 'The Tire House Book,' which was also among the top 25, it is obvious that building with tires is a popular concept.
Adobe and earth building
There were three books on the top 25 list about adobe and rammed earth building: 'Adobe: Build It Yourself, The Owner-Built Adobe House,' and 'The Rammed Earth House: Revised Edition.' This makes methods of using earth for construction extremely popular.
Strawable building
Strawbale building also had three titles in the top 25:
'Small Strawbale: Natural Homes, Projects & Designs,'
'More Straw Bale Building: A Complete Guide to Designing and Building with Straw'
'Serious Straw Bale: A Home Construction Guide for All Climates.'
Considering how popular strawbale building has become in the last decade this is not surprising.
Root cellars
There are two books about storing food in root cellars that made the top 25 list:
'Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables'
'Build Your Own underground Root Cellar'
Personal favorites
One of my favorite books, 'Home Work: Handbuilt Shelter,' a book published by Lloyd Kahn which features the earthbag/papercrete house I built in Colorado, along with many others, made the top 25 list.
The final book on the list is 'Ceramic Houses and Earth Architecture: How to Build Your Own.' The book was written over a decade ago by Nader Khalili of earthbag building fame.
For me, it is gratifying to see the popularity of all of these books, and many others that didn't quite make the list, that feature different aspects of natural building and sustainable architecture. It bodes well for the future.
Another encouraging trend I noticed while I was doing my annual update of books at Greenhomebuilding.com is the acknowledgement of global warming and the need to address the problem. In fact I counted at least 42 titles published in 2008 that are positive and only six that are negative. Two years ago this division was about 50/50, with most of the nay-sayers being funded by corporate interests. The times they are a-changing!
Kelly Hart is the producer of GreenHomebuilding.com and DreamGreenhomes.com.
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Print written by Amy Le on Friday, February 6, 5:19PM
OK, so maybe with the stock market in the toilet and your 401k plan not looking so hot as of late, it might not be the best time to take on challenging remodeling projects for your home. But even as you tighten your wallet, sometimes you just gotta get your decorating fix on. And the best fix is something that actually fixes something, like a sky-high heating bill.
If you're looking to help make your home more energy-efficient and cut down on that dreaded heating bill, you should think about swapping out your current window treatment for cellular shades, which insulate against heat loss at the window. Cellular shades are an easy way to update the look of a room while earning a payback in reduced energy costs all year long as they also help to keep rooms cooler from the incoming summer sun.
Cellular shades were introduced more than 25 years ago, but with mounting concerns of rising energy prices, more and more homeowners have gotten hip to these shades. The vast collection of choices has also helped to boost their popularity. Cellular shades are offered in myriad colors and even patterns. Blinds To Go, which has 107 stores and an online store at Blindstogo.com has a new collection that is directly color matched to the best-selling Benjamin Moore paint trim colors to make decorating really easy.
While the current economy might be keeping you from knocking down those walls and building the master bathroom you've always wanted, small upgrades around the home might just be the remedy to help sooth that decorating itch.
Want to learn more about creating an energy-efficient home? Check out HomeFinder.com's Green Home Guide.
Print written by Kelly Hart on Wednesday, February 4, 12:07PM
At the Natural Building Colloquium held in Santa Barbara, CA, last October, one of the discussion forums I attended was titled 'The Long Emergency.' I'm sure the name of this forum evolved from Howard Kunstler's famous book by the same title, which addresses surviving the end of oil, climate change and other converging catastrophes of the 21st century.
In this case, a panel was convened that included Michael G. Smith (author of several books about cob construction), Penny Livingston Stark of the Regenerative Design Institute, Janell Kapoor, founder of Kleiwerks International, and Derek Roff, the director of Builders without Borders.
The issues we discussed included climate change, environmental quality, the economy (which included unemployment, home ownership and inflation), and scarcity of resources (water, food, topsoil, building materials, fuel, etc.).
Starting a movement at home
When it came to finding solutions to these persisting problems, many people talked about dealing with these issues at a local level versus at a national level. It was suggested that you should go with the flow of chaos by plugging more into your community. To get more involved locally you can:
• Become acquainted with your neighbors and network with them.
• Connect with your area police departments, so that you are familiar with them in case of an emergency.
• Share your resources with others in your neighborhood when possible.
• Become involved with the creation of a local currency, so that money that is spent and earned in a community stays there.
• Take advantage of new governmental positions related to sustainability.
Another idea that was discussed during this forum was 'passive survivability.' This idea focuses on people becoming more self-sufficient in terms of food and energy. For example:
• Grow some of your own food in personal or communal gardens.
• Participate in community-supported agricultural projects.
• Install renewable energy technology so you can become less reliant on grid power or fossil fuels.
To help create a more sustainable and healthy environment, people can also use natural materials when building or remodeling their home. These materials are generally non-toxic and are biodegradable.
As people decide to become more environmentally active, they should continue to educate themselves on the issues and remain positive and not put down or judge others with differing opinions. The best way to encourage more people to join the eco-movement is to spread the word about solutions through contact with the media and to collaborate with other organizations and groups with similar goals.
Transition towns
Recently, 'transition towns' have begun to pop up throughout the world. These are towns where people have come together to make a commitment to address environmental and sustainable living issues at a local level. Citizens can share experiences and make suggestions for ways to address local issues. In addition, they can take advantage of an increasing awareness through a larger organization. You might take a look at some of the material presented at Transitiontowns.org to find out more about this movement.
If you pay attention to nature, which is beautiful, powerful, and regenerative, you can find many solutions.
Kelly Hart is the producer of GreenHomebuilding.com and DreamGreenhomes.com.
Print written by Frank Schulte-Ladbeck on Wednesday, June 17, 4:59PM
From hybrid automobiles to Energy Star home appliances, eco-friendly products have generated quite the buzz over the last few years. Green appears to be the new black. But as advertisers and marketers jump on the green bandwagon, consumers should be asking themselves: What makes a product green? While going green is a new concept to many consumers, this eco-conscious movement has been around for decades.
Defining green
With increasing concerns over global warming and ballooning energy costs, many people are looking at the green lifestyle in a new light, and so has the government and other organizations to help define what green should mean.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will have a policy in place defining how businesses can use the term green in advertising which will affect all products, and we will have to see how President Barack Obama's administration will develop its plan for the green industry economy. In the home building industry, there are two major competitors when it comes to setting the standards for what a green home should be: LEED for Homes and the National Green Building Standard.
National Green Building Standard
The National Green Building Standard received a big boost last week when it officially became a standard – ICC 700-2008. This new standard can be applied to all residential construction work including single-family homes, apartments and condos, land development and remodeling and renovation. This new standard has also been approved by the [American National Standards Institute (ANSI). The ANSI is an organization that defines how products are made by setting definitions of the process by which they are produced. The National Green Building Standard is the first green building rating system to be approved by ANSI, making it the benchmark for green homes.
The National Green Building Standard was developed by the International Code Council (ICC) and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). The advantage that these set of rules has over LEEDS for Homes standards, is that many communities base their building codes on the codes developed by the ICC in their International Residential Code, and that most builders are members of the NAHB.
LEED for Homes can be a very expensive process, so it is not seen as practical for most builders. Part of this expense is due to the verification process. The National Green Building Standard has its own process using a green verifier program that will rely on independent inspectors (green verifiers) to check on the green claims.
If you visit the NAHB's green Web site, you can see how they will be doing this by rating your own home. If you scroll down the page, you will find a button that says 'Score My Project.' You gain points by meeting the standards. The number of points you garner determines what level of green your home is. The highest is 'emerald,' or it will be once everything is in place now that ANSI 700 has been approved.
So what do these streamlined standards mean for homeowners? It means that production home builders can participate in constructing verifiable green homes. These builders may not all meet the 'emerald' standard, but it is a move that will make eco-friendly homes affordable for the average consumer.
Learn more
A teleconference scheduled for Thursday Feb. 5 at 2 p.m. (EST) will discuss implications of this first-ever green residential standard.
To participate in the teleconference, please dial 1-800-860-2442 and ask for the 'National Green Building Standard' Call.
If you are unable to participate in the teleconference, you may listen to a full replay of the call after the teleconference has concluded by calling 877-344-7529 and entering 427664 followed by the # sign when prompted for the account number. The replay will be accessible beginning at 5:00 p.m. EST on Feb. 5 and will be available until 5:00p.m. on Feb. 19.
Frank Schulte-Ladbeck, is a Houston-based Professional Real Estate Inspector
Print written by Amy Le on Tuesday, January 27, 10:10AM
As the earth's natural resources continue to be depleted and energy costs across the globe continue to rise, more and more consumers are seeking green home products, especially those that focus on energy and water efficiency. And there is every indication that trend will only get stronger, according to home building industry product suppliers who spoke at a press conference last week during the International Builders' Show.
Representatives from Kohler Co., Marvin Windows and Doors, and Whirlpool Corp. talked about innovations that can lower homeowners' water and energy bills and also contribute to better indoor air quality.
Mike Luzier, National Association of Home Builders Research Center CEO and the moderator of the green product press conference, said even as green home builders find relative success in a struggling housing market, it won't be long before sustainable building practices become the industry standard.
The National Association of Home Builders is providing education and training as well as home certification services to help prepare home builders and remodelers to capitalize on this trend. NAHBGreen, the association's green building program, is expanding every month.
H2O shortage
Energy efficiency is still the biggest driver, manufacturers said, but demand is also growing for water-efficient fixtures and appliances, as well as windows and doors that contribute to improved indoor air quality, the speakers said.
Omer "Butch" Gaudette, director of trade relations for Whirlpool Corp, said with only one percent of the Earth's water available for drinking, washing and other uses – 97 percent is salt water and the remainder is part of the polar ice caps – water conservation will soon be at the forefront of issues impacting new homebuilding and appliance trends.
Shane Judd, senior product manager for water conservation at Kohler Co, also said that 'Water efficiency is not just important in water-starved areas,' like the arid Southwest, but in more and more metropolitan areas where water supplies can't keep up with sharp population increases are also looking for solutions to manage water use.
Right now, there are 100 million toilets in use that each consume 3.5 gallons every time they are flushed. Switching to water-efficient models would have 'a tremendous impact not only on water bills, but also for water conservation,' Judd said during the press conference.
Advances in technology have now allowed Marvin Windows and Doors to increase the size of its casement windows while maintaining their energy-efficient qualities - thus allowing home designs that take advantage of "daylighting" - or natural lighting, so homeowners don't need to turn on their electric lights as often, said Brett Boyum, director of marketing for the Minnesota-based company. And for Marvin and other industry leaders at the forefront of green, building sustainably is a solid business practice.
'A sustainable product is a quality product, so a green product is a product that will last,' Boyum said.
Want to learn more about creating an energy-efficient home? Check out HomeFinder.com's Green Home Guide.
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