Fresh AIRE

Green Home & Garden Tour -- June 5, 2011

Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment (ACE) and Arlington County Department of Environmental Services has teamed up once again to hold their 9th Annual Green Home & Garden Tour on Sunday, June 5th from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Arlingtonians can tour our local green homes and environmentally-friendly gardens, talk with local residents about their experiences greening their homes and making their yards more watershed-friendly, and pick up resources with ideas for their own yard and home. On the traditional self-guided tour ($5 suggested donation) participants can enjoy each garden at their own pace.

Green Home Building & Remodeling Resource Directory

If you are an Arlington homeowner, resident, designer, or builder look no further for a home building resource directory.   

The directory features suppliers and installers for a variety of green products that you may be looking for in your project. The directory also identifies a number of firms with expertise in the design and construction of green buildings, including consultants in a number of specialty areas. Finally, the directory includes a variety of government agencies, non-profit organizations, and other entities with useful information and resources on green home building and home management. Listings are organized by categories that should make sense as you are looking for a product, service, or information in the course of a project.  

Green Home in Westover Earns LEED Platinum

As architecture and construction become more and more green, residential buildings that significantly reduce energy use and incorporate other environmentally friendly features will hopefully become more common in our urban areas. One builder in Arlington has created an innovative and effective green home in a residential neighborhood in the Westover neighborhood.

Builder Patty Shields of Metro Green Home built the home depicted in the drawing here. It is the first home in Virginia to receive a LEED Platinum certification from the US Green Building Council (USGBC).

This home was built on an odd-shaped lot that had not previously been built on. Due to its unusual triangular shape and small size, it required zoning waivers for setbacks and other requirements. As part of the overall project, Ms. Shields renovated the farmhouse next door, also incorporating significant green practices in order to gain approval from the county to develop this lot.

This house incorporates a modern architectural palette, which is in contrast with the ubiquitous colonials surrounding it. Roger Lewis of the Washington Post recently wrote an article discussing modern architecture for residential construction, which is generally shied away from for a number of reasons he mentions--particularly risk aversion to change. In this case, I believe the builder has been sensitive to the community, created a more modern home while pushing the envelope a little toward integrating more modern ideas into traditional neighborhoods. More significantly, she took a holistic approach towards the sustainability aspects of the house, incorporating better design, materials, systems and components in from the very beginning (for details and lots of photos, see her web site).

The home is also located in a walkable neighborhood one block from a bus line that serves Metrorail and about a 20-minute walk to the East Falls Church metro stop. The earlier in the process sustainability is brought in, the more effective and less expensive it is to incorporate. Intelligently designed green construction can cost very little extra or sometimes no more than traditional building, and energy cost savings virtually always swamp any additional costs. Getting local governments to put more muscle into residential construction programs could be a very effective way to make environmental progress.

Arlington has developed a Green Home Choice program to try to encourage builders to incorporate more sustainable practices in their new homes. However, it offers very little incentive: the only real one (and minor at that) is front-of-the-line plan review. Everything else is just informational or promotional. Commercial buildings, on the other hand, can receive significant density increases by meeting LEED certification levels. That said, Arlington's web site claims that they are reviewing the Green Home Choice program.

Montgomery County has taken a different tack. In 2008 they passed legislation that would require all new homes built in the County, starting this year, to meet ENERGY STAR requirements. However, the County Energy Code has not been updated to reflect this, nor does the MoCo Department of Environmental Protection mention it on their web site. DC also incorporated new energy codes in January of this year, but has no specific residential construction program. Nor do Fairfax, Loudoun or Prince George's Counties, as far as I can tell. New construction is down due to the current economic conditions. That might make this the best time to develop effective new building programs, so that they are in place and operating when new construction picks back up.

The home featured here at 5803 16th St. N. in Arlington sold last July for $1,175,000
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Steve Offutt previously worked at EPA on its ENERGY STAR programs

Local Green Building Events - US Botanic Gardens

I rode my bike over to the Capitol this week and stumbled across the US Botanic Garden's straw bale house and sustainability exhibit.  This outstanding exhibit showcases a wide variety of garden and home-oriented solutions for sustainable living.

As part of the One Planet-Ours! exhibition at the US Botanic Garden during the week of September 21- 27, 2008, Builders Without Border will offer a free series of presentations and a hands-on strawbale workshop in the Washington D.C. region. Download info on the presentations here.

The One Planet installation is open and free to the public until October 13, 2008 at 100 Maryland Avenue, SW at the west side of the U.S. Capitol.

Stop on down and check it out - the straw bale house was constructed using less than $625 worth of materials to create the super insulated 16x12 structure!

For more info visit the links below:

Poster

Schedule of Events

Builders Without Borders

One Planet-Ours!

Upgrades, Retrofits Save Energy & Dollars at Home

It’s been a busy few weeks in our house. After two consecutive months of shockingly high energy bills - even after replacing nearly all of our incandescent light bulbs with CFLs - we decided to take the next step in making our home more energy efficient. We installed an insulating blanket around our hot water heater tank and invested in a new ENERGY STAR rated dishwasher and refrigerator.

With the water heater on the first floor of our three-story town home, the water in our upstairs bathrooms is almost always bone-chilling cold on those frosty winter mornings. This led to a big water conservation no-no in our house - running the water to warm up the shower. So we purchased the blanket from our local home improvement store and installed it in roughly 20 minutes. We already had all of the necessary tools and it was an easy fix. I’ve already noticed a difference in how quickly the water warms up.

In the kitchen, our 18-year old dishwasher and refrigerator were starting to show their age. Though it had yet to truly breakdown, the old dishwasher had become known affectionately as the dish dirtier since nearly all of the dishes required a pre- and post-rinse to come out clean. However, it did last well beyond its 10-year life expectancy according to the technician who installed our new Kenmore ENERGY STAR rated dishwasher.

With the promise of energy cost savings and the great deal we got at the Sears’ appliance sale, I don’t feel so bad about the money spent. I’ll keep you posted and let you know how these upgrades translate into energy cost savings on next month’s bill.

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Myllisa Kennedy

The PATH to Energy Savings

The Saturday, October 27, Washington Post Real Estate section had an excellent article that includes 10 tips to consider when remodeling.  It highlights the US Department of Housing and Urban Development's PATH program (Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing).  The article touches on many of the items that have been discussed on this blog, such as efficient lighting and right-sizing heating and cooling systems. 

PATH is primarily a partnership with the housing trades (builders, remodelers, financers, etc.) but has done a thorough job of pulling together comprensive information and tools that will help improve our nation's housing stock going forward.  For instance, their web site includes a Tip of the Month.  This month's is very timely with winter coming on: Air Seal and Insulate.

If you are considering remodeling (or even if not--you just want to know more about how your home uses energy efficiently or inefficiently), I'd like to remind you of my post from a few months back recommending the book No-Regrets Remodeling, an excellent resource to use prior to undertaking any remodeling project.
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Steve Offutt, Arlington

Rule of Thumb #6 - Size Matters

When we bought our house in Arlington in 2000, our agent noted the outside air conditioner and commented, "I like to see these big air conditioners.  They really keep the house cool."  He was so very, very wrong.  His comment was the equivalent of saying, "I really like these big refrigerators.  They really keep your food cold."  Huh?  It's not the size of your refrigerator that determines how cold it is.

When it comes to central air conditioning, bigger is not better.  In fact, smaller is generally better for several reasons--particularly in a humid climate like this one.  EPA Energy Star has a fact sheet about this very topic.

Here's your simple test.  On the hottest days of the year--when it's 95 degrees or above-- note whether your air conditioner cycles on and off.  If it does, it's too big.  An air conditioner should be sized so that it runs continuously on the hottest days of the year, essentially from 3 or 4 in the afternoon until 8 at night nonstop.  (If it runs constantly all the time, even when it's only 80 and doesn't seem to cool your house, you have a different problem and need to get it looked at.)

What's the dif, you ask?  A larger air conditioner sucks up more energy, costing you dollars and adding to harmful emissions.  Air conditioners do their best job dehumidifying and reach peak efficiency after they have been running for about 10-15 minutes, so if yours is cycling on and off, it's not dehumidifying well and it's running at lower efficiency.  People with air conditioners that are too big often lower the temperature to make up for this, exacerbating the costs of running it.

Here's an analogy.  You're driving on a street with timed traffic lights. Having a too-big air conditioner is like having a muscle car and racing from one light to the next, then stopping, then racing to the next one.  A right-sized air conditioner is like having a smaller car, driving along at an even 25 mph and hitting the lights all green.  You get where you're going at the same time, but use less gas driving the smaller one at a steady speed.

So what do you do?  Well, don't go out and replace your AC unless you were planning to anyway.  But when you do, make sure you show the EPA fact sheet to your contractor and make him or her do an accurate sizing calculation.  Then don't be swayed into rounding up for safety's sake.  If anything, round down in size for comfort's sake.  (On a side note, your ductwork is probably all wrong, too, making the situation even worse.  Aargh!)

But for now, the thing to do is have your programmable thermostat raise the temperature while you are out and lower it just before you come back.  Then your AC will run longer and more efficiently for at least that one cycle, saving you money and dehumidifying better. 
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Steve Offutt, Arlington resident and Director - Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE) .Transportation Projects

Rule of Thumb #5 - Your Couch Doesn't Care

Ceiling fan tip. Ceiling fans do not cool the air. However, they do cool you.  Ceiling fans work by moving air around.  Humans feel more comfortable in the heat when the air is moving. You've probably noted that you can sit outside on your deck in 82-degree weather and feel terrifically comfortable, but 82 degrees inside your house is uncomfortably warm. That's because outside the air is moving, and it makes you feel cooler.

So inside your house you can feel cooler, too, by using fans to move the air. Then you can turn up the thermostat a couple of degrees and save on air conditioning. It does absolutely no good, though, to leave a fan on in a room where there are no people. In fact, it's counterproductive, because the fan is using electricity and providing no benefit. Your couch does not care that the fan is on, and it does not feel any cooler. It's true: I asked it.

So use your ceiling fans to keep you cooler, but turn them off when there are no people around to keep cool.
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Steve Offutt, Arlington resident and Director - Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions (AIRE), Transportation Projects
Oh, and hey!  If your ceiling fan has lights, change them out for more efficient CFLs too.

Greening My Condo

Quick! Think of an “environmentally-friendly home.” What image came to your mind – a single-famiy house with lots of trees, right? Well, sure, but as I learned last night, we condo dwellers are already environmentally-friendly, just by living in denser quarters, with shared resources and almost always near transit. And since 61% of Arlingtonhomes are multi-family (vs. 28% single-family detached), it makes sense for Arlington and AIRE to reach out to condo residents.

As a fairly recent condo convert (2 years ago), my husband and I feel pretty good about how our move has reduced our environmental impact: we’ve eliminated two cars; adopted bike riding for pleasure and errands; begun walking to work; begun walking to the grocery store, post office, pharmacy, and coffee shop.

And inside our condo unit, we’ve swapped out almost all the light bulbs for CFLs; wrapped an insulating “blanket” on our hot water heater; recycled everything we’re able to, including the ubiquitous plastic bag; stopped buying bottled water; and adjusted our thermostat.

But last night, at AIRE’s “Greening Your Condo Association” seminar, I learned that each of us has a responsibility – and a voice – to ensure that our buildings are as green as they can be. Environmentally-friendly actions benefit the bottom line and can help keep condo fees lower. For example: installing CFLs in hallways and common areas; encouraging the planting of drought-resistant and native plants; educating and encouraging residents on recycling of appropriate items.

In fact, some condo and apartment residents have the opportunity to positively influence the “greener” landscaping on a much larger piece of land – some up to 20+ acres! – than an individual house. The photo shows a “bird-friendly” garden planted at The Arlington condos near Shirlington.

To make an even bigger impact, residents can encourage the condo association to get an energy audit or make some investments into energy efficiencies, e.g., replacing a common boiler or furnace with an energy-efficient model. One participant last night spoke about making his condo building’s needed new roof more energy efficient or perhaps even a “green roof.”

It was great to see so many condo residents at the session last night – I’d say there were at least 50-60 in attendance – and folks are very enthusiastic and eager to do what they can to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprints. For the AIRE team, this was just the beginning of an environmental dialogue with the condo community.

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Diana Sun
Director of Communications, Arlington County

Fighting the Minivan Urge

Episode 5 -- The Smiths Take on Global Warming: Last weekend, the County Board approved a property tax reduction for clean emissions vehicles. (For us, I think it means we wouldn't pay property tax on the first $20,000 of a new "clean emissions" vehicle we bought.). That's GREAT -- and certainly provides an incentive to buy a hybrid. But let me back up a bit...

For over a year, my husband and I have struggled with the question of do we need a second car? And IF we get a second car, what kind? We're working parents, have two young kids and a nanny of four years who drives them in her own car. In the fall, however, the kids will likely start going to daycare (no more nanny with a car), and the need for second car will increase. Oh yeah, since I had kids, I also got the disease: I was convinced we needed a minivan. My husband couldn't even utter the word "minivan" for months -- and his eyes still bulge out even when I say the "M-word."

Anyway, since my involvement with the AIRE campaign (and with the recent board decision mentioned above), I've started thinking a bit differently. I find myself asking questions like, could we get by with only one car? If we get a second car, should we consider a small (safe) gas-efficient model -- and NOT a minivan at all? (So what if we don't have seven seats...we really DON'T need them all that often, right?)Should we be looking at hybrids? Are their any minivan hybrids? (Not from what I can tell...but a Toyota Sienna minivan hybrid is supposed to be coming.)

I wish I could be a better person, like Elenor Hodges, who has kids and does manage with only one car. But I'm not sure I can be that good. We'll see -- check back in a couple months to find out just what the Smith Family decides to do. Whatever we do -- efficiency and the environment will be top of mind.

P.S. Old toilets, tubs and sinks may not be destined for the landfill after all. This company (EnviroMODE) turns trashed porcelain fixtures into recycled tiles. Might be worth checking out if you're doing a bathroom renovation.

Jennifer K. Smith, 17-year resident of Arlington
Arlington County communications mgr. (& AIRE blog manager)