The Green Building Grand Slam

I was in deep thought recently, thinking about what I do for a living. Many things came to mind, for instance, how valuable the research information is that I get off of the projects. When I first started Hybrid Homes, a PhD holding scientist told me that the data that can be gathered from the different kinds of construction can benefit not only the scientific community, but also, myself and other builders looking to build more sustainably. The facts about cost versus return would be available for all to see once I had completed enough projects to start graphing everything.

Then, all of a sudden, an idea popped into my head (that is how it works for me, ideas pop up inside my head, and I act on them) and I decided that I just raised the bar even higher in our industry. What I came up with, was the 'Green Building Grand Slam'. Let all of you be my witness that I came up with this first, so that in a few years when others attempt it, the record will be set straight that I coined that term.... So, what is a green building grand slam, and why is it so important? Well, let's grab a cup of coffee and I will tell you.

Let's look at the general explanation of a grand slam in sporting events. In golf and tennis, the grand slam would be winning all the major events in one year. In hunting, a grand slam is to hunt and take a certain number of species in a year. Most of the grand slam titles throughout sports and the world are unofficial but is a title given to someone who can achieve this type of success. Dennys even has a Grand Slam, it consists of 2 eggs, 2 sausages, 2 strips of bacon, and 2 pancakes (thank you wikipedia for this fun fact).

I guess the very basic concept, is that a grand slam is an achievement that is hard to achieve.

The idea of the Green Building Grand Slam came to me, as I mentioned, because of a comment that the editor of the Journal of Light Construction said to me a while ago. He mentioned to me on the phone that I was the only one he knew of in the entire country that had the kind of experience that I have. He added that the variety of projects, the willingness to take on different projects, and having a big enough mouth to let people know what I was up to, was very important to the industry. The idea of the Green Building Grand Slam is a new idea that has taken a long time to iron out, although, the idea is actually quite simple.

According to my experience, logic, and research into this topic, to achieve The Green Building Grand Slam, one would have to build and complete a house of every type of main stream green building style. This would be nearly imposible to complete in one year, so there really is no time limit at this point, and that is what makes it an achievable feat if one puts their mind to it. If a company or college could track down research dollars to build every type of home for the sake of research, then maybe the Green Building Grand Slam could be achieved in one year, maybe that will be the real accomplishment in the future as this idea grows.

What idea do I have about the mainstream building techniques that would qualify someone for the Green Building Grand Slam title? Great question, here they are in no particular order: Advanced Framed (2x6 with 2' centers), Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs), Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs), and Earth Shelter. The bonus would be to complete one or more of the many other kinds of houses that have been built over the years, that are not considered main stream at this time, which would include, but are not limited to: straw bale/straw clay, used tires, shipping containers, etc.

By now, you may be thinking to yourself, I kind of know Adam and he would not write about this if he did not think he was close to achieving this title, what is he up to? I will tell you what I have completed or will complete in the foreseeable future. This is what I have completed: Advanced Framed Houses and remodels (several), ICFs houses (several), SIP houses (several), and starting soon, an Earth Shelter House! To round that out, I am looking to build a straw/clay house and Eric Hughes from Image Design and I are working with a few potential clients trying to line one of these types of house up. Once the Earth Shelter house is completed, then, I will start to compile the data of how each house performs, etc. and start writing a book. A book for the world to see the facts, expel the myths, all while adding a dash of rock and roll to an otherwise boring topic to many.........wait and see what I have up my sleave!

To be the the first builder in history to complete the "Green Building Grand Slam" means alot to me, but also means alot to many people. Check this out! If you were a homeowner and you have thought a lot about using ICFs, like many of our customers do, you would have data to compare ICFs to other forms of construction. Does this exist now? Yes, but not in a way that is relevent. For me to have the information I do about the different forms of building, means that at some point, people will be able to seek out the best 'bang for their buck'. This is huge! This happens already with the houses that I price. I know what can be built in a person's price range, and I also know how efficient their home is going to be for the price. The Edgewood Project was advanced framed with an icf basement and we came in under budget at about 160k. This house is very tight and energy efficient, so much so, that it surprised me. If we had used SIPs, the addition cost would have been about 8k from the resulting items that are needed to use with SIPs. ICFs would have been about 16k more on average because of the resulting costs. But still, 176k for an all icf house? Wow! This is what I am talking about! Data! Facts!

Besides price, there are other important things that we are finding out. 'Things' like indoor air quality, moisture/condensation, and soil types versus building style. Using different forms of construction means different things to. Soil type becomes an issue. On our Turtle's Hope Project, we did not use ICfs because of the pier foundation and the weight of all the concrete. This project was a perfect SIP project. This house will be very tight, as we paid close attention to the results of the other homes we built.

Here is another bit of info for you. Let's examine HERs scores for a moment and compare the different forms of construction. First of all, the HERs score is basically an energy efficiency rating set up through the Energy Star Program. The lower the score the better, with a score of '0' being a net zero home. To determine the HERs score, you take into account everything in the home, from lighting and insulation to the heating and cooling system and everything in between. Renewable energy and geo thermal plays a big role in getting a low score. I believe that the HERs software or 'RESNET' software is outdated for high performance houses, but it is still a great way to see how the house turned out. The info I wish to share with you, is the HERs scores of the different styles of building that I have done. The Energy Star test house scored 100 point and most average homes that are considered green score from about 65-80. How did we do? I am glad you asked...

The first house I ever had tested, was our Platinum LEED rated house in Onekama. We learned a lot from that house. That house was built with ICFs from the footings to the roof and had a lot of conditioned square footage. This is a factor in the HERs score. The HERs rating on that house was 51. That is actually a great score! How could we have improved? Well, we could have used GEO thermal if the budget allowed, instead of the natural gas fired boiler and we could have done some of the things that we did on our Vineyard Project that had to do with consumption. The score of 51 turned a lot of heads, but I caught wind of lower scores around the Midwest, and I had to get better.

The Watercress Project was a SIP Project that had an ICF basement. This project is currently projected at Platinum LEED for Homes and had a HERS score of 58. Right away, it seems like the SIP panels are the culprit, but they are not. 58 is still a great number, but what led to that score was the natural gas fired forced air furnace, the wood burning unit, and a few other items. Without having completed a number of houses to see how a HERs rating can help a person adjust what they do on a house, it is like the blind leading the blind.

One last example, then I will let you get on with your day. The Vineyard Project is built of all ICFs from the footings to the roof and is very similar in features and designs to the Onekama house. This house is projected Platinum as well, and had a HERs score of 34, the lowest score ever tested in Michigan! How could this be? What was different about this house over Onekama? One, was the RESNET computer program and the solar voltaics versus the wind generator. The other big factors were the geo thermal system and the reduction in conditioned air space. I insulated the houses the same, and followed the same procedures as I did in Onekama, but I looked at the Vineyard Project on a cost versus output comparison. I could make any house zero energy if given a big enough budget, but this just is not the case. I was very happy to see this improvement in HERS score. To date, I feel this type of design with the hip roofs and passive solar design has the best chance of reaching a HERS score of '0'.

Of all this information in this blog, I want people to know that I am passionately working towards making every home zero energy. At some point in the near future, I will put the word out that all I will build are homes with HERS scores below 35, but I can not do that yet, as my research is not complete. There is so much to learn. I already pick and choose what jobs I will do based on the homeowners beliefs and the designs of the homes. I do this for research, and its an incredible journey.

This Earth Shelter houses that we will be starting soon could be the first house in Michigan to have a HERS score of '0'. This house will be off the grid, and the homeowner and I are traveling the country looking at other Earth Shelter houses and interviewing people so that we can get this house right! It is such an amazing 'complex', that you will have to read all about it in a future blog. I have come in contact with many people acrossed the country who are living off the grid and have asked them what they like and dont like about it and what they would do differently if they ever built again. What amazing information I have recieved! I have been in contact with people in Colorado, Washington State, Arizona, New Mexico, New Jersey, Maine, Marquette, and even locally that all share the same passion. They are part of our Team as we shoot for a true net zero, off the grid home. This entire project will be shot with video, even the behind the scenes efforts that go along with researching and then actually doing a project.

How will that turn out? Will we hit net zero? You will have to stay tuned to find out....

Take this with you: Does an under ground house stand the only chance to reach net zero, or can any one of the Green Building Grand Slam houses hope to reach net zero? My answer: Very shortly, I will release information that proves you can get very close to net zero, if not completly net zero with any of the Green Building Grand Slam houses as long as you use a proactive Team approach, study and learn from past projects, and keep an open mind. Time for more coffee, thanks for checking out my blog A B

A sustainable lifestyle - the Edgewood Project

Where ever I go, I keep my eyes peeled for examples of a sustainable lifestyle. After all, that is what I am all about. It shocked me a week or so ago when I was told that one of our homeowners was called 'crazy' for having a large garden and livestock. Crazy? I thought that was only something I was called a few years ago. The things I would have told that person that called one of 'us' crazy!

I was working with my dad, a.k.a. 'Uncle Rog', this past week on the Edgewood Project, working towards getting the occupancy permit on that house. This project turned out amazing. I am not just talking about the trim, hardwood floors, and how incredibly tight this house is, I am talking about how sustainable the entire property and project is. If you were to drive back to the house, you would be driving across a big field of alfalfa, which is harvested to feed livestock at a local farm. The driveway is made of crushed concrete, which came from local road construction. Instead of piling it in a landfill, we used it for the driveway. Once you arrive at the house, you immediatley see the large gardens that are nearly full of vegetables. The homeowner has local customers who pay her for the freshest vegetables around. The customers show up and the vegetables are picked fresh! That is leading others to a sustainable lifestyle! The garden also produces the homeowner's vegetables that is consumed by her family. That is sustainable! She will not have to worry about what she is feeding her daughters, because all of the vegetables that they will eat come out of that garden. To store the vegetables after they are harvested, there are plans in the works for a Michigan cellar, which is a cool, dark area where the harvest is stored underground.

The picture above is great. I took this picture the other day while on site. Usually, when I tell people I saw a bunch of chicks , they think I mean something else. This bunch of chicks arrived in the mail from Iowa...yes, I said the mail. The homeowner brought them out to the site along with a group of ducklings and all of us gathered around to see them. These chicks will grow up to be egg layers, which the homeowner will sell and use for her family. That is cool! That is sustainable! The ducks will provide the family with eggs and also will be a source of sustanance. Along with the ducks and chickens, the homeowner intends on having goats, pigs, and anything else she sees fit to raise out on her land. I have approached her to raise a pig for me that I will ultimately use to feed our crews. I love it!

The homeowner has had this vision of a sustainable life for a long time. I am happy to have helped her, along with our crews, create a sustainble home that will compliment her incredibly sustainble lifestyle. I applaud her for all she is doing, it is not only 'cool', but it is a great story for others to spread the word about. She is setting a positive example, an example I hope others will follow.

Great job, I am proud of you and wish you the best of luck!!

I think we did it!

Over the past few days, Mike Holcomb and I have been getting the energy efficiency rating of our Vineyard Project together. The HERs score is basically a rating of how energy efficient a home is based on a number of things, including a blower door test, the HVAC system, energy usage, and so on. The HERs rating is what is used to qualify a home for the Energy Star Rating. The rating is based off of a home that was rated originally tested and used as the test case. Most homes that qualify for Energy Star homes come in around at about a HERs rating of 80. That means that those houses are 20% more energy efficient than the test house. This is really good and a step in the right direction.

Most of our houses have been scoring in the 50's, which is where we would expect the to fall. This HERS score qualifies our homes as 5 star+ in the Energy Star rating system.

The Vineyard Project came in at a remarkably low score (low is good). As many know, I am a firm beleiver is Kaizan, or continuous improvemet. I want each house we build to be as energy efficient as possible for the budget. It would be less of a challenge to build a super tight house if we had a huge budget, but it doesn't work that way.

The Vineyard Project obtained a HERs score of 34!! According to our research to this point, that is the best HERs score ever achieved in the State of Michigan. This extremely low HERs score means that our Vineyard Project is now projected at the Platinum Level under the LEED for Homes program. Both Eric and I are very excited about this.

The reason this is such huge news, is because this house now proves to every other builder out there that you can build a tight house and still keep the prices down. Before the $22,000 in tax credits that this house qualifies for, the cost was at $136 a square foot. There is nothing on this house that is not custom and it also has geo thermal, solar hot water system, and almost 4kW of PV Solar. After the tax credits, the house nets about $126 a square foot. That is crazy! For that price, why wouldn't homeowners demand that their builders get them solar or geo thermal for their budget?

I am fired up, and watch what type of attention we get for this. I am now going to go on the cirquit and explain why I think builders have the ethical responsibility to offer these important sustainable options on the homes they build for their clients....

Rock on!

A pleasant suprise

Just yesterday, down in Scott's Michigan, I was working on something (a secret) on one of our projects down there, and the owner of the drywall company we use walked up to me and said "so, your green, right?". I looked down at my arms and made sure I had not turned any shades of colors that are not my own, as I answered, "Dark green brother!" (I prefer 'sustainable' or something close to that, but since he caught me off guard, I thought that I would see what he was getting at.)

I got up off of the floor, where I had just ripped my brand new pair of work pants, and walked towards him. That is when he handed me an empty tube of drywall adhesive that he had been using on this house and the past house he did for us. Right away, I saw a green leaf on the bottom of the empty adhesive tube and got excited. I asked him to tell me about the adhesive, and he started his sentence, something like this, "Since I know what you stand for, I searched this adhesive out and actually used it on the little house out back. My wife has been pushing me to get into this green movement and we thought it would be a great opportunity to get started on that track. Here is an empty tube for you to take with you."

To that, I responded, "Wow, Chris, I know I mentioned that we wanted to use low or no V.O.C. ahesives or paints whenever possible, but you took that ball and ran with it. Do you know why it is important to have the drywall adhesive be low to no V.O.C.?" To which he replied "Because of the off gasing through out the years. It is one of the reasons people can get sick in their homes." For those of you who know me, could you not see me clapping at that point? I was blindsided in a good way by his comment and that he looked around the house to find me to show me that tube!Bravo! A very valued Team Member indeed!

It wasn't very long ago, that Eric Hughes and I were out knocking on our supplier's doors trying to get green products from them. They did not even kow what we were talking about. Now, I have our drywaller, walking in to find me, putting up with me blowing my nose and sneezing to make sure that I knew that this house and any other house that they did or do for us is safe! Indoor air quaility is huge, we almost said that at the exact same time.

I was absolutely blown away by what I saw yesterday, and it gives me an renewed hope in this industry! I can almost gaurantee that the drywaller will take what he has learned to other builders and help them keep their clients safe by using low to no v.o.c. products in their homes. I was so excited yesterday......

My Favorite House.

First off, welcome to my blog! I figured that this would be the best way to connect with everyone. This blog will give me an opportunity to post stories and information from my life as the Hybrid Home Guy.

Over the last 5 years, I have had the wonderful opportunity of building a number of cutting edge projects that others had never before seen to that point. I had built ICF homes before suppliers, inspectors, and other builders ever knew what ICF stood for. Then, after being called crazy and lots of other things, I started mastering the art of SIP's and working to make sure the connection points were addressed in the quest to build the tightest house possible. Recently, I was able to prove to the world that I could build a house that was advanced framed, around 160k and that it would be tighter than any other house in that price range. It has been very fun and rewarding in deed to build this variety of houses.

Since I seem to never pass up a challenge, I am now interested in building homes with straw clay, Earth Shelter houses, and anything else that comes my way. The biggest problem is having enough time to do all of the projects that are before us. But, I am getting that figured out.

Recently, I was asked by a client, "What is your favorite house out of all of them that you built?" This was a great question and one that the client asked in front of the homeowner's in the home that we were touring. What was I going to say? I bet there are people out there who wonder how I was going to answer that, especially with a Hybrid Alumnist present.

This was my answer: "Please have a seat because this is going to take some time to answer. That is a very good question, consider this: I am not a parent, and I have no idea what it is like to raise children. But, I am quite certain that I have a pretty good idea that if you asked a parent who has several children, their reponse to a question of "which one is your favorite" would be something like what my response would be to the question that started this posting. Imagine if you will, that I have 19 children who are scattered all over the State of Michigan and are off all ages. Each of these children has at least one trait that makes them special. Each of these children also have traits that may make them farther advanced than the others, but all were raised to lessen their load on the planet, be sustainable, and most importantly provide a safe and enjoyable life to anyone that comes in contact with them. Of course, I am talking about the Hybrid Homes that I and my Team have built all over the State of Michigan."

Would I dodge this question of which home is my favorite? Could I even answer a question like that without just saying, they are all my favorite? Well, it is true, I love them all and every house that I have built or remodeled has a piece of me in it. I am very proud of every house I have ever been involved with. I leave each project with something special that I personally built or installed and that let's me leave with a feeling of confidence, acheivement, and pride that only comes from putting your all into doing something well.

I continued, "I know this still hasn't answered your question of which is my favorite. That is definately a tough question because we have so many projects at so many different stages. I can tell you what I like about each place that we have finished recently and then tell you which one of those project I think is the most sustainable based on the homeoowner's lifestyle. And that is what I will do."

(side note: any homeowners of ours that are reading this, do know that I feel strongly about every home and that I love them all equally)

• "When I built the first Hybrid House in Shelby Michigan, we were so far ahead of anyone else, that we had to pave the way. That house has split stone from the land, is all ICF, has miles of tongue and groove pine in it and will forever remain closest to my heart, because it was my first. Together with the homeowner, we built that house from the ground up, and did it for such a low price, it made me rethink how projects are priced. It uses very little propane to heat the house and is in a location that is incredible. This house kickstarted the green movement in Michigan because it got people's attention!"

"Another house that will forever be near to my Heart is the house in Onekama, Michigan. This house blew green building in Michigan out of the water! When you talk about blood sweat and tears, this project were all those and more! One of the things that happened there was when the township blind sided us with a notice of violation reagarding the wind generator that we had just put up. The meetings were almost every week for about 6 monthes. I had locals calling me a renegade and others calling me a hero. In Onekama for a 6 month period, I could not walk into any of the stores or restaurants without getting evil stares, or pats on the back. This was such a tough time because no one was there to help with the finances it took to survive this unfortunate ordeal. Onekama helped define the person I am today and although I am not there right now, the house we built there remains and is a symbol of prosperity and advancement. This house was the main attraction of the Michigan Energy Fair for two years in a row and it has won every award there is to win! Governor Granholm went to the house to see what all the hype was. This house was built at a time when everyone in our state was wondering what Green was. This house paved the way for all those in this state who are either working towards a more sustainable business/lifestyle, or who poppped out of the wood work to jump on the green band wagon. The Onekama house is one of my prized children who has acheived amazing things! This house has a wind generator and also a solar hot water system."

"Once a person achieves success in a project, it usually means that their star will burn out, because of the work it takes to go through an ordeal like the Onekama Project, and not wanting to go through the same kind of things again. I knew this and I tried so hard to make sure that the follow up house to the Onekama house would be more advanced, or at least as cutting edge as the Onekama House was. Que the Vineyard Project. The Vineyard Project came at a time when we were mobilizing out of Onekama, had just finished some green remodeling projects and were ready to get back to business. It also meant that after about 4 monthes, we had to go back on the road and start all over in a different community. What I found out on this project, is the power of a Team of people instead of just building a house with two people. I was happy with the over all progress of the house but learned many more things on this project that would help me develop into a better leader. There were areas that we improved on with this house and in the end, this house turned out amazing! One of the most amazing things to happen, is the addition of 3.3kW of solar voltiacs on this home which provides over 85% of the electricity used in the home! With the addition of this PV and the solar hot water system, this made the Vineyard Project our most sustainable project to date! It will most likely win many awards like the Onekama House did, but it was most definately an answer to the question, what would we do next. I am very proud of this house, not only because of it being one of the most sustainable homes on the planet, but because it answered the lingering question inside me, "Will I have it in me to build another house like Onekama?"

"While we were building the Vineyard Project, we started a few other projects. The Watercress Project started about the same time as the Vineyard Project and it provided an outlet for the creative juices that flow threw my veins. This house was also to be an answer to the Onekama House in regards to that lingering question inside of me. Starting from the beginning, this project had challenges, most notably, the size of the lot and the two streams that came out from under where the house was to stand. What was so unique about this house, besides how sustainable and energy efficient it is, is that we had a chance to reuse items in it and also to use the trees from the lot inside the home. We had a larger Team on this project than any previous project. We had an interior designer, among others, who was there to direct what we did inside. I was able to talk them into using trees inside the cottage and together we found ways to use the cedar, cherry, and maple lumber that we harvested from the building site. Although, this house is not in a real good position to use renewable energy, it is still very sustainable and a place that is absolutely custom and amazing! There are approximately 30 custom features in this house, including custom built-ins, custom bar, custom handrail system, and so much more. This place is right on a lake and will forever stand as a symbol of sustainability, art, and harmony in a setting that is just out right incredible."

I have to add, that I did not go into such great detail with the client I mentioned above, but I did make sure to let him know that I was very partial to all of the houses, including the 7 that we have going on right now. He was, however wanting to know the answer to his question, "Which house is your favorite?" I did tell him what house I thought was my, as some may say, favorite, but, for that answer, you will have to stay tuned to this blog................................