Green features

 

Our green philosophy is a blend with priorities in lowering carbon foot-print, minimizing toxic pollution, supporting locally-owned, family-based vendors and distributors; fair-wage work (on-site and off), and durability of product life.

 

All green choices were made using the following criteria:

Distance from raw material

Time period to renew or regenerate

Poisons or toxins emitted during manufacture

Air quality

Embodied energy

Rreduced energy consumption

Durability, reliability and responsibility

Local, small, family owned businesses where possible

 

Environmental choices were in some cases very difficult and many took great research. Often the pros and cons were close. I am certain that there are other “green” choices and that we were unable to include all things green. LEED did not yet have residential certifications and many possibilities were not yet ready for prime-time. We consider this a truly “green” home and we live “green” lives. Environmental stewardship can be very subjective and at times we chose what seemed “greener” to us, for our particular needs.

 

• Recycled cellulose insulation

• Re-used timber

• Strand board-bamboo floors(made of bamboo scrap, high-pressure glued, and sealed to eliminate off-gassing in the home)

• heat pumps

• 4” tiles in powder room and kitchen cut from scrap slabs; produced in Chicago

• Kitchen cabinets manufactured in Iowa

• Vanity cabinets manufactured in Indiana

• Granite from the Dakotas (Tough choice. The builder chose local granite over Leed credit substrates, as it was local, the waste from fabrication is inert dirt, many of the LEED substrates created toxins in fabrication or had a large carbon foot print, due to shipping distance.)

• Low and no VOC paints

• Recycled content PET carpet

• Energy star where available

• Cured, sealed MDF trims and casings

• High-efficiency water heater and furnaces

• High-efficiency direct-vent gas fireplaces

• Cardboard, paper, metal and plastic packaging and scraps reused and/or recycled

• Low-flow toilets (1.1gpf)

• 1-piece master bathtub (there aren't any that claim to be green, so we had to create it) needs no additional framing and tile to install

• many built-ins and finishes created from waste destined for landfill

• light fixtures designed only to be used with CFL bulbs