Thursday, November 1, 2007

AUDUBON HOUSE

Green Building is a documentary movie about the Audubon house and how a dedicated team of architects, environmentalists, engineers, research scientists, and interior designers recycled this significant 100-year old building and reduced the energy utilization to 52% of that used in a comparable office building. It is amazing to see how a group of experts accomplished to make a big difference in the structure by adding some changes to the actual building such as natural light and highly resourceful electrical light for lighting the office spaces, nontoxic paints for the wall and recycled newsprint for flooring. They produced a better and healthier environment for people, wildlife, and the earth's natural resources and developed a good workplace model for future. The movie points to several improvements in Audubon House that can be also implemented in my studio project which is a residential units in Tempe area with 2000 square foot in each unit.

The first and most notable area of improvement is in energy efficiency that can be achieved by making use of enhanced natural light and highly urbanized lighting system. Full-size windows on the Northern and Western sides of the building allow large quantities of natural daylight into the living area. Use of light colors for furnishing and interior surfaces increase reflectance of natural light and can help this pheromone further. The “Task/Ambient” lighting system for living room and bedrooms introduce soft background light to the room and wherever focused light is needed task lighting can be implemented. In the bathroom, T8 Triphosphor fluorescent lamps bring in the light with natural tone and insignificant heat.

Decreasing pollution and making a healthier environment is another major challenge that should be considered for any design. By using gas fired absorption heathers/coolers, creation of sulfur dioxide can be prevented while about 60% reduction in nitrogen oxides creation can be achieved compared to similar units that use other sources of energy. In addition, for reducing electricity demand for cooling system applying for an on-site energy source, gas, during the summer is a great opportunity that can be explored.

Another key takeaway of this documentary was the importance of recycling and protecting resources in the nature. The first step to gain this goal in my project is to switch to recycled material instead of the regular material. Many materials such as steel, wood, concrete, masonry are sent out for recycling and can be used after reprocessing. Homosote sub is a new type of wallboard developed from recycled paper which is designed to be used for flooring and it is made from 60% recycled newsprint. One interesting idea for kitchen flooring is to use reprocessed tiles that are recycled from light bulbs. Recycled plastic bottles can be used for bathroom countertops and also reprocessed gypsum and newsprint for wall.

Although the Audubon House was an office building most of change that they made during the renovation can be used for residential building as well. As a result of my research I further discovered that being green and contributing to greener architecture design is a continuous daily task that we should all take part in to make the world a better place. By doing some research and using the right material for the structures one can have a significant impact on our surrounding.

Phoenix Green Building Expo

The 10th annual Green Building Expo in Scottsdale was held on Oct 5-6th. The event was very well-organized and many companies with different disciplines had participated in this expo. The diversified range of companies attended this event helped us learn further about various green building techniques and environmentally low-impact products for structure, exterior and interior building design. Our visit to this event was mainly intended to find potential construction methods or materials appropriate for our current design studio project. This project is a single story prefab building that is going to be constructed on 18’x12’ footprint in Tempe area.

The Icynene Insulation System booth – a company well-known for its soft foam insulation – was the company that its simple but innovative green design approach really caught my attention. Richard, a representative of the Icynene Insulation System who was explaining the advantages of their products to the enthusiastic crowd was also impressed with the attention their products had received in this expo. He said "It is excellent to see how communities are learning from this event and I get really happy when people especially students come here to educate themselves and others about green design."

Over the course of time, almost all building materials have evolved gradually and today it is almost impossible to think of any type of building material that has not been improved. Among all these, insulation is no exception. Looking back in the last century one can find a wide variety of materials people have used for insulation means. Some of the most common ones can be named as cellulose, fiberglass, sheep's wool and polyicynene and polyurethane which are oil-based materials. Although some of these are derived through green processes, some of these are available in large (such as sheep’s wool). The Icynene Insulation System is a high-quality insulation that is developed by merging building science technology with design performance. It is a soft spray-in-place, light density, expanding foam insulation that acts both as insulation and air barrier. It takes the shape of where it is contained and offers a custom fit every time it is installed because it expands 100 times its initial volume. One of the great advantages of this insulation is its capability to deliver improved sound control while providing superior control of air leakage. On top of all, it is environmentally-friendly, non-toxic, and formaldehyde free.

With the current growth in the number of homeowners and further focus on providing more reliable and sustainable energy saving solutions, Icynene is a healthier alternative to conventional insulation. It provides the protective barrier preventing allergenic and dust from entering the home by completely sealing the building envelope. This water-based product also contains none of the harmful chemical and gasses often associated with traditional insulations such as fiberglass. By minimizing air infiltration it also reduces the amount of airborne moisture that can result in mold.

It not only makes a healthier home but also a quieter home. Traffic, neighborhood activities and plumbing runs can be the sources of annoying and unwanted sounds that can intrude into our living spaces, thwarting comfort and enjoyment. By acting as a sound barrier and sealing the building envelope against unwanted sounds, it effectively minimizes airborne sounds in the mid range frequency and it is perfect for limiting noises from plumbing runs, road, home theater and playrooms.

Energy efficiency can often be associated with green design. With Icynene, energy cost savings can be as high as 50% compared to the conventional insulations. Furthermore, the elimination of the random air leakage allows homes that utilize Icynene to maintain the same heating and cooling performance while potentially reducing the cost of HVAC equipment. In addition, since this technique is easy to implement the labor and materials normally required to achieve a properly sealed building envelope are no longer necessary.

After visiting the Icynene Insulation System booth and learning about this fabulous solution, I have decided to apply it as a base insulation in my prefab building and employ this concept to have a healthier, quieter, greener and more economical home. This can also help saving energy and resources.

Ecological Footprint Quiz

Numerous people like me have never paid attention to the term “Ecological Footprint”. In fact, I had no idea what the term exactly meant and consequently did not know what my social responsibilities to the world are. When I took the quiz and saw the result I was shocked “IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 5.3 PLANETS”. I started to think over my life style. How many miles I drive every day to school? How many hours I use my computer at home per day? How many minutes I am in the shower? Why I do not use locally grown vegetables and fruits? I waited for a couple of days before taking the next quiz. I wanted to be more realistic and implement some of the changes that were recommended in the website and also gain some experience with my new lifestyle before taking the exam again. Although I had made some improvements the result was still below my expectations. “IF EVERYONE LIVED LIKE YOU, WE WOULD NEED 2.7 PLANETS”. This taught me that, there are still several changes that I need to make in my life to use the available resources more efficiently. Perhaps, one of the most important things in our life is to feel more responsible about our environment. In addition, we all need to find a way to help keep and maintain the natural resources in our surrounding instead of wasting and damaging them. I personally think reducing the ecological footprint and acting economically is not as hard as we may think. It is a good idea to start from small things in our life to make big changes.

Controlling heating and cooling system is a simple approach to reduce energy consumption. We use our natural resources faster than they can be generated. I would not support a Stone Age way of life, but we can further utilize passive systems using natural forces such as wind, solar, etc to heat and cool our residences. Keeping windows closed and using thick curtain is also suggested for cold days and vice versa. Combination of solar energy with other types of heating system can dramatically decrease the level of energy loss. In other hand, by using solar systems we truly can save hundreds of dollars and be part of environment conservation family.

Using of compact florescent lamps (CFLs) is a simple idea to save more energy too. They last much longer than other lamp and use less energy. A recent research by the City of Phoenix shows that replacing at least one bulb with CFL’s in 571000 homes and businesses in the Phoenix metropolitan will cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than 251 million pounds over the life of the bulb. It will also reduce energy consumption by more than 159 million Kwh and results in $16 million saving in energy costs (per year). The conserved energy would be enough to light 91,000 homes for a year.

Some plastic bags are not recyclable and they cause an irreversible damage to environment. They take too long to decompose and fill up landfills. Several grocery stores such as Trader Joe’s and Sprouts offer reusable bags for shopping. This is a practical method to stay away from plastics bags. As a good example plastic bags are not offered in grocery store in Europe which encourages people to use reusable bags.

To produce papers for magazines, newspapers, bank statements, etc, valuable natural resources such as trees have to be used. Nowadays, technology can help prevent wasting papers and provide a more efficient and eco-friendly way to exchange information and limit our use of paper. Most banks and big companies provide online services without charge and the customers can receive and review their statements online or via email instead of paper statements. It is understandable that not everyone may be able to access or use these services but their contribution to papers and magazines recycling is still valuable.

Producing more organic food (to eliminate the addition of pesticide, antibiotic, etc to the soil) would result in a healthier lifestyle and also help keep the soil cleaner. Adding more vegetarian meals to our daily diets would also result in a healthier lifestyle. In fact, there are lots of substitutes for meat that could replace it without causing lack of vitamins or proteins in the body. Supporting local farms and markets, purchasing unpacked, unprocessed, organic and sustainable grown are other practical ideas to help the planet and ourselves.

In addition, one of the most important changes we can make in our personal life is to be more efficient in commuting. Riding on a bus, train, or other public transportation means, biking and walking (if possible) are some of the changes we can consider to include in our daily life.

As a matter of fact we waste more natural resources than the earth provides us and it is not late to change our behavior. It takes hundreds or even thousands years for our planet to regenerate the resources that we are consuming. “If everybody lives like me, we would need more planets” is a heartbreaking truth. In fact we are spending resources faster than they are produced.

In the couple of day gap between two quizzes I attempted to consider some of those changes in my habits and everyday life. Although the quiz result was still showing that I need to do more I was already feeling more useful to myself and the community. Using bus and walking to school was a brilliant plan. To stop wasting plastic bags in my grocery shopping I bought two reusable shopping bags and added an extra trash can for paper recycling. I switched some of the old light bulbs with CFL’s to save more energy and money. In addition, I started to practice some new habits in my life such as optimizing the amount of water used during the shower and laundry time.

This quiz and my research about it had a big influence on my perspective in using natural resources. My philosophy is everyone can make positive impact to the planet and change it to a greener place to live. It is amazing to realize that how making small changes to our lives and habits can lead us to a better utilization of resources. Beside that, we are responsible for the next generations. As a big gift to them and the world we can educate them the recycling process and how to appreciate and respect the nature and try to use the resources more efficiently.