Last Look At Prefab Zero Energy House Kit Before Framing

I headed for the hills mid-week to take a last look at the prefab house kit before interior framing begins. I admit I fear I might miss the look of the structural insulated panels (SIP)! You might have seen in the previous post my aunt left the particle board "as is" in her own gorgeous home (3rd video down in the post), and I find it appealing.

If we hadn't already found the gorgeous, recycled VMI floorboards to reuse in our interior, along with other recycled finds, I would be seriously considering just painting the SIPs on the inside and calling it a day.



Here's a video of a last walk through the wide open / no interior SIPs prefab house kit:
(I'm sure it will take awhile to download, I tend to go on and on a bit...



Once interior walls are built, the off grid energy efficient systems will be installed: solar energy and heat, rainwater collection and filtration, and more. I guess I will no longer say I'll be "camping" in the house kit... : )
Instead, we'll simply be off grid, zero energy, prefab-ulously done.

 

We're Baaaaaaaaaack... Now Off To Visit The Prefab House Kit.

Told ya I'd be quiet. The past two weeks were incredibly busy- our eldest braved his first sailing camp (and did great, as a proper pirate should), there was a huge family reunion at the Bay, my work deadlines have been overwhelming, as well as volunteer things like Green Drinks that I enjoy but takes time to plan/organize.

Instead of telling you all about it, I'll just throw in some pictures, below, and move on:

We go to the house kit today, so I will take plenty more pictures.
Bad news: Our framing got behind a kitchen renovation project our contractor is doing.
Bad news: He planned to start interior framing today, which is when I am heading out with chilluns, dawgs, and a plethora of chaos, so will have to postpone starting framing to next week. I couldn't change my dates there as there is a tv station that wants to see the house kit tomorrow.

Good news: Systems plans are done. That means we can get quotes from the electrician and plumber to install them. Systems information will be posted next week.

Soooooo... Here's some pictures from Richmond's Green Drinks:


And from the Bay, where our next generation takes the helm to become a sailor:


And then last weekend: Another round of sailing camp, but also check out my aunt's passive solar house with concrete thermal mass, roll up garage doors, and upstairs, recycled particle board for the finished flooring! What a cool aunt! : )


Phew.
So you see, it has been a busy June.

But I am now ready to finish this frickin' prefab zero energy house kit!
Next posts will muse on more (in great detail- Handsome Hubby will guest blog here) about the off grid systems and then start talking about reuse and recycling in interior design, and we have some fabulous landscape architecture coming your way.

In the meantime I will be taking more pictures and video of the prefab house kit today / tomorrow so you can see how it holds up on hot summer days.

 

Why We Not Only Need To Have Prime Agricultural Zoning, But Need To Viligantly Protect It

As you all know, I could go on and on (and often do!) about smart growth and preservation. But Nicole Anderson Ellis outlines much more succinctly and beautifully why Central Virginia and counties *everywhere* need to not only maintain their Prime Agricultural zoning, but protect it. We have seen firsthand the planning disasters that destroyed local farmland to turn western Henrico and surrounding areas into Anywhere, USA.

Let me say first: My big frustration with my encounters with my local government is that:

As a web developer, it is my job to keep up with technology trends and the latest information. My clients and my reputation depends upon it.

As a green building company, it is MY JOB to stay abreast of green building.
Yes, a note to developers and others who will jump to criticize that we're "anti-development" / progress freaks: My business is green building. I am not anti-development, I am anti mass grading, anti "I don't care about Smart Growth," anti "I am going to bulldoze and thrust up a development of homes that are inefficient with no existing need into a saturated market." I am anti doing something, anything, for which there is not an obvious need.

Do I serve a viable purpose in the building industry? Yes. How 'bout yourself?

It seems that the Board of Supervisors, as well as Richmond city council, and much of Virginia, do not look to what their peers are doing nationwide, do not expand their knowledge base to reach out to Smart Growth, preservation of farmland, and sustainability: this is their JOB.

Regarding the need for huge development locally, I see tract after tract of failed, outdated, unwanted development projects. I see house after house for sale in existing neighborhoods. I see inadequate infrastructure. I see row after row of empty retail space.

In yesterday's Times-Dispatch, Mrs. Ellis wrote:

LAND USE: To Pave or Save Henrico’s Farmland?

NICOLE ANDERSON ELLIS TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST
Published: June 5, 2009

NICOLE ANDERSON ELLIS On Tuesday, June 9, at 7 p.m. Henrico County's Board of Supervisors is holding a hearing for public feedback on the latest version of Henrico's draft 2026 Comprehensive Land Use Plan. They call it the county's "road map for growth."

At the same meeting, having supposedly weighed citizen input, the board "will consider adoption of the proposed 2026 comprehensive plan."

If the board does adopt it, for the first time in 400 years Henrico would not have a single acre of Prime Agricultural land. At least, not according to the land use map. Instead, the county's fields would be labeled "Rural Residential/Prime Ag." The draft also suggests that massive residential/retail construction is the best use -- in fact, the final use -- for thousands of acres of fertile riverfront land, America's first farms.

The changes encouraged by this "road map" would have certain consequences -- the loss of landscapes familiar to generations, rural roads clogged with traffic, etc. -- felt most sharply in the county's east end. Yet there are broader ramifications. And despite suggestions that this land use draft is a Varina problem, there is clear, quantified, and county-wide opposition to the proposed destruction of Henrico's last farm district.

ACCORDING to the county's own survey, 82 percent of county residents "support further restricting or managing new development in rural areas."

It's easy to see why. Farmland is increasingly rare, so it's increasingly valuable. Burying it under new houses is one way to cash in on this resource. But it's not the only way. And it's not the best.

Shifting consumer interests and investment trends have created a new wealth of open-space prospects. And Henrico's farmland comes "value added." Our farmland hugs the capital city. It is bordered by rivers. And it is home to historic gold.

Henrico's east end was Pocahontas' backyard. She bathed in creeks that still flow here. John Smith hunted these very forests. In our soil lie the bones of fallen Union and Confederate boys.

One million people visit Williamsburg each year, many driving through Varina on the way. So, is it time for the county to promote historic tourism? Is it time to court development of a living history site on the Henrico bank of the James River, just a boat ride across from Hopewell's Henricus State Park? Is it time for area schoolchildren to mingle with international tour groups at living museums dedicated to farm life, Powhatan culture, the role of Africans in Virginia history, the Civil War, and environmental science?

Then there's the equestrian industry, which generated $1.62 billion in the commonwealth last year. Varina is rich with barns and paddocks. Add trails, and Henrico could promote the landscape between the Chickahominy and the James as a rider's paradise, maximizing our market share.

Varina is already a destination for cyclists. They head east from the city every sunny day. And we received international attention when the 2007 U.S. Open Cycling Championship raced up Osborne Turnpike. Now the Capital-to-Capital trail is coming though the district, drawing bikers (and money) from Richmond and Williamsburg. Isn't it time to nurture that opportunity?

The Virginia Department of Forestry filed official comment noting the word "forestry" is absent from all 300 pages of Henrico's draft plan. But it doesn't have to be. The county's mature forests are a valuable resource. As green building hits the mainstream, Henrico is poised to offer builders sustainably raised and locally harvested timber.

THE IDEAS for profiting by keeping land green are limitless, and all provide healthy diversification to Henrico's tax base. In addition, open space generates revenue for the county -- the entire county -- without demanding the expensive services residential projects require.

So it's no surprise that Henrico citizens want our farmland preserved. What's surprising is that the Board of Supervisors is toying with a land use plan that pushes the county toward a future without farms.

But I have faith they'll reject this draft plan. They'll reject it, not just because it is political suicide to vote for anything that openly flouts 82 percent of voters. And not just because it is legal folly to flout the Virginia law mandating that each county's Land Use Plan "promote the health, safety, morals, order, convenience, prosperity, and general welfare of inhabitants." And not just because, according to the county's own statistics, Henrico's already approved subdivisions more than satisfy projected population growth through 2026 and beyond.

Tuesday night Supervisors James Donati, Richard Glover, David Kaechele, Pat O'Bannon, and Frank Thornton will face their constituents -- people like you and me, people who work hard for every tax dollar they pay, people who would rather be home with their families than at a public hearing but come anyway because they know that sometimes elected officials need to see the people they represent. And I believe that faced with that crowd, all five supervisors will vote against this draft land use plan because Henrico's real economic growth lies in the sustainable development of the history, productivity and beauty of America's first farms.

But don't take my word for it. Come on Tuesday. Watch them vote.

Thank you, Mrs. Ellis, for your practical words.
I hope our local leaders will listen.
It amazes me the plan removes the word "forest." It floors me that with our air quality marks were recently graded so poorly, yet the area would consider further destroying habitat / razing woods and allowing farms to turn into subdivisions!

Quizzical yet? Here's more food for fodder.

• See Virginia Vanishing, Part 1 and Part 2 by our local CBS 6.
• Check out all the invaluable information a local organization, Historic Varina, has pulled together here!
• Read "For Henrico, land deals cost plenty" by Michael Paul Williams.
• See what's going on in Chesterfield and their mass leapfrog developments like Magnolia Green, filing for bankruptcy in a market consumers don't want or need:
• "I would go meetings think they'd be pro-active, but they were using outdated plans from 1989 to 1991. They just didn't understand, Durfee says. Magnolia Green, for instance, was approved for rezoning in 1991 and like many projects in Chesterfield, sat dormant for years.
  
  Supervisors did not heed long-term predictions that the demographic patterns that favored Chesterfield's family-oriented growth patterns in the 1980s and 1990s were coming to an abrupt halt now. Baby boomers who wanted the house and lot and land for their kids now aren't willing to upsize after their kids move on. The kids themselves tend not to want big, single family houses on big lots, preferring smaller units closer to urban centers.
  
  The result, according to Chesterfield's planning deparment, is that the county has about 50,000 rezoned lots not yet built upon. That's more than the rest of suburban Richmond combined and exceeds even the number in Loudoun County, once the nation's fastest-growing suburban area. Builders complain that a lot of these rezoned lots are in places where people don't want to live, ignoring the fact that they were cheerleaders for rezoning back in the day. And, due to peculiarities in state law, it is very hard to downzone upzoned property. So who knows what will happen to places such as Magnolia Green."
  
• From Historic Richmond: Preservation Begins With Grass Roots:
• "What's at stake is not just a structure, it is also a story, and an example that can give hope to future generations. The work is about bricks and mortar, of course, but it's also about broad-ranging benefits and engaging many people with varied interests to maintain and strengthen a sense of place."
• It ripples further to the historic village of Ashland, where "Developments near Ashland stir concerns."
  
  • "Four developments totaling more than 1,300 residential units and at least 850,000 square feet of commercial space could dramatically alter the landscape of Ashland's fringes.
    
    But some Hanover County residents worry that their rural community is on the verge of becoming congested, overdeveloped and indistinguishable from other suburban areas."
• For those that want to see what citizens can do, read "21 Years And Counting" on Bacon's Rebellion. It beautifully illustrates how communities can come together to shape their future, and deepen, preserve, and protect their own culture.
  

It is the responsibility of the citizens to take the time and go attend these meetings to have their voices heard. Otherwise officials only hear what they want. If Varina is paved over, if Ashland turns into a mall... it is our fault.

I believe in creating villages, pockets of community, where people can work, bike, live well.

As a region, our lack of public participation (Did I really hear that only THIRTY citizens showed up to the last comprehensive plan meeting? Really?) to *tell,* via actually showing their faces as proof of endorsement, to show their representatives what we collectively feel is an obvious growing sentiment... How can they listen and react, if you don't speak?

But it is also the responsibility of the elected officials to keep abreast in their industry to see the data to realize that this leap-frog development trend was long ago stopped in many successful cities that are now ranked highest in the nation for their quality of life.

So I will be there Tuesday, on a boring weekday evening, presenting my voice, opinion, and encouragement for Smart Growth and preservation of our natural resources.
Hope to see you there.

 

Kid Scouts Update

Just because I haven't been *writing* about Kid Scouts doesn't mean we haven't been doing it!

We made up Kid Scouts as a fun way to create "badges" (interesting, historic fun stuff to do with friends and their children of varying ages, gender, faiths) to casually achieve when we're together.

The way it works is this:


We say to friends,
"Hey want to go to the land this weekend?" (or do XYZ...)
"Sure"
"Great! What badge do ya want to do?"
"Um... how about let's learn more trees?"
"Ok! Tree Badge there ya go!"

Sometimes we do a badge, often we forget... : )
Many weekends it is only at the end of the day when we realize,
"Hey, that was cool, let's call it a badge! How To Help Turtles Cross The Road Badge!"

So for those that follow it, here's our update on Kid Scouts, which we started in October:

First, we made a Badge Book out of a cool old "scrap book" I found at a yard sale.

Finally, I found a good, fun use for some of these old albums I bought in thrift stores/ yard sales!








Badge #1: Tree Identification
We had a blast (and are working on this, ongoing) with friends collecting and learning about leaves and trees.

You can never learn enough, and I love to strengthen the identification as the seasons change:

"What does red bud look like in winter?
Summer?
Spring?"

"Can you tell the difference between a sycamore and a birch? How about the leaves of a hickory vs. a chestnut?"




Badge #2: Fire
Building a camp fire, putting it out safely.

Stop, drop & roll.

Exit strategy in your home.

And, of course...

S'mores.
: )




Badge #3: The First Thanksgiving
We headed over to Berkley Plantation on December 4th to learn about the first Thanksgiving, history, the Landing of The Goode Shippe "Margaret", met Captain John Smith ; ) and some *real* Indians who discussed local Indian architecture with me!











































Badge #4: Volunteering
In April we were busy cleaning the James River for Richmond's Green Drinks & The James River Association.

We also ran a 5k for ASK, which helps children with cancer. Our good playground friend, Paul, has been battling cancer all year and we all came together for him...

You should have seen Paul's smile when he saw all the children and adults there for him! This year's event raised over $90,000 to help make life better for Richmond children with cancer!

Badge #5: Riding
In May we called our friends the Bernaldo's to see what they were doing that day...
"Oh, I'm babysitting a friend's 6 year old so I thought I'd borrow a pony to entertain her, come on over!"
Yes, in the country you just "borrow a friend's pony" from another farm, LOL.

I thought we'd just pet the pony, maybe teach 'em how to feed a pony an apple correctly... Instead, my friend Judy (who is an incredible equestrian) put 'em all in her ring and gave them their first riding lesson. Within minutes they were trotting.

It was amazing, and I will forever remember Judy's kindness and what a gift she gave us all.


Badge #6: Swimming
No pics up yet, we are working really hard on swimming skills because sailing season is here... it brings back memories of my granddad's Camp Manakin where not only did we learn to swim, but had to tread water for five minutes, then learn "survival swimming" - blowing up your clothes into floats! Um, we're not there yet...

We are having a lot of fun creating memories with our family and friends while learning casually as we think of things to do!

Upcoming badges:

• sailing
• stars
• archery
• and always, history
  
• ...while working on all the other badges more- that's the fun thing, you can just keep learning about that subject or skill!
  

Do you have any ideas for badges? I'd love to hear them!

 

Wha? Oh, Back To The Prefab Zero Energy Off Grid House Kit Built With SIPs!

Well, it has been a crazy few weeks. We got my sister married off (and her husband's family is from Seattle so they came in early to spend time with their Virginia family here so it was not just a weekend but a nice time over awhile of the families coming together)... then I went to New York on business for about a week... (really, it was no fun *at all* ; ) ) Memorial Day Weekend appeared out o' nowhere, but finally, we were able to meet with Ron, our wonderful contractor, this weekend to plan the next phase of the prefab house kit: The Inside.

• To finish the house, we need financing. The financing we did earlier was to refinance our current home loan because interest rates dropped so much. Now we need to consolidate the *land* loan and finish construction. We're increasing the *land* loan by the amount we need to finish construction since a traditional construction loan in Virginia does not understand or value green building or off grid construction / systems. Once construction is complete and we have a certificate of occupancy, we have been told by mortgage lender of our first house that they will consider refinancing the land *and* house. Because co-op interest rates are higher, Handsome Husband projects that once we have a traditional first mortgage, the monthly expenses will remain the same after the construction is financed. So we will be paying about the same, to do more, after having finished the project!
  
• To get financing, we need to have a quote from our Fabulous Contractor, Ron Bernaldo of Giant Oaks Construction.
• To get a quote from Ron, our Fabulous Contractor, my Handsome Husband needs to give Ron details, a list of systems (down to the model number) so that the electrician / plumber can give us an accurate estimate.
• To get an estimate, we need to have the interior framing done.
• To have the interior framing done, we have to give Ron the customized floor plan. (Yes, people, these house kits are made so you can work with your contractor to make 'em as you want! We didn't change much, just added more room for systems and a nook & cranny for a bookcase...)
  

If ONLY the rest of the personal decisions we make as a family were as easy as it was erecting the actual house kit! So yesterday Ron was given the floor plan, a list of systems is on its way, and he starts the interior framing next Tuesday.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy pictures from this weekend's off grid prefab-ulous adventure at the end of this long and boring post.

We had some dear friends out, and it was amazing how *comfortable* the house kit was in the heat. Before, we rarely camped this time of year because the sun beating down on our little 1960's Scotty camper in the field was unbearable. In the house kit, it was breezy, comfortable, filled with natural light yet soothing and cool inside. In the winter, the dogs snuck into our beds; now they flopped, lazily collapsed on the concrete.

When I awoke last night to an unexpected thunderstorm, snuggled in my bed as it rolled, rumbling, in, I reflected how our visit in previous years would have ended first thing in the morning, packing up miserable muddy wet dogs and children in the rain. Instead, we contentedly listened to the rainfall as the children played together indoors while the adults slowly woke with steaming strong coffee.

In the house kit, the light was diffused and off the cement, not the sharp slants of light directly on the concrete as it is in winter. That was the first thing I noticed- that yes, the sun was not warming the floor but had moved higher in the sky, and thus prevented by the overhangs to heat. We opened the windows and let in a wonderful crossbreeze. The difference between lounging comfortably in the house kit to walking into the open field under the unsympathetic sun was palpatable- we all remarked on it.

Another thing I noticed was... how grateful I am I chose polished concrete. SO easy to sweep and keep clean. We also have recycled pallets at the doors which have been extremely useful to curtail the dirt- it looks coolio industrial, is recycled, and provides a great function.

We installed the screens, so we don't have to worry about uninvited animals/insects during the night entering from the open windows, and Handsome Husband and Mr. H stopped by the recycling center and plucked a nice tire to create a tire swing for the kids! We hung it off the old oak that shelters the picnic bench. Which, by the way, I picked up a *second* picnic bench for $5 at a yard sale so we can connect them end-to-end and have a fabulous banquet table for lots of guests.

And speaking of guests... we will have an open house in September!

More on this later, but if you would like to tour our prefab off grid zero energy house kit, there is a wonderful bike tour going on in the area on the weekend of September 26th. Bike Heartland is a fun bike tour that goes all weekend long through a gorgeous, historic area of Virginia. I am working with some local farms to have other activities like tours of natural, community supported farms, a winery that will be open for you to enjoy, and more, so pack yer tent and come on down! For more on accommodations, see here (camping at the Heartland Bike Tour), here (Charlotte Courthouse), here (Appomattox), and here (Farmville); and also be sure to visit Miss Emily's, where Necia and her husband will show you great English hospitality. (And boy does she know how to cook.)

So, next, we begin the interior framing. We install systems. We survive children out of school for the summer. ; ) AND some big family reunions scheduled... so June coverage might be a little spotty.

Even after the house is done, we continue crop tree release and increasing function-yet-preservation of the land, so that in a few short years we can be there sustainably full time.

P.s. This north middle window that will eventually be my daughter's room? The children discovered how to open it and then jumped from the sand pile into the house kit, in and out, in and out, in and out... hence my thankfulness on choosing the polished concrete, *again.* There must have been twenty times a day I was grateful for the concrete. Ah the spills. Oh the mud. Gee the sand. And the polished concrete took it, and looked gorgeous.

 

ICFF 2009

Running out the door so I am throwing in my twitter stream (read from the bottom up) and slideshow of yesterday's ICFF- comments are on the slideshow pictures.




greenmodernkits
Rt @leadwithpurpose @greenmodernkits how bout plastic water bottles have u seen this ppt? http://www.wainotgogreen.org/about 1 hour ago from web

Off to the farmer's market with Claiborne, then more coffee, then more #icff...about 2 hours ago from web

Ouf. Were we *really* out until THREE? #icffabout 4 hours ago from web

You have never eaten until you eat @ macelleria.about 15 hours ago from TwitterBerry

@mediajorge @ dwr 142 woosterabout 17 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Am @ bludot w/Cass & claiborne waiting on V- check out cassie - www.cassguy.com ; )about 17 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Today's takes, now off to parties. http://tinyurl.com/qq2w5d #icffabout 19 hours ago from web

@claibornem headed your way it's taking forever b/c everything is running as local this wkend. Ergh!about 21 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Forgot beretta in purse. Nypd randomly searching bags @ penn station. Hm knife laws in nyc, anyone?about 22 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Hissing @ the vinyl people, heading back to brooklyn. Where is Akemi? Hmmmmmabout 22 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Rt @Lizzykewl @greenmodernkits somehow companies need to be convinced it's in their best interest to package things differently, esp. foodabout 22 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Poor @rvamedia. Last week a chickun was named in her honor, & now I am bringing her a pic of a dead rabbit perched on furniture at #icff.about 22 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Love greenplay's grouploop - not whimisical but SO... Happy sturdy imaginative. #icffabout 23 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Jigsaw puzzles pinned up as wallpaper. Dusting horror.about 23 hours ago from TwitterBerry

I hate felt. But anne kyyro quinn's work is BEAUTIFUL!!! #icff love it!about 23 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Vinyl weave company naming products w\"grass" / "bamboo" in names... I asked if it was sustainable: "YES some have used it for 4 yrs!"about 24 hours ago from TwitterBerry

@mediajorge I obviously don't know how to answer this phone. I'm walking towards bludot.about 24 hours ago from TwitterBerry

I have entered the aisle of gimmick. And whoo-eee boy is there... Flash. Mirror stuff. Running away!about 24 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Pratt & md institute college of art: A + on reuse, sustainable ideas. #icffabout 24 hours ago from TwitterBerry

Struck by how many people are still using plastic. #icff1:38 PM May 16th from TwitterBerry

 

Modern Design ICFF 2009 Part 1: Finnish Design, Chris Ruck, Gaia & Gino and fun.

I am in New York Ciiiiitay for the annual New York Design Week and ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair). These past weeks have been hectic, but ICFF is even more so: a building full of great modern furniture design, and each year it becomes more and more environmentally friendly. You can see what I ran across last year, here.

And after trudging through miles and miles of fab furniture, no matter how tired, there are also... THE PARTIES. ; )

But first I headed over to Brooklyn to see my fabulous culinary cousin, Claiborne, and her family. They live in A BARN in Cobble Hill, and I am looking forward to spending some time getting to better know Brooklyn. Their house has an open floor on the first story, bedrooms together upstairs, and an apartment (where I'm staying) downstairs.

Check out their windows! This is where they used to haul up the hay, and you can clearly see on that wall beneath that it opened for the carriages, and apparently where I'm sleeping they used to store... bananas. Talk about an elegant reuse of existing space!

Then I was off to the Meatpacking district to see V. at her restaurant, threaded through the Finnish design installations (in shipping containers!) to The Standard, where her sister Bona joined us...

We meandered over to a party for Chris Ruck of Ruckercorp at their happy loft in the lower east side, on Baxter Street. Chris takes scraps and creates modern, clean (but *sturdy*) furniture out of the would-be-waste-wood! (Say that fast three times, I dare ya.)

His girlfriend was wonderful- it was a cozy party of kind people, I wish I had met Chris but he was on the rooftop. We headed that way but stopped at the ladder... I guess this is where I mention my fear of heights?

Off we went to Gaia & Gino in the East Village.

I loved the fireflies...

I loved the basset hounds...

I loved the bowls made of nuts and fruits...

And we walked...

...and stopped by Momofuku for delicious pork buns (check out how they not only list the menu but the farms from which the food was purchased), then breezed through Freeman's before settling down on Ludlow for Mexican.

And I am about to walk it all off (hopefully) aaaaaaaaat.... ICFF! Onward!

(See tons more pictures here- I will add lots of comments later but am running off to ICFF now, already 2 hours late...)

 

Prefab House Kit News: A Mad Dash Through May...

It's been quiet on the green building / house kit front here, as we have been dashing about getting ready for Sister's wedding this weekend. It has been raining for days, in torrents, and the wedding is supposed to take place outdoors, in my parents' Gillette garden (officially the smallest Charles Gillette garden, I believe!). Theoretically, it is supposed to be one of those spring garden weddings that people remember fondly- the bride's parents 1801 home, the lush spring garden, the "at home" easy grace Virginians love.

I predict hailstones and tornadoes, with the Bridge Ladies standing off to the side under the flapping tent, my family's own Greek Chorus.

So keep your fingers crossed...
And if we get through it, I am scheduled to then fly off to Manhattan, where I commence covering modern design and furniture at ICFF.

When I return, it's back to the zero energy house kit... and the interior walls begin!

In the meantime, here is some nice new press on Green Modern Kits from R-Home! They were kind enough to include us in their "Hot List!" (Why do I still feel like sech a dork then?)

Click to enlarge / read the text:

 

Green Building Virginia Architect, David Day, Shares His Thoughts On The Zero Energy House.

It will be in the mid-90s this weekend and, as there is no new construction to see in the zero energy house kit, we will be instead heading to the river. (That's what we call the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. It's weird, I know. At least I'm not calling it "The Rivah" as some do...)

Just when I thought I had nothing new to say about our modern house kit, here comes the amazing, green building Virginia architect, David Day, to share his thoughts on the off grid house!

So I now present, the LEED certified, sustainably-conscious, amazing modern designer / architect, David Day!

He writes:

"seeing the casa ti in person for the first time, all the original concepts came back full circle. our goal was to design a shell that could be inhabited and personalized into a home. a blank slate in a way. part of this involved designing without specific site features being known, other than solar orientation and prevailing winds. normally, specific views would suggest window placements etc.

simplicity was desirable on many levels, and has come through in the built home. first, the efficiency of SIP modules, straightforward slab on grade construction gave an economy of installation costs and very little construction waste. it also complements the complex, wild site - farmland partially returned to forest - as a simply structured visual rest space in the landscape.

the efficient shell has only a single load bearing line separating the upper and lower roofs, so interior layout/design can be totally flexible. speaking with copeland and christoph, we could even remove all the interior walls except surrounding the bath space and some storage/utility spaces (christoph even suggested no built in closets, only movable storage pieces as room dividers, and i totally agree). what struck me most about the interior so far is it's comfortable volume and balancing of light, along with the framed views out to the site.

lastly, the way the house sits in this particular landscape suggests its integration: a small natural amphitheater occurs on the east end, with the east walls available as a screen/backdrop. the large oaks 50' or so off the south side form a natural end to an outdoor room of plantings - a slightly tamed version of the meadow landscape on the other sides. some walls as a backdrop for a specimen tree, a place for a snow camouflage summer shade terrace, and so on.

we've been discussing finding a large beer or wine fermentation tank for rainwater collection off the south roof. now is when the house becomes a home, as it fills in with plantings, furniture, color, a reclaimed gym floor as wall finish - the family. exciting times."

We too are looking, excitedly, at the next steps, and look forward to having the Day family back very soon so we can not just focus on the architecture and design, but the friendship between our families and the rest of our life spent there, living.

 

Zero Energy Prefab House Kit Update: We Look To The Land.

The zero energy prefab house kit exterior is complete.

In about 2 weeks we move on to the next steps: interior walls of the modern house, off grid systems (solar energy, solar heat, and rainwater collection and filtration), and with it all, stepping back for a larger view: the land, and how we will encourage its health while bearing sustenance for our family.

Heather Barber, ASLA, of Topos met with us last week to discuss the land, and landscape architecture.

From the beginning, here are my thoughts about the land:

• I love the fact we did not have to cut down ONE TREE for the home site.
• However, we are big believers in crop tree release to help the woods become healthy. What that means, in short, is removing weed/competing trees to let the native, desirable trees grow strong and healthy. Along the field we have a mixture of poplar, hickory, oaks, walnut... mixed in with cedar, red bud, pine, a few dogwoods and... non-native evil ghetto palms! Ghetto palms, I'm out to get you!
  
• The 8 acre field can be rotated with
  
• cover crops of warm season grasses that encourage the quail habitat (as well as leaving strips here & there in the fields, and other quail / wildlife management practices)
• potatoes, garlic, onions: With friends we can plant the field, then harvest it together, keeping enough for our families and donating the rest to the Society of St. Andrews. I mean, why glean (although I do look forward to doing that with my friend Peggy, what fun combined with hard work on a gorgeous weekend!) when you could actually plant a field for hunger? (Also note: store bought potatoes have one of the biggest carbon footprints as they often travel quite far to reach the consumer. They're so easy to grow, try growing your own in your back yard!)
  
• eventually move to the Rodale Institute's cover crop roller. Currently we have a tractor with a bush hog and blade.
  
• There is a smaller field downhill from the home site we could irrigate with rainwater... we've tossed around ideas of growing some kind of crop there, like asparagus... but the reality is that as it is much deeper in the woods it will be much more accessible to wildlife... but it's something to think about...
  
• I would love a root cellar in which to store food.
• ...and, I admit, we have a hankering for mid-century coolio functional cooking grills- purposeful practicality with kickin' design. YES I realize this is a murky area, in which I struggle. Half o' me is survivalist (heck my family has survived here for hundreds of years), half of me is forward thinkin' design, and half (fine I never said I was good at math!) o' me wants a third option from the solar cooker and propane marine stove. I mean, if the weed tree is felled, why not use it? (Or not? Considering.)
  
• Handsome Husband and the casa ti green building architect, David Day thought it would be plenty fun to have our friends hang on the slope next to the east side of the house in the evening and project old movies onto that north-east side of the house. They were even tossing around words like, "amphitheater." We'll see.
  They're such romantics. Which is why I love 'em. Which is why they're both more talented than I. : )
• We've already planted apple trees around the shed, and I was pleased to see they are all in bloom and healthy! In a few years we can invite friends over to pick apples!

Now I also must remind myself that we are on a STRICT BUDGET. So maybe most of these ideas will not happen for years. But in the meantime, here are a BUNCH of land pictures, so that the Virginia landscape architect Heather Barber can get a better feel of the entry, field, and area surrounding the modern house kit. I commented on many of the photos, so if there is something that interests you, click on it to see it larger, and with commentary.



We also met with Ron Bernaldo, also known as The Most Fabulous Contractor In The History of the World about our next steps. I can not re-iterate enough how critical having a knowledgeable, experienced contractor has been to the success of our house kit completion. The house kit itself erected easily; but the decisions we had to make as consumers, making the modern off grid house kit "our own"- could not have been affordably or successfully achieved without a contractor like Ron.

Regarding our green building progress, as I mentioned we start again framing the interior, then move on to solar and rainwater collection integration. And THEN we move to interior design of the house kit. Married to a fellow design enthusiast, living our role as house building consumers, I suspect there *might* be design fights ahead.

The first hint came when Handsome Husband nailed up some old sconces. Yes, they do help light the interior of the unfinished SIPs - exposed house kit, but... um...
Fortunately they dribbled wax onto his pristine-just-polished concrete floor so I suspect that will be that. But we shall see... never underestimate Handsome Husband.

So maybe I should start a new blog category, called, "design fight" just in case...

In the meantime, here are a few more pictures of the zero energy modern house, it was a *lovely* weekend on the land!