Stories about building sustainable homes

Started by Rose_sustainable, May 24, 2019, 11:42:12 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Rose_sustainable

Hello all! I am writing on behalf of a small television production company that is currently looking for stories about people who are planning to build/in the process of building sustainable homes in remote locations in the U.S. If you're interested in finding out more, please let me know and we can exchange contact info. Thank you!

Don_P

Hi Rose,  w*
Please define what you mean by sustainable home?
I generally consider any work of man to be inherently unsustainable  :D
Several of us are currently harvesting trees/sawing/drying for framing, sheathing, siding a small home for a friend who's house burned. We are using power equipment and cement and various industrially sourced products in the process, hence my question.


MountainDon

Sustainable Building Features. ... They provide the same benefits as conventional buildings, while simultaneously protecting the environment, improving human health and well-being, and conserving valuable resources like water and energy.   Something like that? ???

from UCLA....  "Sustainability is a complex concept. The most often quoted definition comes from the UN World Commission on Environment and Development: "sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." In the charter for the UCLA Sustainability Committee, sustainability is defined as: "the physical development and institutional operating practices that meet the needs of present users without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, particularly with regard to use and waste of natural resources. Sustainable practices support ecological, human, and economic health and vitality. Sustainability presumes that resources are finite, and should be used conservatively and wisely with a view to long-term priorities and consequences of the ways in which resources are used." In simplest terms, sustainability is about our children and our grandchildren, and the world we will leave them."   


Question that is in my mind.... is use of presnt foam insulation products 'sustainable'?  The manufacture of such products has some downsides (chemical use) but saves use of energy to heat and cool when done right.  ???
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

akwoodchuck

For the life of me, I can't figure out why polyester insulation, made from recycled plastic bottles, is not becoming more prevalent...
...usually every winter I end up with at least one dog bed getting left out in the backyard under the trees....I generally can't move them until mid-may or sometimes even June because they are frozen on top of a SOLID block of ice until then...that's good insulation! ....and water doesn't seem to bother it at all....
"The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne."

Dave Sparks

Well the #1 plastics in soda, drinking & ? are the only ones that we are paid for to recycle in my county in California. Everything else use to have a value until China stopped taking it.

This changes every month and gets worse. I think it goes into the landfill and some of it is hauled off to a Waste Management dump in the middle of nowhere. Very sad that this is going backwards.

To use #1 for insulation would need fire retardant. The wildfire danger is so high here because of bad forestry, the EPA, the endangered species act, the clean air act, that I would not use that in my attic.

California has 9 of 10 0f the most polluted cities in the US. The 39 million people and mountains that trap the pollution are the reasons. The most electric cars in the world and carbon credits are doing very little to change this. The wildfire pollution can be horrible.

Definitely need airtight cooling and an external source of power these days. On the bright side we are at near 60 " of rain and snow here in the mountains.
"we go where the power lines don't"


Don_P

AK's idea seemed cool, I did some googling. There are companies in NZ and UK doing it. Dow tried a version using virgin PET earlier in the decde as did another company using recycled content but they were discontinued, apparently they couldn't get enough sales at the price point required. None of them used a fire retardant, apparently it does pass flamespread and smoke developed without anything. One note I saw said that the fiber retreats from flame faster than it can ignite, yeah I'm a little skeptical too. The concept is cool, my uncle worked on the development of those fibers back in the 70's, I had a bag full of some early test material that he gave me to make camping gear.

I think you nailed one of the main problems with any discussion of sustainability Dave, basically we are at something like 7 or 8 times the number of people that this planet can actually support sustainably. I worry not for the planet, just as when rabbits overpopulate, it will solve that problem if we do not.

Look up NatureWorks Ingeo fiber, that is neat looking stuff. They are using plant based feedstocks to create a plastic that can be used pretty much in the same applications as oil based plastics. Rather than 600 million year old sequestered carbon they are using annually replenished feedstock that is absorbing CO2 rather than creating it. Also ran across a company experimenting with making an insulation board out of mushroom mycelium, they grow the board or bricks, pretty neat.

MountainDon

Quote from: Don_P on May 25, 2019, 09:12:24 PM


I think you nailed one of the main problems with any discussion of sustainability Dave, basically we are at something like 7 or 8 times the number of people that this planet can actually support sustainably.

Bingo! The heart of the matter....
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

Dave Sparks

The second thing I did not say was that the amount of people while very alarming, is one down from the bad decisions that the elected folks are making at statewide levels.

It is the unintended consequences of politicians and groups like the Sierra club who misinterpret or partially enforce Federal laws like Clean air act, Endangered species act, USDF, USDA, and ?

I watched a series on how Australia has been sending their plastics to Thailand and unlike China who was using alot of it, Thailand is just being paid for it and has no plan for even disposing in the landfill.

A guest speaker in town John R Mount had a book signing of his book Torching conventional forestry and the artful application of science. He has a place up in the mountains here where he teaches Cal Fire and US forest service how to make the land sustainable during wildfires. He has more spotted owls and other endangered species thriving in a forest that is maintained and logged for timber. Below is a link to the museum there that is on my bucket list for summer, if we don't have month long wildfires....

http://www.sierrahistorical.org/


"we go where the power lines don't"

NathanS

Just made me think of this great book I read over the winter, "Reading the Forested Landscape." In one section the ecologist talks about sustainable forestry, and that we don't actually know if it's possible to continually remove so much organic material and plant nutrients and continue to have a productive forests.

That's just one tiny, itty bitty, question in the 'sustainability' puzzle.


Dave Sparks

That may be true for many parts of the world but it certainly is known out west how bad the fires get each year that we do not remove the excess vegetation and trees.

It also is known that our policies have caused this mess we are in with wildfire. The town of Paradise lost 85 people last summer.

Definitely not sustainable because we can't afford to fight the fires.
"we go where the power lines don't"

MountainDon

Quote from: Dave Sparks on May 26, 2019, 09:37:55 AM
I watched a series on how Australia has been sending their plastics to Thailand and unlike China who was using alot of it, Thailand is just being paid for it and has no plan for even disposing in the landfill.

In 2013-2014 a private Canadian company shipped over a hundred containers full of what was supposed to be rcyclable plastics to the Philippines. . Many of the containers had a lot of regular household trash though. They have been sitting there and are now about to be repatriated to Canada. Wonder where it will go next?

Too many people too much trash. Too much plastic used for packaging too.
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

MountainDon

The originator of this thread, "Rose_sustainable" has not been back since making the OP.   :-\
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

Dave Sparks

Yes heard about the Canadian recycling ??? 2.5 inches of rain yesterday here and heading for 80+ this week. Really late spring.

It seems like alot of folks are not participating in the forums like they use to. Probably all on youtube?

We are ready for annual insurance shopping for fire insurance again. Some years we get it and some we don't. Too expensive and I would rather put the money into more fire hardening. Last year we had Lloyds of London cary us for 2,2K. Just want to be able to roll in a manufactured home if this one goes. Too old to do this again.

It is sad to me that 5+ years ago they would look at us on google earth. Now they just look at the zip code and say no. We were told about 3 years ago that the insurance companies were going to start doing inspections. That has not happened. They could care less if the home is well defended. They will insure places in town that are fire traps.

Happy Memorial day! Might head into town and see the Parade. Have a good one!
"we go where the power lines don't"

MountainDon

Quote from: Dave Sparks on May 27, 2019, 09:20:49 AM
It seems like alot of folks are not participating in the forums like they use to. Probably all on youtube?

I have not been a consistent user of a great many forums over long periods of time. But, yes, in general it does seem that forums are declining in popularity. Some of that is due to youtube and facebook I believe. The flashlight forum I use is the most active of the few different ones I follow. But most others have lost the bustle they once had.


Insurance... here if you are not in the developed area where there is a volunteer fire department located the insurance companies we have contacted all have said No.  Three big fires in 6 years.  Sort of can't blame them I guess. OTOH, the combination of the recent fires and the last couple of years of extensive thinning has decreased the danger some.  This year has been a much better (wetter) start than last year. Last year they locked the forest up after Memorial Day.
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.


Dave Sparks

My agent said that Lloyds will not commit to renew, cancel, or raise the policy cost until a week before expiration. Great service huh :(

Trying something new here this year for weed wacking the 200 feet around the house. I am using a 75$ Ryobi electric weed wacker or line trimmer.
It has a 10a 120 volt ac motor. Very powerful and I use 200 feet of extension cord with #12 wire.

I was pretty happy with it until I switched to the best line that Echo makes. It is called black diamond and wow! What an amazing line. It has little razor like edges and it really hard to cut compare to Echo crossfire line (orange)

The late spring has alot of green grass and I am running out of time before the heat comes on. The Ryobi and black diamond line cuts better than my big gas echo and with free electricity, no maintenance, and no pulling to start. I am extremely impressed. I also do not have the wrist and elbow pains and do not need hearing protection or dealing with 2 stroke fuel/oil. I thought the extension cord would be a pain but it really is not.

I can buy 4+ of the Ryobi for what one Echo costs. Talk about sustainability :P    I have about 20 hours on it.
"we go where the power lines don't"

MountainDon

Quote from: Dave Sparks on May 31, 2019, 07:03:19 PM
My agent said that Lloyds will not commit to renew, cancel, or raise the policy cost until a week before expiration. Great service huh :(


Nothing like leaving things hanging until the 11th hour.  Good luck.

Trimmer sounds great
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.

JRR

I use a very old gas nylon line weed trimmer.   If I really put it to heavy use in thick brush and weeds, the nylon line will overheat and fuse itself together inside the spool,  therefore ceasing to feed properly and then breaking.  I tried many lubrication schemes ... and finally stumbled onto foot powder.   A liberal application of (outlawed) talc powder during the reloading of the spool extends the life of the line very much.

Dave Sparks

If you want to save some foot powder try the Speed Feed by Echo. The Ryobi also has their form of it.

You will never go back once you try one. Just line up the holes, run 20 feet of line 1/2 way through, wind it and your ready to go. Nothing has to come apart and fall on the ground. The kit is universal but standard on Echo line trimmers.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/ECHO-Speed-Feed-400-Universal-Trimmer-Head-99944200907/204159249
"we go where the power lines don't"

JRR

That is a clever looking design.  I would like to take a look inside.  Its on my list.

The Stihl 2-2 head that I now use is a bit long in tooth.  But I like the rugged long wearing pieces and the twin line spool chamber feature.