TNAH #1 – 1984
Location: Houston, Texas
Builder: Village Builders
Architect: Booth/Hansen & Associates
Size: 1,500 square feet
Price: $80,000 Continue reading “The New American Home 2015”
Solar Decathlon 2013 – Orange County Great Park
Flux Home University of Southern California USC
CLICK HERE See the Flux House in Ojai **** an internationally, renowned, architect moves the 2013 Solar Decathlon Flux Home to Ojai, CA
The Solar Decathlon is a very cool event – a college competition to build solar homes. Usually in Washington, DC – last year the 2013 Solar Decathlon exhibit was in Orange County, California for the first time. Although I follow the event every year – this year I went to see the houses.
They say architects are at their best when they are old – experienced. This truth exists but there is something really fun, fresh and appealing about these college students taking on the task of building a home – an efficient and new style of home.
- lots of shed roofs
- passive solar design using shading
- open and flexible plans
- solar systems
The Decathlon was held at the former El Toro Marine Air Base – which is being transformed into “Great Park” – at 4700 acre real estate development – CLICK HERE for more info
A runway of cool houses …
Continue reading “Solar Decathlon 2013 – Orange County Great Park”
New Green Fireplace ! Rumford Style with glass door that works!
So you still want a real fireplace but can’t handle the trade off of what it does to your green building?
We all love fireplaces but in most buildings they are a horrible energy suck !
- Sucks out the conditioned air – even with the best glass doors (which are alway ugly)
- Pollutes the environment
- Leaky
- Drafty
Well check this out ! I met the owner of the Canadian company Renaissance Fireplaces at my Builder 20 meeting in Quebec this fall.
His revolutionary product uses a “guillotine door” (comforting sounding name eh?). The door is counter balanced and slides up into the wall cavity – so it works with an air tight seal.
Interestingly – after considerable research – his labratory and scientists couldn’t improve on old Cout Rumfords famous design for a fireplace. This means the fireplace lights easily, burns efficiently and throws heat into the room instead of up the chimney.
Check out their web site for videos and more information
Shipping Container Homes
Shipping Containers – there’s millions of em – floating around – literally! It is estimated that thousands of these things are lost at sea every year !
But these relatively cheap, strong, box structures are turning into some pretty cool homes.
Everything from the shack below …
To three story urban homes – this one is in Venice California …
To exotic homes like the “Tea House” in Korea ….
See our newest video all about Container Homes
This’ll blow your hair back! Solar Decathlon 2011
Its Solar Decathlon time again !
I love this annual competition. Crazy ideas – experimental – cutting edge – out of the box (as they say!) – weird – fun – they say if you want to learn and be creative – you should take things apart – turn them upside down – backwards – shatter ideas and then put it all together. Well that’s what they do here. Watch all 20 of the competitors entries and I guarantee you will get an education. Watch with an open mind and remember – we are looking for new stuff here!
Press play to watch the SCI-Arc video. Right in my back yard – SCI-Arc is cutting edge and a little bit Hollywood too!
Solar Decathlon Teams
The 20 university-led teams that design, build, and operate the competition’s solar-powered houses are the heart of the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon. Learn more about each of these teams competing in Solar Decathlon 2011: Continue reading “This’ll blow your hair back! Solar Decathlon 2011”
3 Simple Rules – Passive House Design – Super Green in Hudson Valley New York
Three Simple Rules
1. Maximum heating and cooling loads allowed are 1.4 kwh/psf
2. Source energy 11kwh/spf
3. Maximum Air Change Rate 0.6 ACH 50 Continue reading “3 Simple Rules – Passive House Design – Super Green in Hudson Valley New York”
Show Us Your Projects ! – Bio Diverse Farm – Super Green Building
This amazing project caught my eye ! Just check out the spec’s … containers – green houses – graywater – gardens – solar – Bert calls this the “Bio Diverse Farm” – check it out
Click on photos to enlarge
Send us your projects!
Also CLICK HERE FOR “THE CONTAINER VIDEO”
Hi Otis
This Design project might interest you. The main points are:
Site.
Southern Gulf Islands, British Columbia
2 acre plot, gentle slope to SE
Winters Wet, Summer very dry limited ground water
Climatic zone 6-8
Continue reading “Show Us Your Projects ! – Bio Diverse Farm – Super Green Building”
The Ultimate Green Home ?? C4 Talk Patagonia – California Central Coast Chapter of the US Green Building Council
Check out the talk I gave last night at Patagonia for the C4 – see the video
After the presentation we held a lively discussion about what might work – might not – please add your thoughts below …
thx Otis
In Search of the Ultimate Green Home – Paqtagonia- Ventura Today
PRESS RELEASE
THE California Central Coast Chapter of the U.S. GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL
Presents: Otis Bradley
In Search of the Ultimate Green Home
Custom home builder Otis Bradley of the Otis Bradley Company and 50Green.com will be leading an interactive dialogue about the path to “net-zero” homes at the monthly meeting of the U.S. Green Building Council C4 Chapter on Monday, January 24th at 5:30pm. This meeting is open to the public and is held in the Patagonia Fire House at 280 W. Main Street, Ventura. Infusing his inquisitiveness, vast industry knowledge, and a healthy sense of humor, and using the design and construction of his own recently completed home as a jumping off point, Otis will guide the group through an interactive dialogue about the future of homebuilding in our new “Green” reality. Be prepared for an offbeat and spirited exchange of ideas.
Otis currently owns and operates Otis Bradley Company, Inc., OtisBradley.com, a California Custom Home building business. Otis also runs webinars about Green construction at 50Green.com, where he blogs regularly about a variety of green topics.
The presentation takes place at the Patagonia Firehouse Building, 280 W. Main Street in downtown Ventura on Monday, January 24th, 2010 from 5:30 – 7:30 pm. The monthly meetings are free and open to the public.
Our next presentation will be on Monday, February 28th.
For more information, please call (805) 218-2254, or visit the C4 website at usgbcc4.org.
-end-
PS For those of you that can’t make it watch for the replay to be posted here on 50Green.com
Bau Biology – how to create healthy, healing homes and workplaces, free of air, water and electromagnetic pollutants
Ever wonder how a Microwave oven works? My wife hates them and we don’t have one and its probably a good idea. But Bau Biologists will tell you more about electromagnetic energy. Pretty interesting …check it out.
The following information is directly from the Bau Biology web site.
CLICK HERE to Find out more about Bau Biology
Our Mission:
To inform and guide the general public and working professionals about how to create healthy, healing homes and workplaces, free of air, water and electromagnetic pollutants. To lead people from all walks of life to an understanding of the vital and complex relationship between the natural and built environments, as a means to merge these two complementary environments into greater harmony. Continue reading “Bau Biology – how to create healthy, healing homes and workplaces, free of air, water and electromagnetic pollutants”