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First LEED certified home in Grand Traverse County.

Post author By admin
Post date March 18, 2010

This home received 5+ Energy Star certification and a HERS score of 52. This home will be 48% more efficient than typical construction of a similar home of this size. In addition this homes toilets, faucets and shower heads are super low-flow for superior water efficiency. The home also has low-VOC paints, adhesives and finishes and uses recycled content for the flooring, decking, foundation and siding. Every possible piece of residual material used in construction was recycled. Click here to view project profile.

The home was designed by Eric A. Hughes of Image Design LLC, a national awarding winning sustainable residential design firm based out of Grand Rapids Michigan and built by the national award winning builder Joel Diotte of Frontier Construction based out of Maple City, Michigan. This home is one of 86 Michigan projects that have been certified under the LEED for Homes program, the 27th home to receive LEED “Gold” certification and the first LEED certified home in Grand Traverse County.

It was built on a pristine 60 acre parcel in Kingsley Michigan, with the home situated in the middle of a 40 acre field next to a hill of granite boulders, thus giving it the project name. This home is a site specific, Passive Solar Arts & Craft style home built with BuildBlock ICF (Insulated Concrete Forms) for all of the bearing walls. The exterior elevations of the home were designed with deeper roof overhangs, determined by using solar calculations, to both maximize and minimize the sun exposure based on the time of year. The exterior used two of our favorite products James Hardie FiberCement Siding and Andersen 400 series double-hung and awning windows. The interior of the home has stained concrete floor and re-claimed tile on main level of the home which makes for great thermal mass. The home was also designed with lifetime design principles and has zero step entries. Click Here to View Project Profile

Part of the site specific design was to locate the future detached garage/barn to act as a wind break, to stop snow drifting from the northwest prevailing winds that we have here in Michigan. Part of the passive solar design of this home was to pay close attention to detail on the south side of the home, where most of the homes windows face south. In the winter, the sun will warm the living space during the day and shine on the concrete floors on the main levels which will store some of the heat gained, for gradual release. The roof overhang will shade the house from excessive solar heat gain in the summer, and west-facing glass is minimized to reduce cooling needs in the summer. ICF construction was perfect for this project because of its exposed building location.

The project is designed to be Zero Energy Home (ZEH), Net Zero and a Carbon Neutral Home thanks to the Passive Solar Design, Tulikivi Masonary Unit Heater, Solar Hot Water, the future installation of Photovoltaic’s and a Wind Generator that the home is pre-wired for. The home has no mechanical heating or cooling system. Passive solar heating is complemented with the Tulikivi masonry unit heater (That also has a bake oven) and baseboard electric heat, resulting in a Zero Carbon Emissions Home that does not rely on any fossil fuels. The Tulikivi fireplace is its healthy radiant heat output and use of a local, renewable, carbon neutral fuel – wood. Tulikivi fireplaces supersede the strictest air quality standards in the world. Typical wood-burning

fireplaces send the majority of their heat up the chimney; not so with a Tulikivi. The soapstone soaks up the fire’s heat as it burns, stores it and then gently and steadily releases it for 12-24 hours even after the fire is out. Tulikivi is recognized by the Finnish Allergy and Asthma Federation as a heating option for those households where asthma or allergies are a key concern, due to the extremely low particle and helping our project earn points toward its LEED certification.

Notable Highlights:
Rain Permeable Gravel Driveway. Property (60 acres) is managed for wildlife habitat and water quality. Lifetime Design (Barrier Free) Zero step entries. Energy Star Andersen 400 Series Windows. Energy Star LED & CFL lighting. Energy Star Ceiling Fans. Energy Star Appliances. Energy Star rated Kasselwood metal roof shingle (with 30% recycled material) Soy Based Open Cell Wall & Attic Insulation. Advanced Framing (Studs @ 24” o.c.) BuildBlock ICF Construction (with 40% Fly-Ash) James Hardie FiberCement siding Concrete Countertops Locally Harvested Hardwood Floors Re-Use Tile Floors Concrete Floors (Stained) No-VOC Paints and primers. Low-VOC caulks and sealants. Finger Jointed Studs on all interior walls. FSC certified woods. FSC certified Kitchen Cabinets. Duel-Flush toilet by TOTO. Re-Use Tub & Sink Low flow shower heads and faucets. Pex Plumbing. Radon Venting. SunTouch® electric radiant heated floor mats ERV (energy recovery ventilator) Tulikivi Masonry Unit Heater (30% Tax Rebate for 75% Efficient Bio-mass Burning Stoves) Passive Solar Design. Solar Hot Water. (30% Tax Rebate) Pre-wired for future Photovoltaic’s Pre-wired for a future Wind Generator.

Click here to view/download project profile.

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Pella ProExpo offers snapshot of local industry

Post author By admin
Post date March 3, 2010

Pella Window and Doors is hosting an industry expo on March 18 called the ProExpo. It should prove to be indicator of the homebuilding industry, bringing together many exhibitors, and educational sessions on topics such as:

Why Pella?
Transform your market
Wind load codes and testing standards
The Future of Remodeling (keynote by Steve Case)
Window replacement for commercial buildings
Kitchen design with cooking in mind
Top remodelers speak out: industry forum
Residential and commercial construction trends
Greening the bottom line
Universal design

Bonus – It’s being held at Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears!

Here are the details:

March 18, 2010
3:00 – 8:00 PM

Cost: FREE

Registration required

Tags Education and Events, expo

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Case Study: Andersonville LEED Gut Rehab project

Post author By admin
Post date February 27, 2010

On a cold February day, Alphonso Peluso from Vertex Architects LLC, laughed when asked about his motivations for pursuing LEED certification. “We were doing all of the right things anyway, so we figured why not get LEED-certified as well?”

Peluso was showing a group of LEED for Homes advocates around his second LEED for Homes project in Illinois, during one of ‘ monthly LEED for Homes tours. Peluso has previously designed and built 277 Pheasant Ln., Illinois’ first single-family home in Bloomingdale, IL, which was certified as LEED Silver. His latest project is an ambitious gut rehab of one of the oldest structures in Chicago’s Andersonville neighborhood.

The 1883 farmhouse has had just three owners, but needed significant rehabilitation. After some hand-wringing, the owners decided to strip off all interior finishes and rebuild the house from the studs, modernizing it in the process. This presented an opportunity to create a new “shell” and vastly improve the home’s energy efficiency. Open-cell spray foam was used to create a strong air barrier and thermal envelope.

The home will be heated with in-floor hydronic radiant tubing, powered by a high-efficiency boiler. For the summer months, three small 1.2-ton air conditioners are used. Measuring just 8″ tall, there are two servicing the top floor, and one servicing the first floor. The split-system air conditioners are extremely efficient, and run off of a split-system condenser. Alphonso explained that the electrician installing the condensor had to call him twice to ensure that a single 20-amp circuit breaker would be sufficient. The power demands are so low, that indeed, it is sufficient.

Since the building envelope will be so tight, there is also a ducted energy recovery ventilator (ERV) being installed in the house, which will serve as a central exhaust system and exchange the stale air in the house with fresh air. Peluso elaborated, “Cross ventilation is always a major part of our designs and by placing operable windows in all corners of the building, it allows for passive cooling during the summer months.” The roof will be a 50-year metal standing-seam with a high reflectance value, which can be recycled at the end of life cycle.

This gut-rehab project is a fantastic example of how LEED can be done affordably. The 2,200 square foot home is targeting the LEED-certified level, and is being constructed for under $100 per square foot. The money is being spent smartly on items like the building shell, which won’t be easy to change in the future. There are no renewable energy systems being installed, but the pipes and conduit will be run to accommodate future expansion. The home was built on the existing foundation, with one small cantilevered bump-out for what will be the dining room.

Another interesting feature are the high-performing windows, chosen as Pella’s Impervia line of windows. These windows use a composite frame instead of wood making them less expensive, but still achieve U-values less than 0.30. To make the windows appear more architecturally interesting, Peluso specified that the exterior be trimmed out in stainless steel flashing. When combined with the ceder siding, the end result should be quite impressive.

5354 N. Paulina Specs:

Icynene open-cell spray foam
Pella Impervia Windows
Mitsubishi Mr Slim Split System Air Conditioning
ERV RenewAire: EV 200
Radiant Heat Boiler: Solo 110 BTU
Rinnai Tankless Water Heater: R98LSi

We look forward to keeping track of the home’s progress as it becomes closer to completion, and thank Mr. Peluso for opening the doors to give us a glimpse of a LEED for Homes gut-rehab in progress. Visit the Vertex Architects LLC web site for more information. Learn more about LEED for Homes in Illinois.

Vertex Architects LLC

Tags gut rehab, LEED certified, vertex arch

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New analysis: Green Homes Outsell the Market

Post author By admin
Post date February 25, 2010

In a real estate market such as this, any edge helps. What if your home sold for 9.1% percent more than the competition? Why might a home do this you ask – because it is a certified green home, such as a LEED home.

Real estate professionals have anecdotally reported for years that Green homes sell faster and for more money than traditional (brown) homes. Now there is additional hard market data to support this, from an area that has had a Green MLS for quite a few years: Seattle. And the data is recent – up to January 2010.

Here’s the full article and report:
http://www.djc.com/news/en/12015059.html

Similar to the ability northern Illinois agents now have, real estate agents in Seattle can note whether a home has certifications from Built Green, Energy Star, LEED for Homes or other third-party verification. Agents can also download the certification as an attached document to the listing.

As a result these Environmentally-certified (“e-certified) homes have had some trend analysis done. There is a great accompanying graph showing trends in the Seattle area. It reveals that:

“certified green homes made up 33 percent of the new home market, sold for a 9.1 percent premium per square foot and were on the market for 24 percent less time. Further, from November 2009 through January 2010, King County non-certified homes continued to decrease in value as certified home values increased.”

Most interesting from a valuation perspective from this article is the following:

“It was eye-opening for appraisers to hear that in July 2009, two years of steady growth in market share of green homes culminated in over 49 percent of new homes sold that month with a certification. Over 50 percent, and appraisers will be required to discount any home that is not green, as that will have become the [new] market norm.”

So why are people (aka. the Market) paying for third party certification of their homes? The reasons vary among items such as the improved comfort and energy efficiency, the health of the home, and the durability and lower maintenance.

Granted, this data is from the Pacific Northwest market, not Illinois. But since Northern Illinois recently implemented a green MLS, this could be a picture of future trends a year or two down the road, once some market transactions start occurring.

These are exciting times for Illinois green building and LEED homes! For the full report, please visit: http://www.djc.com/news/en/12015059.html

Tags appraisal, green value, mls, real estate

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Nearly Free Seminars: Demystifying LEED for Homes

Post author By admin
Post date February 18, 2010

Before the ground completely thaws and the building season kicks off, Chicago’s local LEED for Homes provider, the Green Home Institute, is launching a series of green building seminars around the Chicagoland area.

The class, titled Demystifying LEED for Homes for Building Professionals, is a comprehensive overview of the LEED for Homes green building rating system. The class will discuss how LEED homes are healthier, more comfortable, and have lower utility bills. Common myths about LEED such as cost and complexity will be dispelled and the benefits of the LEED for Homes rating system will be featured, using local Chicago projects as case studies. The syllabus is:

Part I: Residential Green Building
Part II: Overview of LEED for Homes
Part III: LEED for Homes Rating System
Part IV: Unique Considerations in LEED for Homes
Part V: Getting it Done: The LEED for Homes Process
Part VI: Documentation
Part VII: Cost of LEED for Homes
Part VIII: Benefits of LEED Homes

Each class is 2 hours long, with an hour afterwards for a networking lunch. The following dates and locations are scheduled:

Dates:
March 9, Bolingbrook
March 9, East Peoria (via USGBC Chapter)
March 16, Evanston
April 6, Chicago Loop
April 30, Elgin *
May 18, West Chicago

* = tentative

Time: 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Fee: $10.00 (includes lunch)

Tags courses, demystifying, Education and Events, leed for homes, seminars

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Tour: Chicago LEED Home built with ICFs

Post author By admin
Post date February 2, 2010

Attention: April Tour

Our april tour information is listed HERE.

February tour:

Ever wonder what goes into making a LEED home? Now is your chance to tour a home going through the LEED for Homes program that is substantially complete, pending final testing and verification. And best of all, the tour is free, scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 27.

Illinois LEED for Homes project targeting LEED Silver

This unique project includes features such as:

* constructed with Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs)
* Paperstone rainscreen facade
* recycled plastic decking
* geothermal heat pump system
* vegetative green roof
* dual-flush toilets
* and more!

Join us on Saturday, Feb 27 at 10:30 AM for a tour of this unique green home located in Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood. Address will be sent in the e-mail confirmation.

This home has not yet been certified, but a LEED Silver level is anticipated.

Start Date: Feb 27, 2009
Start Time: 10:30
Price: FREE

Tags chicago, LEED Silver, tour

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LEED for Homes Myth #3: The costs are expensive

Post author By admin
Post date February 1, 2010

Recently, many people have told me they thought a LEED for Homes certification was going to cost many thousands of dollars – even over $10,000. This simply isn’t true, at least not when using the Green Home Institute () as the LEED for Homes Provider. So let’s bust this myth.

If a quality homebuilder knows a little about green design and construction, and is already doing many efficient construction practices (which often means Quality building), there isn’t a big step to construct a LEED-certified house. To borrow a pun, they are already close to Leading in Energy and Environmental Design, particularly if they review our 22 tips to earn 70+ points. Now, there may be some design-related costs outside of LEED – such as installing renewable energy system – but that is not required for LEED certification. Many builders such as Habitat for Humanity are able to build multiple LEED homes at no extra construction cost.

Let’s look over the actual LEED certification-related fees for a typical single-family home. When using as the LEED for Homes Provider, there are four required fees:

single-family home fee: $650
USGBC Registration fee: $150 / $225 (depending on USGBC membership)
Green Rater fee: Varies based on scope of work, typically $1700, +/- $300
USGBC Certification fee upon completion: $225 / $300 (depending on USGBC membership)

Total typical fees: Around $3,000 — often a fraction of a typical single-family home’s construction budget (and often less than the cost of countertops!). Of course, every home is different, but this is a typical single-family home project.

There may be optional fees if the project team would like a full-day design meeting or assistance with documentation. But the prices above reflect the minimum required fees to build a LEED-certified single-family home.

In summary, the costs are a small price to pay for the third-party verification that your home was properly constructed correctly to match an intended green building design. Typical code officials or home inspectors can’t give the same peace of mind on the home’s actual performance as the thorough work a professional LEED for Homes Green Rater can provide with their extensive training in building science. Other benefits include the ability to get an energy-efficient mortgage using the Green Rater’s report, since ENERGY STAR for Homes is basically a prerequisite for a LEED Home. Also, green homes have reduced home insurance, and higher property value now that we see many real estate MLS going green. Prospective home buyers can now look for third-party certification, such as a LEED-certified home.

The fees can be even less for multi-family homes or production-built homes that become LEED certified, due to the economies of scale on the reviewing and verification side.

If you’re located in the US and would like to use as your LEED for Homes Provider, get a free quote. For more information, or to receive a custom proposal for your project, call 888-533-3274 or email info@alliancees.org.

Tags benefits, Common Myths, costs, Economics, leed for homes

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Northbrook rebates permit fees for LEED buildings

Post author By admin
Post date January 18, 2010

The Village of Northbrook has a great incentive program for green building. to promote Green building techniques in public and private sector construction projects, they are giving rebates for LEED-certified buildings.

Northbrook uses the LEED rating system to distinguish different levels of sustainability in construction projects. In turn, for building green, there is a rebate for Covered Permit Fees (permits issued by Northbrook’s Building & Development Department for new buildings, additions, demolitions, alterations and site work) based on the LEED rating of the project.

LEED Certification
Rating		Permit Fee Rebate
Certified		10%
Silver		20%
Gold		30%
Platinum		40%

Bonus: if you’re one of the first LEED-certified buildings in a property class, the permit fee is completely waived!

So builders, what are you waiting for? Here is a link to Northbrook’s Green page, where Green Building Incentives are covered. Or click here to view the full green building incentive policy.

Tags benefits, Economics, incentives, municipal

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Tour: Gut Rehab LEED Home and Green Garage

Post author By admin
Post date January 11, 2010

Tour a home going through a green gut-rehab on January 22. Located in the Bucktown neighborhood of Chicago, this LEED for Homes Registered project is resusing as much of the original 1890s structure as possible. The gut-rehab project is targetting LEED Platinum, and includes a Green Garage with a solar-powered awning providing power to the construction team. Learn more about this building at the project web site.

Chicago LEED for Homes Gut Rehab and Green Garage

The tour is Friday, January 22 at 2:00 PM. Reservations required.

The tour will include both the green garage, as well as the main building currently completing the building envelope.

Note: This is an active worksite and the tour will consist of climbing ladders. Dress appropriately for the weather.

Reserve your spot for the Tour

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LEED Homeowners: Save 5% on Green Home Insurance

Post author By admin
Post date January 7, 2010

There are two types of green insurance policies for homeowners.

One covers buildings that already meet stringent efficiency and sustainability standards. The other offers the option to replace any losses incurred on the property with more environmentally sensitive materials.

Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co. of Novato, Calif., was one of the first companies to introduce homeowners policies that feed into consumer desire to make homes more energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable. For people who already own LEED-certified homes, Fireman’s offers a 5-percent discount off regular annual insurance premiums, saving homeowners around $100 per year.

For people who don’t own green-certified properties, several insurers are introducing an option that allows homeowners to replace any property losses with more eco-friendly options. Farmers Insurance of Los Angeles recently introduced an option it calls “Eco-Rebuild” that is available as an addition — or endorsement in insurance lingo — to a regular homeowner’s policy for $25 or 2 percent of the annual premium. In the event of a loss, the Eco-Rebuild endorsement means Farmers will pay extra to replace your old kilowatt-hungry appliances with Energy-Star devices and recycle debris, rather than send destroyed materials straight to a landfill.

More information at http://www.bankrate.com

Tags green economics, insurance

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