The Earth – Above us, below us and beside us… and other shit.

The Earth above Us

And who said being a roofer is not a fun job…we loved it. The living roof was completed and came in at about $2 per ft2 (including hidden gutter and drain system) and could last 70 or more years with minimal repairs. (No replacement in our lifetime anyways) The roof was comparatively easy and would take the average person with no experience two to three days to install, which is exactly what it took us. Total cost was $1,350 for 672ft2 plus our labour.

There are many different methods for building a living roof…here is what we did. After the framing of the roof (including the rafters and decking), we used scrap wood to build a four inch rail around the outside edge. We then installed some used and new 3 inch rigid styrofoam over top of the building space, leaving the over hangs un-insulated. Next came the recycled cardboard over the entire roof to act as a cushion for the next layer, the pond liner or EPDM. The pond liner is the “nasty stuff” as it is a product that is fossil fuel dependant just like asphalt shingles and tar paper only it will last many times longer…provided it never sees the sun. The pond liner was wrapped over top of the roof and rail system in one piece and secured on the edges with the flashing. Over top of the pond liner we laid used carpet that we scrounged from Jordans’ and Hourigans’ dumpsters. (We could not believe the quality of the carpet that was headed to the landfill). The carpet has many functions such as a filter, a drain, and for soil and root attachment. At this point we drilled a hole in each corner of the roof, installed thru-hull fittings (used in boats), and installed a used chain in each to act as a drain. We purchased 1½ yards of pumice and installed it on the front and rear area overhang; this will act as a light drain rock gutter, and a filter to stop soil erosion. Next we moved 240 buckets of dirt onto the roof and voila…ready for planting. This is where our friend Valerie comes in who is involved with the Victoria Native Plant Study Group. The entire roof will be planted with native, shallow rooting and drought resistant plants. Perfect! What makes this even more special is that the plants have been rescued from such blasting and development sites as the ones near the Home Depot in Langford. Members of the Native Plant Study Group will be onsite on Oct 15th to plant the roof. Thanks Valerie!

The positives for such a roof are huge: The plants, animals, insects displaced by the buildings have a home. The roof is cost effective as well as being more environmentally friendly than contemporary roofing systems due to its life span and the habitat creation. It is also highly fire resistant. The “heat island effect” found on other roofs does not occur as the plants absorb the suns energy. And to top it all off, the roof is more beautiful than shingles…we basically have a park on our roof. There are only a couple downsides we can think of. The first is that you have to have a stronger rafter structure for the weight (or use a pumice/compost mix for the entire roof instead of soil…check out www.paradisecityscapes.com for more information on this living roof style). Also because we used carpet, the water collection would not be as desirable for drinking as from a metal roof. There are other options to using carpet. A third item could be the requirement for a much flatter roof. Because the benefits clearly outweigh the downsides we cannot see why more people are not doing this.

The Earth below Us

The floor in the workshop has also been installed, and what a painful job. The floor is roughly 2 inches of cob (on top of the road base and clay sub-floor) that has high straw content and sifted dirt from the land. No concrete here. Eighteen batches of cob, each batch consisting of three five gallon buckets of sifted earth, and the earth had to be sifted with pick axe, shovel and screen. The hard part was leveling the cob on the floor, a hard and heavy job. I am dreading this aspect of the house and am brainstorming of ways to make this process back friendly. This earthen floor will be sealed with multiple coats of boiled linseed oil.

The Earth beside Us

We are continuing to experiment with earthen plasters and have been amazed with the versatility and beauty. As soon as the floor dries and the electrical is completed the inside of the cob workshop will be plastered. Our electrician will be starting the job tomorrow and Gord has already done much of the electrical preparations. The recipe for the plaster will consist of finely sifted soil with the addition of thistle down for a binder, some finely chopped straw, and some flour paste. We will also experiment with some natural mineral pigments. One of the most wonderful advantages of plastering a cob building is that no mechanical binding system (stucco wire) is required. The earth plaster sticks to the cob.

And Other Shit

We have plastered most of the reDen with an earthen plaster. The plywood walls were prepped with tar paper (yuk) and stucco wire (yuk). Next came developing an earthen plaster recipe that would stick and bind to the metal wires and tar paper and be highly weather resistant. We needed something with lots of fibre and very sticky. We came up with the following… ¼ bucket horse manure, sifted soil, Tbsp linseed oil, Tbsp borax, and water. We mixed in a five gallon bucket with a powerful drill and mixer to a very thick consistency…like cookie dough. (no sampling) The thought of using manure was a bit disconcerting at first, but contrary to what we had expected there is very little smell (none when dry), and the results have been impressive and beautiful. Time will tell how durable this is. We were watching a video the other night with some friends about natural plastering where straw was put through a large and noisy mulcher many times to get it nice and fine for addition to the plaster…the whole time I was saying…put it through a horse. As I’m sure most people know…using manure in plaster is not something new. Also, much thanks to our friend Janet for all the fresh manure.

Check out all the new pictures on our website at www.eco-sense.ca.

We were sent information on a house built in the United States that was the first to earn the LEEDS Platinum rating in the new LEEDS for homes pilot project. It was interesting reading because we giggled to ourselves that we would be greener than this project on many levels, especially with our appliances, composting toilet, reduced ECO-Smart concrete, the cob walls and supports, the earth floor, the earth plaster, and quite a bit of built in earthen furniture. It is good to see green building getting coverage, and we hope that it continues. As for media, CFAX 1070 is starting a series during prime time on the climate crisis, and this week the Vancouver Sun is running a series of articles on alternative power. It’s good to see that articles on Climate change and the solutions are finally making it into the mainstream media. Check out the Goldstream Gazette this Wednesday for a couple articles by Pattie Whitehouse about the living roof and the electrical systems our house will utilize. Pattie is doing such a professional job with her articles and we are continually grateful for her enthusiastic involvement in our projects.

Our Engineer is working on the details of our home and we are considering using the sifted soil from the bottom of the hill for all of the cob work. We prepared a test sample for the geotechnical engineer to test and it came in much stronger than the prior sample where sand and clay were mixed together manually. The theory here is that the soil already has the ideal composition of clay and sand mixed together on a microscopic level where each particle of clay coats each irregular piece of sand. When we mix them together ourselves we do not get such a complete mixture. The sand we buy is also more uniform is size and shape which is also less desirable.

As the rainy season draws near so does the start of the house. We look forward to the challenge of building in the winter, as cobbing is generally thought of as a seasonal event… Stay tuned!

As the month wouldn’t be complete without at least one rant…here it is. During the wiring for the workshop we have hooked into the BC Hydro power pole properly for temporary service. Eventually this Hydro power will run to the house and connect with the grid inter-tie system and our solar and wind systems. The Hydro service that is currently on our land is only 60 Amps. Just fine for us. Since our house will be larger than 800ft2 the code requires that we install 100Amp service from BC Hydro. So let me get this right…In these days when energy conservation as well as renewable energy are known to be the key elements of reducing greenhouse gasses the law here in BC still requires us to hook up to more power than is required? Who does this law serve? Anyone have any thoughts on this? Once again we have been told that this code requirement protects future owners. We call these types of rules the “Laws of More” and think that the future depends upon the “Laws of less”. Another example of the “Laws of More” was the recent changes to septic system requirements brought about by problems with such systems. Instead of requiring low flush toilets, reduced water usage, or even grey water diversion, the laws changed to require bigger septic fields, bigger pump chambers and a general increase in system complexity. This leads to more concrete, more heavy equipment, more piping, more electricity, more glue, more habitat destruction, more greenhouse gasses, and consequently more water shortages. At least the “Laws of More” are good for the economy.

Gord and Ann

Home receives highest LEED rating for using solar PV thermal and PV

SANTA MONICA, California, US, September 13, 2006 (Refocus Weekly) A developer of prefabricated homes in the United States has received the highest rating possible from the Green Building Council for its use of solar photovoltaic and solar thermal systems.

LivingHomes received the first Platinum rating under the new pilot ‘LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) for Homes’ rating system, making it the first residential project in the U.S. to attain that level. It calls its model home a ‘Zero Energy, Zero Water, Zero Waste, Zero Carbon, Zero Emissions’ residence.

“While the residential market is a new area for LEED and USGBC, the LEED for Homes pilot program moves us closer towards our ultimate goal of transforming the built environment on all levels,” says Rick Fedrizzi of USGBC. “The LivingHomes model home is expected to demonstrate that incorporating sustainable design into the construction process will help to lower operating costs, increase home value, reduce maintenance issues and improve indoor environmental quality in the long-term.”

There are less than 20 commercial buildings in the U.S. that have achieved Platinum certification under LEED since the program was launched in 2000. A total of 550 buildings have been certified but LivingHomes is the first residential homebuilder to reach the top level through “careful design, rigorous testing and thorough integration of comprehensive environmental systems.”

LivingHome received four bonus points under the ‘Energy & Atmosphere’ category, and energy use will be 80% more efficient than a conventional home of similar size, which qualifies as Energy Star. The majority of the home’s energy will be produced by on-site PV from Permacity / Gridpoint, and it includes solar water heating and radiant floors from ACME Environmental and Creative Climate.

Other features include a reclamation system for irrigation water, and most materials in the home are re-used or sustainably created. It was built with 75% less construction waste than traditional home construction, and there is a native landscape and rooftop garden to divert stormwater and alleviate the heat island effect of conventional black roofs.

The home has Energy Star appliances, LED lights which use less power than conventional lights, an integrated stormwater management which includes sub-surface irrigation, a 3,500 gallon cistern and grey water recycling system to divert sink and shower water for irrigation, special fans to exhaust moisture from bathrooms, and a whole-house that automatically exhausts carbon monoxide from the garage. It also uses low-e glazing on doors and windows, and polycarbonate glazing with greater thermal properties than regular glass.

In addition to environmental systems, the building’s ecological footprint was minimized by including movable walls, modular millwork and a structural system that allows for the easy addition and reconfiguration of space to avoid complete major renovations every few years. LivingHomes also pays for one year of carbon offsets for each home it sells, and the home is constructed with materials and processes that make it easier to disassemble and reuse in future.

“We’re committed to building some of the healthiest, most ecologically considered production homes available and we will use LEED for Homes both to clarify what we’re doing and why, and to help our customers understand what’s different and important vis-à-vis other production homes,” says LivingHomes founder Steve Glenn. The company is the first in the U.S. to make LEED-certified prefab homes available to consumers.

Similar to LEED for new commercial buildings, the ‘LEED for Homes’ pilot is based on a four-tiered rating system that awards points based on efficient use of energy resources, water resources, building construction resources, land resources, and consideration of enhanced indoor environmental quality. The LivingHomes model was designed by California architect Ray Kappe and received a total of 91 points out of 108.

The USGBC developed the LEED rating system as a voluntary consensus-based national standard for sustainable buildings. LEED for Homes is scheduled for a full launch early next year, and is a voluntary initiative that promotes transformation of the mainstream home building industry towards more sustainable practices and rewards green home builders who are the first to move in that direction.