Green Build 2012: San Francisco conference and trade show

I was at the 2012 Green Build Conference and trade show (http://www.greenbuildexpo.org/expo/for-attendees) this afternoon, looking for products that will help me create longer-lasting, more energy- and resource-efficient—in a word better—buildings.  Better homes for my clients, better construction projects for the contractors, easier-going on the planet.  (It is, after all, the only planet we’ve got).

My goal in searching out new products/systems is, install once and because the best was in the specifications, the callbacks just don’t happen.  Let the other designers and contractors deal with callbacks.  Our goal is to never have them.  Among the questions I ask:  How long has this particular product been in installed use?   How many installations have you sold?  What sorts of certifications can you provide?  What is its installed cost ratio compared with current industry standard?

The expo floor itself was mammoth, more booths than I recall having seen at any construction industry trade show here in San Francisco.  Usually I can cruise the floor, find and stop to learn about the products that will be useful to me and my clients, and be gone in an hour or so.  Today, three hours later (and I am highly efficient and targeted toward what it is I need) I finally made the last important contact that I had in mind and hit the road.

The most exciting product of the day?  Unico low-diameter FAU systems.  (http://www.unicosystem.com/Home/LandingPages/InteractiveHouseMedia.aspx) high-velocity This is a unified system, so your HVAC installer may be resistant at first, but the installed-costs are comparable (according the rep on hand), and the long term savings remarkable.  My suggestion:  visit their website, give them a call, let them sell you on it as they did me.  They work with first-time installers to get the system in right.

Or maybe it was the puncture-proof underslab vapor barrier that sidesteps all the conflicting information about where does it go and how do you keep it intact while your workers lay the rebar grid?   Try Raven Industries VaporBlock 10 (http://ravenefd.com/products/vaporblock/)

Paint-on sound reduction for existing or new gyp board walls?  Low to zero VOC paints?  Reflective exterior paint solutions that reflect up to 30% of the sun’s heat?  A duct-sealing system that fixes only the leaks, done-in-a-day with before-and-after leakage readouts that give the proof.

Ya gotta be a geek about this stuff.  More on all these issues in future posts.

I would suggest that for all those east-coast homes that just took a beating, since you may have to rebuild some of your systems and may have FEMA money to work with, why not look into rebuilding to a standard that will work to the highest level, if the costs are comparable?  Ask them my questions for yourself, or ask your own, see if you are satisfied with the answers.

Disclaimer:  Just because I recommend something here does not mean I warrant any product or system to operate as indicated.  You make the contact, talk to their reps, get the pitches for yourself, and then decided whether you want to have the best, most efficient projects under your name, or if maybe someone else should take that on.

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The Right Way to Build: Insulation

With all the talk about building green these days, you would think it is something new, maybe solar panels on the roof and high-tech solutions with complicated circuitry and untried ideas. The truth is, you can reduce the energy consumption of a new home or retrofit by as much as 70%, with conventional construction done right.

Think of it. If all the standard energy-saving measures like insulation and caulking were done with the same care and attention to detail as the cabinetwork and finish carpentry, the air you pay to heat would stay in the house and keep you warm, instead of finding its way outside through the walls and attic.

There is a standard of proper wall and ceiling insulation, but the truth is very few of those people whose job it is get it right. This is partly because it is one of the lowest-paid jobs in the business, and the workers are often paid by piecework. It is also because too few people–including owners, contractors, and building inspectors–insist on a good job of installation. The result is–yes the work is done cheaply and quickly. It is the building owners who pay for it over the years, in excess energy bills that need never have been so high.

The standard is known specifically as “Quality Insulation Installation,” or QII. When I asked an insulating contractor if his company provided QII, his answer was, “We train our installers well.” It was his business, and he hadn’t even heard of the standard!

Here is a part of the procedure, paraphrased from Energy Star (energystar.gov):

a. Wall stud cavities should be caulked or foamed to provide a substantially air-tight envelope to the outdoors, attic, garage and crawl space. Top and bottom plates should be continuous and have any openings sealed. Special attention should be paid to plumbing and wiring penetrations through the top plates, electrical boxes that penetrate the sheathing, and the sheathing sealed to the bottom plate.

b. Pay special attention to installation of air-tight air barriers for walls adjoining exterior walls or unconditioned spaces, including walls behind showers/tubs and behind fireplaces, insulated attic kneewalls, staircase walls, the intersection of porch roofs and exterior walls, and skylight shaft walls.

c. Fill each cavity side-to-side, top-to-bottom, and front-to-back. Batt insulation should be installed to fill the cavity and be in contact with the sheathing on the back, the studs at the sides, and the wallboard on the front – no gaps or voids.

Before you spend money on new windows, or blow-in insulation to the walls of your older home, do these two things first. Go in your crawl space and attic, and air-seal every opening you can find with spray foam insulation, and insulate the attic to R-30 or better (have an electrician take a look up there first, to be sure your any lighting or wiring is suitable for burial in insulation). You’ll be surprised and the new-found comfort. Some people will tell you doing these things is a waste of money, but the truth is they are the cheapest investment you can make, with the best results in savings and comfort.

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