June 29, 2010

We have worked together to create a sustainable base for your home through past articles on building products and space planning. Now for the fun part – furnishing and decorating! What characteristics do you hunt for in your search for greener home furnishings?

To start out, the greenest solution is to purchase previously loved pieces locally or as close to home as possible. Buying locally cuts down on transportation emissions. As you know, these products have already off-gassed, and you’ll have done your part to keep them out of a landfill.

Ask yourself if you really need new furniture. Can you bring new life to an old piece? It’s simple to repaint (using non-toxic paint or other finishes), and adding new hardware can completely change the look of a piece. Take a look around and see what you can repurpose!

If you must buy new, here are some things to look for:

Keep an eye out for items with the Sustainable Furnishing Council’s seal of approval. SFC is a non-profit organization working with manufacturers, designers and retailers to promote sustainable practices through education/awareness and assistance in adopting green practices. In the furniture market, leading culprits are finishes that off-gas, wood sourced from unmanaged forests, carbon emissions due to manufacturing processes and transportation, waste stream pollutants and non-recycled content. Select manufacturers who use best manufacturing processes, whether they’re buying green power, reusing energy produced in the manufacturing process, reducing waste material, keeping toxic water runoff out of the ecosystem, etc.

Look for products and manufacturers that use low- or no-VOC finishes (water-based stains, milk paint, etc.), renewable resources, reclaimed lumber, and certified wood from carefully managed forests or fast growing wood species or grasses. Many companies are working to incorporate recycled content as well. When looking at recycled content, product with post-consumer waste is the better alternative since, in theory, this product is headed for a waste facility. Also keep an eye out for reduced use of formaldehyde, glues and sealants, natural fabrics and minimal packaging.

Watch for products made with wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). FSC is a non-profit organization devoted to encouraging the responsible management of the world’s forests. FSC sets high standards that ensure forestry is practiced in an environmentally responsible, socially beneficial, and economically viable way.

Another option is to have furniture built especially for you by local craftsmen. You can work closely with these artisans to create exactly what you’re looking for (size, shape, function and color) – using locally-grown or reclaimed wood and environmentally-friendly finishes, of course! Custom furniture is often more affordable than you’d think, and it’s a great way to acquire pieces you’ll keep for a lifetime. Working with a local furniture maker saves on embodied energy, too – just think of the energy saved by not purchasing a table that was manufactured on the other side of the world and transported here by ship, rail and truck.

Last but not least, when creating green interiors, purchase pieces that you love and that have lasting value. The longer you keep and use an item, the greener it becomes. It is kept out of the landfill, you are not interrupting the environment with new production, and you save money and time. Buy what you love with longevity and quality in mind.

Resources:

Sustainable Furnishings Council: http://www.sustainablefurnishings.org/
Forest Stewardship Council: http://www.fscus.org/

I wanted to share some important information for homeowners who may be considering home renovations. Have you heard about the Environmental Protection Agency’s new “lead paint law” that went into effect on April 22^nd? This law affects houses built prior to 1978 – many of our homes! If you are considering home renovations, you may want to find out more. Here are the basics from the EPA’s website:

Common renovation activities like sanding, cutting, and demolition can create hazardous lead dust and chips by disturbing lead-based paint, which can be harmful to adults and children. Under the rule, contractors performing renovation, repair and painting projects that disturb lead-based paint in homes, child care facilities, and schools built before 1978 must be certified and must follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination. Renovation is broadly defined as any activity that disturbs painted surfaces and includes most repair, remodeling, and maintenance activities, including window replacement.

What activities are subject to the Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program?

In general, any activity that disturbs paint in pre-1978 housing and child-occupied facilities, including:

·         Remodeling and repair/maintenance

·         Electrical work

·         Plumbing

·         Painting

·         Carpentry

·         Window replacement

What housing or activities are excluded and not subject to the rule?

·         Housing built in 1978 or later.

·         Housing for elderly or disabled persons, unless children under 6 reside or are expected to reside there.

·         Zero-bedroom dwellings (studio apartments, dormitories, etc.).

·         Housing or components declared lead-free by a certified inspector or risk assessor.

·         Minor repair and maintenance activities that disturb 6 square feet or less of paint per room inside, or 20 square feet or less on the exterior of a home or building.

Contractors are required to be certified and registered with the EPA, their employees must be trained in use of lead-safe work practices, and lead-safe work practices that minimize occupants’ exposure to lead hazards must be followed. Compliance measures must be documented.

EPA’s lead program rules apply only to renovations performed for compensation; therefore, if you work on your own home, the rules do not apply. EPA encourages homeowners to use lead-safe work practices, nonetheless, in order to protect themselves, their families, and the value of their homes.

It is important to ask your contractor if his/her firm has followed the procedures to be certified by the EPA, as non-compliance comes with penalties, including immediate work stoppage for indefinite periods of time and fines of up to $32,500/day. Please be sure to ask your contractor or painter if he/she is EPA Lead-Safe Certified, and if you are not sure if your project will be affected by the new rule, take the time to learn more about it. It could make all the difference in your project!

More information: http://www.epa.gov/lead/

 Last week, I received an email from one of my clients saying that she was waiting on some of the items she and I were working on because she had gone with the recommendations from her Go Green evaluation. My interest was renewed; I emailed her back, curiously asking how satisfied she was with the process and results. She responded saying it was amazing! She is living more comfortably with her thermostat 10 degrees lower. She spent more than the representative said it would cost, and is not going to get much of a tax credit, but she was very happy with the results. Her house is old, like mine. It is leaky and has single pane windows. After hearing her results, I was newly inspired to complete my survey. It was not as difficult as I had imagined it to be - I completed it over two slices of pizza and a couple oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!

Now the ball is back in their court. My friend told me that once they receive the form, a TVA-certified evaluator will meet with you, inspect your home and report detailed recommendations. You will be given a list of approved certified contractors to do the work, members of their “Quality Contractor Network.” This in-home evaluation costs up to $150, which you are reimbursed for if the improvements you make cost more that $150. You are also reimbursed 50%, up to $500, for the installation costs. Once the work is completed (within 90 days - incentive not to procrastinate), the work will be inspected for proper installation. Tax credits, cash incentives and financing are available and outlined on the NES website: http://www.nespower.com/home_evaluation.html.

There is also a list of recommendations that are not covered with cash incentives. I love a checklist! It was quick and easy to navigate. NES offers more information about community support on their website. So, if you feel so inclined and motivated, you can start a program to challenge your community, neighborhood, street and friends to “Go Green,” too. President Obama, DavidsonCounty, Mayor Karl Dean and, I imagine, the governing bodies where you live, have goals for us to make a difference in carbon emissions. By 2030, AIA, American Institute of Architects, wants to make our built environments, both new and renovated, carbon-neutral, which means not using “fossil fuel greenhouse gas-emitting energy to operate.”

I know it sounds overwhelming, but not if we start taking steps. Join me and my neighborhood in making changes in our homes: changes that affect our quality of life, our environment and our future. For more information on how you can make a difference in your home or business, take a look at the following websites:

http://www.gogreendistrict18.com/index.html

www.nespower.com

http://www.nashville.gov/mayor/green_ribbon/index.asp

www.aia.org

Together, let’s Go Green!

Click the photo to check it out: 

[image above by aron wright]

Go Green, District 18 is an initiative to reduce District 18’s energy consumption by 5%. Each homeowner and business in District 18 is encouraged to sign up for an NES In-Home Energy Evaluation to help decrease their power usage. The goal is to have 360 residences complete the evaluation and modifications by the end of 2010, and for 36 businesses to undergo commercial evaluations.

Here's the website for more info: http://www.gogreendistrict18.com/index.html. We encourage you to participate, if you live in Nashville's District 18!

First and foremost: smart design, thoughtful and personal design, purposeful design. Design with longevity, quality, diversity in function, merging practicality with style. Sounds good, right? What does it all mean? Let me explain.

1. Aging-in-place, aging-in-home. How will choices today affect tomorrow's lifestyle? How can you plan for the future? As you plan for current changes in lifestyles, plan for what is to come. Planning forward saves money, time and materials. Plan before future changes sneak up on you and your income or physical abilities are altered. Pre-planning keeps rash decisions at bay and allows time for thoughtful, beautiful design.

2. Make decisions/selections which lower environmental impact. Select products which conserve natural resources and/or have a low impact on the environment. Remember to recycle, reuse and repurpose.

3. Quality over quantity. Purchase products with lasting value. Cheap does not translate to best value.

4. Know yourself. Purchase only those things you love and that are comfortable. If you love it, you will take care of it and are less likely to discard or replace it quickly.

5. Purchase items that can move with you. In this current economic climate, people are often choosing to stay in their homes a little longer while continuing to plan future moves. For current needs, purchase pieces that can move to your next home, e.g. bookcases, storage pieces and seating. Don’t wait to solve your needs, and be smart about your purchases.

6. Create gathering spaces and tranquil retreats within your home. Homes can support healing, inspiration, rest, nurturing, playing and quality time with others. Be intentional about creating spaces for these opportunities.

7. Color creates moods and feelings within spaces. Know how you want your space to feel and how color affects you. Be intentional about color selection. Color can set the tone for you and others within a space. Surround your home with colors you and your family love.

8. Become a mix master! Mix textures, materials and age whether selecting building materials or furnishings. Think creatively when coordinating finishes – be resourceful!

9. Create good bases. Build your furnishings from good, solid quality, family-friendly neutrals. Use accessories, pillows, rugs and art to give personality to a space. These items are easy to move from space to space to create new looks.

10. Purchase original artwork. Notice I did not necessarily say, "invest." Feel free to mix pedigrees but stay original. Originality makes all the difference in the look of a space and typically has a lasting quality.

11. Window treatments – the icing on the cake. Nothing finishes a room like window treatments. They provide multiple functions: adding beauty while helping with energy savings and/or correcting an unusual or awkward room.

12. Above all – stay simple. Simple is easy to maintain and easy on the eye, attributes we can all use in our busy lives!

Enjoy your home in 2010! Make it personal, be smart, design smart, live well! Share your space with others and find time and space to rejuvenate. From all of us at Beth Haley Design, we hope these guides give you direction toward reaching your spatial goals. We wish you and your family the most from your home!

This info is from the Seagull Lighting.

It is my hope that you are starting to feel a little more knowledgeable about sustainable and green building products, practices, process and goals. Our aim is to break down barriers of confusion on the subject. Hopefully, you understand the components which include energy and water conservation, environmental protection, improved indoor air quality and health, enhanced comfort and durability. If you are overwhelmed by the concept and how to best achieve these goals, there are several programs available to assist you in the process and degree to which you become more sustainable with regards to your home. Programs are available to assist homeowners in the process, evaluation, and completion of your project. Each is independently certified, providing assurance verification of the strict guidelines set forth by each organization’s programs. Four programs available in our area are: Energy Star, EarthCraft, NHBA National Green Building Program and LEED.

Let’s break down the differences in these programs. Energy Star’s single focused on energy reduction and efficiency and is therefore the least complicated to achieve. Goals are determined by the US Environmental Protection Agency and are set to achieve 20-30% more energy efficiency than standard homes. Areas reviewed are the home’s building envelope, air ducts, equipment (heating, cooling and water heating), lighting and appliances. The cost for evaluation and certification is the least expensive or involved of the four discussed here.  Source: http://www.energystar.gov/

EarthCraft, created in 1999 by the Atlanta Home Builders’ Association and in partnership with Southface, measures energy and resource efficiency. EarthCraft certification allows for flexibility in the level of performance and can be achieved by any size and type of home, whether new or remodeled. EarthCraft homes start with Energy Star certification and must achieve diagnostic tests for air infiltration and duct leakage. EarthCraft guidelines include site planning, building and systems energy efficiency, resource design efficiency, resource efficient building materials, waste management, indoor air quality, indoor and outdoor water conservation, homeowner education and builder operation.

EarthCraft remodels start with an EarthCraft House inspector who inspects the home and writes an evaluation along with recommendations. Your level of participation in the recommendations determines whether the home is certified EarthCraft, and a scoring worksheet will determine the level of certification. Source: http://www.earthcrafthouse.com/

The National Association of Home Builders’ (NHBA) National Green Building Program, developed in 2005, sets standards on lot design, resource, energy and water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, homeowner education and global impact. You can achieve bronze (entry-level), silver, gold, and emerald certification depending on your level of participation. Certification can be achieved by single-family, multi-unit homes, commercial projects, residential remodeling and site development projects. As with each of these programs, certification comes from a certified third party.

The first, and probably the most comprehensive and well-known program, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System, was developed in 1998 by the US Green Building Council. LEED was created to: define “green building” by establishing common standards of measurement, promote integrated whole building design practices, recognize environmental leadership in the building industry, stimulate green competition, raise consumer awareness of green building benefits and transform the building market. The rating system covers sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality and innovation and design process. Achievement can be made at four levels: certified, silver, gold and platinum. Source: http://www.usgbc.org/LEED/

For each of these programs, written documentation and outside third-party certification is required to protect the program and consumers. With this certification, homeowners and the institutes who created these programs are able to test, monitor and improve the programs.

What does this means to you and me?  We are able to measure and benefit from the performance. And when selling our homes, we stand out among the rest, as certified, better performing, sustainable homes. Benefits from start to finish!

To access the presentation, click here.

Thanks again for coming, and please let us know if you have any questions!

Last month I participated in Lipscomb University’s Tennessee Green Business Summit as one of the speakers in the mini-seminars. I presented in the Residential Interior Design seminar. One of the questions asked during the sessions was, what are ways to conserve energy in your home? While I had prepared to discuss interior materials and finishes, I felt inspired to answer based on my interior design experience. Most of the energy used in our homes goes to heating and cooling. Expensive but effective options could include changing your heating and cooling method and changing windows to double or triple glazing with low-E-coatings and gas fills. Keep in mind the cheapest and first recommendation is to seal all gaps within your home.

Because I most often work with window solutions (and not HVAC), I chose to discuss those energy saving options. When selecting windows compare the U-factor and Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) energy performance ratings. Select based on window orientation and the type of energy consumed – heating or cooling. If you are concerned with cooling, the SHGC is more important. Look for SHGC ratings below 0.40. If you are concerned with heating, look for windows with the lowest U-factor you can afford (0.35 maximum). If both are a concern, look for both a low U-factor and a low SHGC. For southern facing windows where you want passive solar heating, select windows with a high SHGC (above 0.50 minimum). 

Less expensive options include adding solar film to your windows, adding landscaping, rearranging the use of a room, and/or adding window treatments.
Solar film can reduce heat gain and reduce fading to your floors or furnishings by providing 99.9% UVA/UVB protection and reduce eye strain through glare reduction. Solar film is applied directly to interior panes. Solar films have improved over the years in their appearance and performance. I have added them to windows with high exposure and left the rest of the windows uncovered without a noticeable difference.

Planting trees, adding awnings or designing trellises near south and west facing windows will provide shade in the summer months, add visual interest and maintain lower energy usage. Consult with an expert on the most effective type of plantings for coverage and maintenance.

Think about use of space – can you modify the use of a space to take advantage of southern facing windows in the winter and northern facing windows in the summer? I have flipped the function of rooms depending on the season and/or amount of use a space receives. In the winter my son’s play space moves into our dining area to take advantage of the large window with southern exposure.

Window treatments can also affect heat gain and glare. Sheers are light and airy and can deflect the summer heat (and a bad view) while adding drama or coziness to a space. Think about the feeling you want to achieve in the space when selecting the fabric. Silk is not the fabric of choice with extensive southern or western exposures even if it has blackout lining. Look for organic cottons and linens or recycled content fabrics.

While these are just a few options and ideas, I hope it will inspire you to look at your home and your lifestyle for energy reduction solutions. Little changes can make a difference in the comfort of your home, energy savings/lower usage and the overall solution for sustainability. Keep your eyes and mind open for these opportunities. Use this welcomed spring sunshine to motivate yourself for change and action!