Fiber-cement panel mock up

Our sub-contractor (Danny from Longboard Contracting) will begin installing the fiber-cement panels on Monday. I don't know if I mentioned this in an earlier post, but we decided to go with panels by Certainteed. Most fiber-cement products on the market are by James Hardie (as in "Hardiplank") which is a great product. Both Hardi and Certainteed products contain recycled content, are manufactured locally, and are extremely durable. The main reason we decided to go with Certainteed was the fact that, in addition to the recycled content, they guarantee a minimum of 30% recycled fly ash in their mix. Another reason was the better color selection as well as their finish. All pre-finished Hardipanels have a slight sheen that we weren't crazy about.

The irony, of course, is that we eventually chose the unfinished (just primed) panel from Certainteed because the primed finish closely resembled a concrete color had a great subtle texture to it. The image to the left shows the mock-up of the F-C panels and the window trim detail on the rear facade of the house.

Now you do have to eventually finish the panel (either paint or seal) in order to retain the 50 year warranty, but Certainteed gives you a two year window to do this before they'll void their warranty. Hardipanel is also available in a primed finish, but they only give you a 3 month window before you have to finish it. To me, this says something about the manufacturer's confidence in the durability of the raw material, although I am sure that Hardi's product would hold up just fine. Eventually the owner of the house will have to make a decision on whether to paint the panels or simply seal them, if they want to keep the warranty. The beauty of the primed panels is that they could also be painted subtly different colors to form kind of a patchwork pattern, if desired.

Either way, we are excited to see the panels go up as this is the final stage of the exterior cladding. Danny has been great to work with so far and has helped us find the best way to achieve the look we want. He's not the 'cheapest' installer out there, but he has a great reputation and it is very important that this part of the project be done well...so it's worth it.

Opening up the west wall

Well, I don't know why it took so long but we finally were able to cut the openings in the west wall (the existing brick masonry wall) that will house the new windows in the Dining Room & Living Room on the first floor and the bathroom on the second floor. Maybe the GC was waiting till the end so he could make a quick getaway when the whole house came crashing down. Ha, ha. But seriously, the whole process went fairly smooth and was fascinating to watch. The old wall held up nicely while they installed the concrete lintels. We tried to save most of the bricks but many of them broke during removal. The remnants will make their way to CWM's yard for crushing.























We have two big windows (side by side w/ a column in between that you can see in the upper right image) that will be going in the dining room wall and a long double awning that will be going high on the living room wall (this is the opening the guys are placing the lintel in and you can see it in the upper left image). The bottom left image shows the full opening for the windows in the bathroom at the second floor. These will actually be two casement side by side with a column in between (aligned with the windows above and below) but the column is not built yet.

The remaining windows will be installed on Saturday. We are so lucky to be able to have windows on the side of the house. I was amazed to see how much light the openings let into the first floor space. And although these windows are on the west wall and could get a lot of harsh western sun, we are benefiting greatly from the large shade tree next door as well as the neighboring houses that are tall enough (3-stories) to block much of the direct sun in the late afternoon but far enough away (roughly 20' due to the alley and their yards) to still allow plenty of light in.

The metal roof panels are in

The sheet metal fabricator/installer (Jason Pacetti) finished installing the Zalmag metal roof panels on the mansard today. We purchased the metal in coil stock (3 tightly wound rolls - 20"wide x 150' long) and then had the flat seam folded panels fabricated here in Philly. Every chance we get we try to have the raw materials shipped and then have a local fabricator make the product. There is still an embodied energy involved but this way we are injecting money into the local Philadelphia economy instead of having the products made somewhere else. Additionally, we form a relationship with local tradesmen.
















We are very happy with the roof and Jason did a great job on the panels. One lesson we learned here was that the next time we decide to use metal roof panels we will get the material in sheets (4'x8', for example) instead of coil. The reason we got the 20" wide coil was to maximize the material, eliminate waste, and it was a bit cheaper. Because we would not have to rip it (lengthwise) but simply cut the length of the panel we wanted (crosswise) as it was unrolled, there would be no waste. We ultimately wanted an 18"x36" panel. A 20"W piece of metal actually yields an 18"W panel after the two long edges are folded. So by cutting the roll into 38" pieces we would have our ideal size panel. Sounds easy enough, huh?

Not so much in the end. You see the material came wound so tightly that the fabricator had a really hard time straightening in out. He had some concern with "oil canning" (warping you sometimes see on metal roofs) since the panels were a fairly large size. He was going to try to "reverse roll it" but he felt it might get scratched. In the end, he had to work the metal a great deal to make the panels look good (and he did a great job and never raised his price). Also, when dealing with a coil you run the risk of any small dent or ding on the end of the coil repeating itself over and over as you unroll it.

Lastly, we are very pleased with the connection details (folded seams, turning of corners, meeting the windows, etc) that Jason came up with. He took the time to do it right. It is refreshing to work with someone who really cares about quality and gets excited about working on a project where the client cares as well.

We love the metal but would never get it in coil stock again if we planned on making flat panels. Next time, we figure if we can live with a 14"x30" panel we could divide up a 4'x8' sheet and have virtually no waste.

Here's a link to the metal (Zalmag) manufacturer: http://www.millenniumtiles.com/

Update on the roof hatch

Well, last week we finally said goodbye to our old plywood roof hatch. Our beautiful new hatch arrived last Monday and it took a total of about 20 minutes to install with some weatherstripping, silicone, and a few screws. The fit was perfect. It lets a ton of light into the space (not that it really needed it) and with the hydraulic arms, it opens very smoothly. I feel pretty confident about the insulation value due to the overlapped connection and the double insulated dome. I like the fact that it's not frosted, so on clear days and nights you can look up and see the sky. See previous post for full description of the hatch.

All inspections passed

We have successfully passed all of our construction inspections. We are now ready for spray foam insulation (which will begin next week) and then drywall shortly after. There has been a lot of progress over the last week on other fronts too (stairs, the metal mansard, fiber-cement paneling, etc) which I will go over in the next few posts and try to get everyone up to speed.

Plumbing: Over the past two weeks we wrapped up all the piping and rough-ins and subsequently passed inspection (and we now have water). The whole process was a bit tricky due to the fact that we had the water shut off over a year ago because we knew weren't getting started for a while and didn't want to keep paying a bill. This meant the water department came and actually removed the meter from the house. Well, when our plumber gave us the original cost estimate he mentioned to us that he does not know the state of the pipe coming in from the street due to the fact that there is no meter and the water had been off for a while. This meant that he might have to tear up the sidewalk to make a new connection from the curb to the house and possibly from the curb to water main (under the street), if a lead pipe was still there. The cost incurred for all this work would be over $10K and has been hanging over us ever since receiving the estimate. We would not know what we had to do till the water department came out.

I remember the City tearing up the whole street a couple of years ago and replacing some lines but I never found out what exactly they replaced. The plumber's "worst case scenario" was that they replaced the water main and, since the house was abandoned at the time, they just cut off the connection which would then have to be replaced. Fortunately, we found that when PWD came last week to install a new meter, the pipes under the sidewalk appear to be in good shape (and still connected) and the pressure is good and steady...thus requiring no outside work. Whew! So the plumber came back and hooked up his main supply line to the meter and we are now in business. But the mystery street work remained.

Electrical: We passed our electrical inspection shortly after plumbing. This process involves a bit of orchestration too as, unlike the other trades, PECO doesn't actually do the electrical inspection. What they require is that an "independent underwriter" actually perform the inspection and then report to PECO when they are finished. PECO then comes out, checks to see verification from the underwriter, then (in our case) strings the line from the main power line running along the street to the front of the house. It is then our electrician's job to actually connect the wires from the street to the wires running up a conduit on the side of our house. Usually these are located on the front face of row houses, but we got lucky and were able to keep the conduit on the side since we're an end unit. And by the way, the owner can contact the underwriter directly. PECO has a short list of recommended ones, but our electrician has someone that he always works with and was able to come out on short notice. I recommend going this route, if possible, as you never know how long an underwriter will take if you are cold calling them.

At this point, we are still waiting for PECO to show up to run the wires. We were told this would be last Mon or Tues. but so far they haven't made an appearance. After PECO finishes their work and our electrician connects the two lines, we'll have power.

HVAC: There doesn't appear to be an official mechanical inspection, although we did find out that the City is now requiring everyone to get an HVAC "permit" (which they never did before). It costs about $500. We got our permit last Friday so we're good to go.

The mechanical contractor finished installing the furnace in the basement, which barely fit since we bumped up to a 14 SEER unit. I believe the units get bigger as you increase the SEER, so always keep that in mind when considering an upgrade. He also finished running the main return ducts and the supply ducts for the first floor...all running along the basement ceiling. He might have to come back later to tighten up a few things (tape joints, etc) but basically, he's done. I scheduled the gas company to come out tomorrow afternoon to install a new meter and turn the gas on. This is where the mystery street work was uncovered. It was the gas main that they replaced a couple of years ago and they did cut and cap the gas line to the house at the curb. So they have tear the sidewalk up in order to put a coupling on and reconnect our line to the street. Thankfully for us, PGW does this for free (unlike what the plumber was going to have to do).

The only snag in this process is that in order for the gas company to turn your gas on, they require at least one gas powered fixture in the house to be hooked up. Well, that's not a problem since the furnace is installed and ready to go. BUT, the furnace needs electricity to function and if the PWD gets there before PECO, well, then I guess we'll have to rig the furnace up to the generator (which I'm not even sure if this is possible). If not, then they will hook up the new meter and I will have to reschedule them to come back when we have power. ugh.

Also, regarding the ongoing battle about the city "requiring" everyone to put the gas meter on the front of the house (a total eye sore in addition to the fact that you then have to either protect it with bollards or box it in) there is at least one way to get around this. When doing a renovation project, the gas main is likely to be coming into the basement and that's where the old meter typically was. As much as possible, try not disturb this situation. They most likely will install the new meter where old one was because that's where the pipe is, thus solving the dilemma and getting your new meter in the basement.

Final Framing: This was the last official inspection (although the inspector still has to come back and check things out after insulation goes in.) We were asked to add some additional strapping to the roof rafters but that was about it. The inspector was very pleased with the solid construction and we in turn are very pleased to be done with ALL the inspections!

Open House scheduled

We decided the beginning of December will be a good time to have a "construction progress" OPEN HOUSE so folks can can come by and see first hand what we've been up to lately. The project will be at a point where all the systems are in and some of the drywall is up, but most importantly...we'll have heat and a working bathroom!

We still have a couple of months worth of work to do (install kitchen, flooring, trim work, fixtures, etc.) so we'll plan another open house to celebrate the final completion in the spring. In the interim, we thought it might be interesting to show the work-in-progress. We are going to try to make the event as educational as possible and, of course, we'll be on hand to give tours and answer any questions. All are welcome and bring your friends.

We'll be providing some refreshments (local cider, etc). See flier below for details. Everyone is welcome-spread the word!

Fabricator selected for steel stair

We have finally selected a fabricator for the steel stair that runs from the first to the second floor as well as all the related steel railings in the house. The work is now underway. This has been a long process which involved several quality bidders and a wide range of proposed bids.

Bill Curran (http://www.billcurrandesign.com/index.html) will be building and installing our stairs for us. Not only does Bill do beautiful work at a competitive price but he is also very accommodating and an extremely nice guy. He was also excited to be a part of our project and strongly supports what we're doing. We were immediately drawn to the clean, modern design sensibility of his work. Check out his site and make sure you scroll through all the images. His shop is in Philly just north of Chinatown, which he invited us to for our first design meeting. He lives above the shop in an amazing renovated industrial loft that basically acts as his showroom as he designed and fabricated almost all the furnishings (stairs, furniture, kitchen, etc). It was very impressive and very reassuring.

We have always had a pretty clear idea of what we wanted our stair to look like (and provided those details in the original set of drawings) and it was nice to find a high quality fabricator that was willing to build what we designed but was also able to help us refine the design and make it even better...and all within our budget. The basic design is fairly simple: an open riser stair with steel stringers, steel rod "ship-ladder" style railings, and wood treads. Very similar to the image below (which is from Bill's website.) The main difference is that we will have two stringers (opposed to the single, center stringer you see in the photo) and our railing posts are perpendicular to the top handrail, and the angle of the stair (opposed to perpendicular to the ground, as in the photo).


One important detail that we were always struggling with was the thickness of the wood tread. You see, when you have an open-riser stair, according to the residential building code, the open space between the top of one tread and the bottom of the next (essentially, part of the riser) cannot exceed 4" high (or as the code states: "must reject a 4" sphere"). Why a 4" sphere? Well, that's basically the size of a baby's head. This max. dimension was determined so that no one climbing the stairs could ever fall through the riser space. Makes sense. BUT, when your overall riser height is 7-3/4", the tread thickness (or the solid portion of the riser) needs to be a min. 3-3/4". Good luck finding wood that thick that is first, reasonably priced, and second, reclaimed timber. Basically, we needed a 4" x 10" (actual, not nominal) piece of wood. Over the past couple of months, this was proving to be a difficult find. Oh, and just so there's no confusion, the stair in the photo does not actually meet code and most likely received some sort of variance...which is totally feasible but we were trying to avoid any variances.

Also, the other drawback to this design was the tread was pretty bulky. So when we were going over all this with Bill, he presented a few possible alternatives. One of them involved adding a piece of steel that would connect the two steel angle supports (welded to the stringers that reach out to support the treads). This piece of steel would essentially run parallel with the tread nosing and set back about an inch. This allowed us to go back to a 2" thick wood tread and still meet code. The sketch below illustrates what I am talking about. The new steel piece is indicated in red.

One last detail that we went back and forth on was whether to go with 1/2" round rods or 1/2" square tubes for the balustrade. In the end, we decided on square as we thought it looked cleaner and aligned more with the overall design.

So how does sustainability factor into this feature? Well, there are a couple of different ways to approach a steel fabricated item such as a stair. One is to request that the item is made with salvaged steel. When doing something as precise and detailed as a stair, this can prove to be difficult because it will be hard to find the exact size and quantity of the pieces you need...never mind the condition the steel might be in if you plan on having them exposed. The other is to simply recognize that all steel that comes from a mill these days already has a high recycled content, sometimes up to 95%. And, of course, it's 100% recyclable. Therefore, simply choosing to build with steel is already a pretty green choice. So the main issue after that is to try and get your design locally fabricated. We have accomplished this. We are using another material in this stair though, and that is wood, for the treads. We will be acquiring reclaimed timbers (probably through our connection at Greenable) to use for the treads. The species will most likely be Chestnut, Elm, or Doug Fir.

And one last note. We also got Bill to fabricate us some steel posts for the railing up on the roof deck. For this rail we will be using stainless steel cables opposed to rods. This way, when your hanging out on the deck enjoying the green roof and the skyline views, the railing for the most part, simply disappears.

A blast from the past...

I know it's been quite a while since our last post but all that's about to change. We have a lot of things to discuss now including the fabrication of the main steel stair and railings (which is underway) along with the roof deck rails. We have some plumbing changes to talk about, some HVAC dilemmas, the ongoing kitchen design , some updates on finishing out the building envelope, a 'green' home tour, and many other things.

But for right now, we get back to "a blast from the past"...

So we are considering switching this blog over to Wordpress (which I will discuss later on) and I was going through some older post "edits" and saw this little gem that I had almost forgotten about. It was never published. It doesn't go into an incredible amount of detail but it should give you a sense of what we were doing 'way back when'. The post describes how we found the property, what we originally designed, and some of the process we went though early on.

Click HERE to view this previously unreleased post.

Some drywall options

I was looking into what kind of sustainable options we might have for drywall and I found some interesting products.

One option is a "paperless" drywall product by Georgia-Pacific called DensArmor Plus® Paperless Fiberglass Mat. It is a highly mold-and mildew- resistant interior gypsum panel. "DensArmor Plus panels feature fiberglass mats on both the front and the back for the best in interior protection from moisture currently available. The moisture-resistant fiberglass mats [also] make DensArmor Plus panels the ideal replacement for paper faced greenboard, where greenboard is still allowed by code."

One drawback I saw in using the DensArmor was the fact that it contains fiberglass and you would need to be careful when handling it. But the contractor indicated that this wouldn't really be a problem and shouldn't be a deciding factor. The only remaining drawback I found then, was cost. Based on what I found, a typical 4'x8' sheet of DensArmor drywall costs about 60% more than a standard drywall sheet. That's a pretty significant cost increase so we will have to see if we have that kind of room in the budget. The way things are going though...I don't know.


Another option I found was a very new product called Eco Rock by Serious Materials. Actually, this product is not even out yet (scheduled for release in late 2008). There are two major differences I see between Eco Rock and other drywall. First, it uses a large amount of post-industrial recycled content. And Second, it uses a lot less energy to produce.

From the Serious Materials website:

"Over 30 billion square feet of drywall are produced each year in the U.S. and Canada. A single sheet uses between 100,000 and 400,000 BTUs of energy to produce, depending on the age of the plant, producing 16 pounds of greenhouse gases per sheet. Approximately one-quarter of the cost of a gypsum drywall panel is tied to energy, with likely long-term cost increases; carbon taxes are common in Europe and may come to the U.S.

By contrast, EcoRock uses 80% less energy in the manufacturing of its core. No heaters or dryers are used in production, nor calcining processes – resulting in 80% less CO2. EcoRock also uses 85% post-industrial recycled content and is fully recyclable. A plant built for EcoRock reduces energy use to a minimum."

You might have heard of Serious Materials as they are the makers of Quiet Rock (a 'soundproof' drywall product). FYI...one sheet of Quiet Rock is acoustically equivalent to eight sheets of regular drywall. That's pretty amazing.

The Eco Rock product looks very promising but what I find even more compelling is the business philosophy held by Serious Materials' CEO, Kevin Surace. The following is a link to an article about him and his company (from about a year ago): Cleantech Article. Read it when you have a few minutes. I just wish there were a few more industry leaders like this around.

The reclaimed lumber, some plumbing progress, and the roof deck (sans railing)

Here are some images showing all of our salvaged lumber from the original house. It's being stored in the basement. On the taller stack, is the original pine flooring. This is all that was left after discarding what was rotten or severely damaged. The lower stack is all the salvaged 3x timbers. You can also see the old basement stair (which we have not figured out what to do with yet). All the lumber has been cleaned and de-nailed but still needs some work.

Then the planing begins...not all of it though, as we really like the dark "oxidized" look that the timbers have and might try to integrate some of these rough members into certain features of the house (i.e. built-ins, shelving, etc.)

As far as the pine flooring goes - although we are planning on using the carbonized strand bamboo for most of the floors in the house - we were thinking that it would be nice to lay the reclaimed pine floors up on the third floor (Master Suite) and limit the bamboo to the first two floors. If we determine that we don't have enough for the entire floor (which I fear we don't), we might just use it in either the Den or the Bedroom and have bamboo in the other. Then we could possibly use cork, in the connecting hallway, as a transition with tile being in the bathroom. All these materials are great but we need to be careful not to have too many flooring types in one area.

**An important note about re-laying hardwood floors: we have found that it's best not to plane the boards down (as tempting as it may be) before you re-lay them. The reason for this is that these boards are "tongue & groove" and once you start the planing process, you inevitable lose the centralized location of the T&G running along the side of the plank...and then you have real problems as the boards don't fit back together. This is because you will most likely plane more off of one side than the other. Your best bet is to simply re-lay the floors down in the state they are in on top of the new joists or sub-floor and then use a drum or orbital sander to take them down for refinishing. This is not the 'end-all-be-all' solution but it seems to be one with better odds for success.











Here's a shot of some plumbing progress (to show that it is actually happening!). On the left is the Kohler tub being installed in the second floor bathroom. The image on the right shows the ABS vent pipes heading up to the roof. The PEX is going in today and we should have running water by next week. Electrical and HVAC are also mobilizing now.



















Here's the roof deck. As you can see, it will take a little while for the vegetation to "integrate" with the deck. We are really happy with the way the deck came out and feel the end result will be truly unique. We should be getting the cable rail system in the next week or so. We still have our temporary roof hatch (a piece of plywood). The actual roof hatch will be arriving in a couple of weeks. The product we finally decided on is a custom sized, powder coated aluminum exterior and Birch wood interior hatch with a low-profile, double pane (insulated) clear acrylic panel and gas shock lifts. It is manufactured by a company called Insuladome (based in Long Island, NY) and ordered through Specialty Building Products (just outside of Philly). It's a great looking product that is well-built and priced very competitively (even for a custom size).

The green roof is in!

Here are a few pics of the final installation. As you can see, we will need a couple of growing seasons before the roof gets filled in. The sedum plugs will mostly grow outward and fill in the spaces in between. If certain areas don't fill in adequately, the homeowner can always add more plugs later (although JIG does provide a maintenance warranty and will fill in rough spots in addition to weeding for 2 years after installation) . To most, this might not be what was expected when imagining the green roof...but as with many landscape features, it will take time to mature and will get better with age. You can order trays of mature plants (which we are interested in trying sometime) for the "instant" green roof (check out "Live Roof") but they tend to be more expensive and hey...you miss all the fun of growing your own roof from scratch!























A close up view of one of the larger plants and some of the other varieties. You gotta love the Philly skyline off in the distance. You can also see the tag of one of the main plant species and the contact info showing where it came from. Our sedums came from: Emory Knoll Farms. The wind protection (brown matting made from coconut husks) that is covering the dirt should only take about 1-2 years to completely biodegrade.












An overall shot of the roof area looking north. The piece of plywood in the middle is sitting on top of the deck area (which doesn't have the boards laid yet). You can also see the roof hatch opening near the middle and the A/C pad at the left.


















A view looking south. You can see the location of the black scupper box in the corner of the roof. The roof hatch (a double glazed, low profile dome) is being ordered and should arrive soon. We still need to trim up the felt around the edges and install the Zalmag metal cap flashing around the perimeter.

One of the frustrating timing issues we had was the fact that the green roof is finished now but we will not have running water in the house until at least a week from now. The roof needs to be watered fairly often in the first few weeks (then only periodically for the first couple of growing seasons, then it's pretty much self-sustaining). Let's just say that I have never prayed harder for rain than I did the last couple of days. And you know what? It worked. It rained steadily most of the day today (and is supposed to continue over the weekend). Our kind neighbor is allowing us to use their spicket next week until we have our own water. The plumber will install a hose bib on our roof at the exhaust chimney. We can then set up a watering system on a timer so we can keep the roof damp over the next few weeks.

The deck is being constructed with Everwood, an environmentally friendly, borate-based treated wood product, that is sold at Green Depot. We considered other options (including reclaimed wood) but Everwood seemed to achieve the durability levels and the price point that we were looking for. Composite decking (such as Trex) is also a nice green product but we remain big fans real wood for decks (kind of a vice in the 'green' world, I know, but at least it's non-toxic). The GC will be finishing the deck early next week (FYI: Green Depot stocks 2x6s of Everwood but has to order 2x4s as they are not as common for decks). I'll post some pics of the finished roof deck next week.

Green roof progress photos

Above left, you can see Howard (orange shirt) and Pat (black shirt) from JIG laying the first layer of felt down on top the root barrier. Above right, you can see the framework for the roof deck which will lay on top of the felt adjacent the roof hatch. After the felt, they will lay down the drainage mats.












Here the guys get ready to lift the large white bags of "media" (dirt) up to the roof. The bags will be suspended above roof, opened up, and the dirt evenly spread out on top of the drainage mats. You can also see the orange protective covering on the electrical lines in the image on the right.












To the left is a detail shot of the scupper drainage box at the rear (low point) of the roof. There are 3 long triangular shaped "raceway" drains underneath the roof media that channel water directly to the drain in the event of heavy rain. Good thing too, since it started pouring about halfway through the media installation process. Pat said the drains worked beautifully and dirt retained just the right amount of water. You can also see the river stone drainage beds and metal edging at the rear edge and around the roof hatch and exhaust shaft. The wood to the far right is the edge of roof deck sleeper system.



















All the dirt is down now and deck is in place. There is some final prep work with the edging and river stone before they lay the wind protection mat. If you look closely, you can see the small white ties coming out of the dirt that will hold the mat down. The plants have not arrive on site yet but are expected later in the day.


The roof is deck is not quite as big as we imagined it would be. It is 8' x 9' though, and should be enough to fit a small table and chairs or a couple of larger lounge chairs. In the end though, we think its a good size (relative to the overall area of the roof) because the bigger the deck gets, the less green roof there would be, which would end up being less cost effective and, seeing as there is no media under the deck, less effective with storm water management too.

Green roof installation begins

(for documentation purposes, I separated this post from the previous one)

This week, JIG will begin installing the green roof and our GC will begin constructing the roof deck. We are very excited about the fact that by the end of this week we'll have a green roof and a deck! You get so caught up in worrying about all the details sometimes when building a project that you forget to stop and enjoy the project once in a while. We'll...we feel this calls for a "topping off" party, which is now in the works. Who says they're just for "tall" buildings? And seeing that in about a month, the contractor's work will be done and it will be up to us (and a few very good friends) to finish out the house (which includes: installing all the plumbing fixtures, possibly the entire kitchen, the flooring and tile work, the wood trim, any lights that aren't recessed, and a few other minor details), we feel now might be a good a time as any to enjoy ourselves a bit since things are going to get very busy, very soon.

Back to the green roof... We had to scramble to get some last minute preparations taken care of before tomorrow - mainly the covering of the electrical wires out front (which can only be done by PECO) and laying down the EPDM root barrier. EPDM is a rubber-like membrane that comes in rolls and is mostly used as actual roofing membrane as it is waterproof and very durable. But it also makes a great root barrier, which is simply a barrier to keep the roots from damaging the actual roof membrane underneath. Of course, you can simply install a certain type of roof membrane that acts as both the waterproofing agent and the root barrier...but it's more expensive. Sorry if this is a bit confusing.

Anyways...the root barrier issue was a bit trickier due to the fact that it is "loose laid" (which means that it is not glued down to the roof membrane, as it not necessary in this case) and is best installed just before the green roof media is to be installed so there is no chance of damage to the membrane from folks working on it in addition to the fact that unless it is seriously weighted down, it could simply blow away. It's a very heavy membrane which means it could do a lot of damage if the wind ever happened to pick it up. And of course, on our project, these two tasks (laying the root barrier and installing the green roof) are done by separate contractors and thus prove challenging when the latter is supposed to start work first thing in Monday morning and a big storm is forecasted for the weekend, thus forcing the roofer to wait till the last minute to lay the membrane . Ugh! But everything seems to be working out okay...or so they tell me.

The reason we needed to cover the electrical wires is that JIG will be using a large mechanical lift (positioned in the street in front of the house) to get most of the material onto the roof. Covering the wires is simply a safety precaution in case anything or anyone should accidentally make contact with them.









To the best of my knowledge, the process of our green roof installation is as follows: First, the root barrier is laid down. Then they lay down a felt over the entire roof on top of the root barrier (except where the deck is going as this area gets a 1" deep hard plastic drainage, or "dimple", board - there is no media under the deck). Second comes the drainage mat (this has felt on the upside and a open plastic wire "tangle-weave" system about 1" thick on the downside) over all all the felt. They will also install the vertical metal edging that keeps the 8" wide river stone strip (at the front and rear edge) separate from the green roof area. The stone is for wind protection for the plants and for drainage. There is also a triangle conduit (or raceway) installed from the front of the roof to the back for drainage during heavy rains. Next comes the dirt. Then, in our case, due to the fact that we have a very low parapet, they will install a biodegradable wind protection mat (made from coconut husks...kind of like a burlap) which is tied down and keeps the plants roots in place until they are established. It takes about a year for the mat to completely disintegrate. Finally, they will cut about 900 small holes in the mat and plant all the sedum plugs in the holes. Talk about tedious work. All the while, the deck is being constructed (by our GC) and will be installed simultaneously with the dirt and plants (another scheduling challenge as it involves separate contractors). Timing these together is so the dirt and plants can blend nicely into the spaces between the staggered edges of the deck boards.

I am going to try to get pictures everyday this week to show all the progress. Should be a productive week!

Updated site plan and latest patio designs

Site Plan

A good friend and colleague, Britton Jones (a local landscape architect) helped us out with a design for the rear patio. He gave us a few different designs (which are all great and are posted below) to review along with a great reference book called Small Garden by John Brookes. If you have a small patio and are looking to do something very cool, you should definitely check it out. It has tons of great ideas. He was also able to recommend various types of durable, drought tolerant plants that we should use.

So after going over the various options with our friend and discussing the pros and cons of different elements and layouts, we decided on a plan that took what we feel are the best ideas from a couple of different designs. The patio portion of the site plan to the left incorporates the resultant plan (see enlarged plan to the right). One major change from our original idea was to move the rain garden from up against the house (under the kitchen window) to along the wall that divides our patio from the neighbors. This came from our desire to keep that water away from the foundation of the house and for the garden to be tied more directly to the rain barrel. The shade tree on axis with the back door and the main interior circulation path of the house is going to be very nice. Also, we have decided to use all the salvaged brick we have to pave the alley-way from the back patio to the front sidewalk (dirt, right now) instead of using it for the patio itself. The patio will instead have large concrete pavers that will be sand set on gravel with an "open joint" laid in a running bond pattern. The concrete pattern will begin to "break up" as it approaches the rear wall, allowing for greenery to emerge and help with water absorption. Thanks again, Britton, for your wonderful design ideas and suggestions.









The site plan also shows the extent of the green roof and design of the deck. The staggered edges of the wood deck reach out into the greenery and allow the boards to form a closer relationship between the two surfaces - blurring the edge between them as the plants mature. You can also see the location of the storm water planter at the edge of the front sidewalk where it meets the street. The purpose of the planter is explained in an earlier post.

The new (old) facade...

The mason FINALLY finished the new brick face. We used reclaimed brick from a salvage brick & stone place in Norristown. They are 100 yr old original Philly face brick from a few different jobs. The interesting thing about using reclaimed brick is...well, you never really know what your going to get (unless you lay the whole thing out beforehand, and...uhh, good luck with that.) We are generally very happy with the result. It has lot of character and tells a great story, in addition to being a very sustainable solution.

I suppose the only part that we weren't too happy about was the conglomeration of bright red bricks around the middle of the facade. We feel these were not mixed in to the rest as evenly as the blues, yellows, and blacks toward the bottom (which we love.) We took a chance by using old brick and we feel it was well worth it. Even the mason (who hated the idea all along) had to confess (begrudgingly) that he was very impressed with the final product and never imagined it could look this good. We even had a nice older woman by and say that she has lived in this neighborhood for over 50 years and has never seen anything quite like it. She loved it.

The only work left to do out front now is put in the reclaimed marble steps and then eventually redo the sidewalk.
















Now the question is: what to do, if anything, about all the bright red bricks? It's purely a question of aesthetics. And please...if anyone out there has an opinion on this, please let us know by leaving a comment. We are open for suggestions. Below is a concept we came up with (using Photoshop) where we could "tone down" the red brick and maybe bring a little bit of the blue, yellow, and black up to the top area. This could be achieved by stripping the paint off a few of the red bricks (using a great product from Dumond called Smart Strip by Peel Away) and then painting a few of the bricks up higher with matching blue, yellow, and black from the lower part. The purist side of me says "leave it alone, that's the way the cards fell and it's beautiful." But the developer side of me keeps reminding me that this is a spec house and has to have some degree of 'curb appeal" (as much as I hate that term.) Aesthetically speaking, we like the "after" version better but are torn by concept of messing with the quasi-chaotic purity of the whole process.

















ADDENDUM (8/27/08):
See image below. A good friend, "Dubin" (who has commented a few times on the blog) has helped out by taking a stab at another version...this one, going in the opposite direction by accentuating the color variations. Looks great! Maybe a bit crazy for our taste but we like what your thinking. Thanks for participating!

Non-PVC drain pipe solution

So after many futile efforts of trying to find a non-PVC pipe that can be used for the drain lines in the house, I think I might have found a solution. I had been calling around to various plumbers, engineers and colleagues to try and find an alternative when, on a chance phone call to Superior Plumbing in South Philly, I was turned on to a product I hadn't heard of before. Now...the most ridiculous part: the product has actually been around for almost 50 years! It's a testimony to the fact when this industry finds something they like to work with (i.e cheap and easy like PVC) they seems to close off all other avenues and then become very resistant to change.

Here's what happened on the phone. I called the plumbing supplier (which I have used before and are great!) to ask if they know of any other pipe material besides PVC and cast iron that can be used for drain lines. He responded with an adamant, "No....that's it. Those are the only two." As I fained disbelief and pursued the question further, he held his ground. But just as I was thanking him for his assistance and was about to hang up the phone, he burst in with a "Hang on a second", and proceeded to ask another guy in the store to remind him what the name of that "black plastic pipe they use for drains" is. He came back with, "ABS". ABS?? What is that? He then informed me that ABS is an acceptable alternative but he didn't think of it right away because he doesn't stock it. "It's the stuff they make TVs and VCRs out of", he said. I asked if it was approved by the City of Philadelphia. He said, "Only for residential." I said, "Perfect." I then thanked the man again and began my usual background check.

An important aspect I found out was that ABS is actually a "thermoplastic", which means it is able to be safely recycled. This is not the case for PVC, which cannot effectively be recycled, as it is a difficult process, releases dangerous chemical when melted down, and needs more chemicals added in order to reform it. ABS is derived from acrylonitrile, butadiene, and styrene. The advantage of ABS is that this material combines the strength and rigidity of the acrylonitrile and styrene polymers with the toughness of the polybutadiene rubber. The most important mechanical properties of ABS are resistance and toughness.

From the PPFA's (Plastic Pipe and Fittings Association) website: "ABS pipe and fittings are made from a thermoplastic resin called Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene (ABS for short). ABS PIPING SYSTEMS are easier and less expensive to install than metal piping; Feature superior flow due to smooth interiorfinish; Do not rot, rust, corrode or collect waste; Withstand earth loads and shipping (with properhandling); Resist mechanical damage, even at low temperatures; Perform at an operational temperature range of -40°F to 180°F; Are lightweight (one person can load and unload); Take less time to rough in than metal DWV materials."

ABS pipe and fittings were originally developed in the early 1950s for use in oil fields and the chemical industry. In 1959, John F. Long, a prominent Arizona builder, used ABS pipe in an experimental residence. Twenty-five years later, an independent research firm dug up and analyzed a section of the drain pipe. The result: no evidence of rot, rust or corrosion.

To see the PPFA's ABS Publications, click here You can also check out the FAQ's here.

Energy Recovery Ventilation

Another mechanical item we are looking into that I forgot to mention yesterday is the integration of a ERV (Energy Recovery Ventilator) unit into our HVAC system. It's a great strategy and I am excited about the possibility of doing it. I am not sure about the total cost of this addition and we'll have to see if it makes sense with our budget (in addition to whether or not we have the room for it). Although the HVAC unit that we have selected is a high efficiency unit (over 92%) and pulls in 100% fresh air for combustion, the ERV adds the heat exchange and the dehumidification element. Here is a link to an article (from back in 2000) that explains in detail how the whole heat exchange system works.

Make up air: Most of the time, houses (especially older ones) get fresh air from incidental air infiltration - leaks in the home's envelope (much like the 120 yr old old house we live in now!). Since many new homes are constructed so 'tight' (extremely well insulated), the only way to get fresh air into the house is opening the windows - which is not very energy efficient in the hot and cold months. So, installing a 'make-up air' vent brings in small amounts of outside fresh (albeit Philly) air. This vent will have an adjustable damper that will only allow air to enter the system when the unit is running. The main problem with this is that in the dead of winter and height of summer, the fresh air going into the unit can be anywhere from 10 degrees to 100 degrees and takes a lot on energy to bring it up or down to 70 degrees. But this is where a heat exchanger comes into play. The heat exchanger involves exhausting some of the stale air out of the house. The incoming air passes over outgoing air (exhaust) because one pipe is located within the other. When the two airs pass each other, there is a heat exchanger that takes the heat from the exhausting stale air and gives it to the incoming fresh air, without mixing the air. This is a way to preheat or precool the incoming fresh air and have your heating system work less. The biggest issue with this method comes during the summer: humidity. But there the ERV (Energy Recovery Unit) comes into play as it gets rid of the humidity.

The whole system makes a lot of sense and it's becoming more commonplace these days and getting more cost effective.

So, the way we see it is between the use of the "whole house fan" (discussed in a previous post) during the temperate months and our high-efficiency unit and possible ERV during the cold and hot months, we should be able to have some fresh air continually circulating through the home throughout the year using a lot less energy.

The 'trades' move in

Well, it's been a while since the last official post and a lot has happened. I'll try to run though some of the important issues and get everyone up to speed.

The 'trades' (the plumbing, electrical, and mechanical contractors) will begin work this week...with plumbing going first, then electrical, then mechanical. Not necessarily the 'normal' order but our GC had some good reasons for doing it this way. This part of the project was a bit delayed from the original schedule due to a number of issues that are related to the masonry work (more on that later) as well as a few modifications to the plumbing and mechanical systems...a few of which are a result of our last LEED meeting and our desire to obtain a few extra points.

Electrical

This area has had the least amount of changes. The most important issue here is that we finalized most of the light selections. We needed to order all the lights that are recessed in the ceiling before the electrician gets started for, unlike lights like pendants and sconces that can be installed later, the 'cans' all need to be in place before the drywall is hung (which is still several weeks away).

One interesting item we discovered related to LEED points and lighting is that although we are already doing a lot in this house in the realm of energy efficiency, the lighting requirements (in order to get the max points, which is 3), are not as strict as we thought they would be. The prereq for this section requires installation of at least 4 Energy Star labeled fixtures OR install E.S. labeled CFL bulbs in the high use areas in the house. Since we have around 15 E.S. labeled fixtures and CFLs basically everywhere in the house, this was not an issue. Then there are two credit options - 1.5 points for installing 3 additional E.S. labeled fixtures AND using motion detect or p.v. for outside lights OR 3 points for installing E.S. labeled light bulbs in 80% of the home and using E.S. labeled ceiling fans. We are doing all this and a bit more so we see no problem in getting the max points here. This was reassuring but at the same time thought they would have been a little more strict (not that we're complaining...we'll take what we can get!)

Lastly, we are looking into installing an "Energy Miser" in the house. Typically, a house is using only 70% to 95% of the electricity that is coming through the electric meter and ultimately showing up on the electric bill. An energy miser reduces the electricity used by increasing the building’s “Power Factor”– which improves its electrical energy efficiency. It is essentially a panel that is attached to the main electrical panel. It captures and stores energy that would otherwise be lost, and routes it back into your building's system. It also reduces 6,000 pounds of carbon from your building’s carbon footprint. They cost about $500 but you can get various energy rebates that can be up to $100 and it can ultimately save you up to 20% on your electric bill.

Plumbing

The biggest change we made with the plumbing is related to the supply lines but we have also been discussing fixture and appliance selections too (which we'll get to in a different post). Originally, the plumber spec'd out PVC (polyvinyl chloride) for the supply and drain lines in the entire house. We immediately raised a red flag and stated that we do not want (if possible) any PVC in the house. In case you didn't know...PVC is a toxic carcinogen and releases dioxins (an extremely dangerous compound) when produced and when burned. So a few weeks ago we had the plumber price out the alternatives for us - which are copper or PEX (cross-linked polyethylene) tubing for the supply lines and cast iron or (possibly) polyethylene pipes for the drain lines.

Copper:

Although copper is the most trusted material for water supply lines (and plumbers swear by it), there are a few major drawbacks to using it these days: First, even though some percentage of the copper you buy off the shelf has recycled content, some of it will inevitably come from the mining process, which is environmentally devastating. Second, copper pipes need to be insulated (usually just the hot lines but LEED requires both hot AND cold pipes be insulated...this obviously involves an additional amount of material. Third, there is a lot of soldering involved as it comes in stock lengths and even a straight run often needs multiple connections, and additionally, every turn needs to be welded, which means there is a lot more labor involved. Which ties into the last drawback, it's just very expensive these days due to the high demand and short supply in the construction industry. As much as I respect the devotion of 'old school' plumbers, this material simply does not make much sense to use anymore.

Cast iron:

Cast iron is regarded in the plumbing industry similar to the way copper is. It really is one of the best solutions for drain pipes. BUT it has many of the same drawbacks that copper does...the most important one being cost. Let's just say we'd be paying almost three to four times as much to have cast iron pipes.

PEX:

[From the Plastic Pipe and Fitting Assoc. website] "Developed in the 1960's, PEX tubing has been in use in many European countries for plumbing and was introduced in the US in the 1980s. PEX 's flexibility and strength at temperatures ranging from below freezing up to 200 degrees Fahrenheit makes it an ideal piping material for hot and cold water plumbing systems. It is flexible, making it easy to install and service. PEX is able to withstand the high and low temperatures found in plumbing and heating applications, and is highly resistant to chemicals found in the plumbing environment. Flexible systems are quieter than rigid piping. The smooth interior will not corrode which can affect other materials long term pipe flow characteristics. PEX systems have fewer joints and are easier to install providing a lower cost installation over traditional plumbing materials. " So as you can see, there are many advantages to using Pex including the fact that it is so easy to install many homeowners who are building simply run the supply lines themselves. Also, there is no need for all that pipe insulation since the tubing is already insulated. It is also by far the most cost effective solution.

As far as the manufacturing process of Pex...as I understand it, there are basically three ways:

The Engel process, where the cross linking happens "hot" (in its amorphic state above the crystalline melting point) since the polyethylene, anti-oxidants, and the cross linking initiator (peroxide) are extruded under pressure while in a molten state.
The Silane method, where a vinyl silane agent is added to the resin/polymer base prior to the extrusion process, thus forming a grafted copolymer.
The Radiation method, which involves bombarding previously extruded PE tubing with Gamma/Beta electrons while sealed in a vacuum chamber

Not sure yet which is the 'greenest' process (my instinct would go with either the Engel or Radiation method) nor do I know if we will even have a choice in the matter. I just figured it was good information to know.

Basically, the system works as follows: In the basement, there is a "manifold" that ties into the water heater and main water supply. This has a bunch of pairs of connections (red for hot and blue for cold). The amount of connections pairs depends on the amount of fixtures you have. Separate flexible red and blue pipes run from the manifold all the way to the fixture (uninterrupted). The pipe makes "bends" instead of turns which is actually more efficient than 90 degree turns (like copper) in relation to pressure drop. There is an open/close valve at the manifold too that let's you easily control the supply.


















PEX piping and manifold

Up to now I have been told that there really isn't any other alternative (other than cast iron) to PVC as far as drain lines are concerned. BUT, through some research I found that they do make a rigid polyethylene pipe that can be used for drain lines. I need to find out a bit more about this and then get a price difference from the PVC drain lines before we make a final decision. Obviously this would be a great solution for it would eliminate virtually all of the PVC plumbing in the house.

So as you might suspect, we have decided to move forward with the PEX system (for at least the supply lines at this point). But as with any product that is new to me, I start my web search with "Problems with ____", and see what comes up. The only real negative story I found was someone reported that they thought rodents seeking water had gotten into their floors and ceilings and chewed through the pipes and thus caused some leaks. This was never really substantiated, but the way I see it is that if you have rodents running through your floors and ceilings...you have bigger problems to deal with.

Mechanical

The unit we chose is the Goodman 14 SEER 92% Efficient furnace and a 3-ton rooftop A/C unit.

The main change regarding the HVAC system is related to LEED points and the SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) rating and HSPF (Heating Seasonal Performance Factor) of our unit. SEER rating is the Btu of cooling output during a typical cooling-season divided by the total electric energy input in watt-hours during the same period. HSPF is a ratio of BTU heat output over the heating season to watt- hours of electricity used. The higher the SEER and HSPF, the more energy efficient the system. Originally, the mechanical contractor had spec'd a 13 SEER / 8.2 HSPF unit. This is a good unit but only satisfies the pre-req for LEED. We needed to upgrade to a 14 SEER / 8.6 HSPF unit to get 2 points for using a "High-Efficiency" system. I have not gotten verification but I would speculate at this point that the cost difference is somewhere around $500...giver or take a few hundred. It's a good thing to do regardless, as jumping up even 1 SEER saves a pretty decent amount of energy when it comes to heating and cooling.

Another thing we are verifying (and what will be tested) are the "distribution losses" that are caused by leaks in the ducts and poorly insulated systems. Our mechanical contractor is now aware of the values (measured in cfm) that we need to achieve and assured us that it would not be a problem. The less cfm lost, the more efficient the system, and the more LEED points we'll achieve (up to 3 if we do well.)


What's next? The next task at hand is for us to complete our "Durability Risk Evaluation Form" (which we began a while back but never finished) for LEED which is part of the "Durability Management Process". But more on that later.

A few comments on Treehugger.com

Got some good comments about the house and the blog on the "Forum" at treehugger.com. You can check them out at this link: http://forums.treehugger.com. Thanks!

New posts coming soon...I promise! A lot has been happening regarding HVAC, electrical modifications, and plumbing concerns along with final fixture and appliance selections, the new brick facade, wrapping up the framing, and pricing out the kitchen and the steel stair. Exciting stuff!

some press for the Montrose House

The good folks at Green Building Elements (a great, web-based resource for sustainable design & construction) have written a nice article about us and our project. You can check out the article at: "Showing the Green Building Process". Thanks guys!

natural ventilation = money saved

The time has come to finalize and order a whole house fan, which will help to naturally circulate the air within the house and reduce the need to run the air conditioning system. "Whole house fans" are often confused with "attic fans", but there's a big difference between the two. While attic fans merely exhaust hot air from an unfinished attic space, whole house fans draw cool, outside air into the house through operable windows on the facade and exhaust the hot, overheated air through the exhaust fan directly to the outside. It's important to make sure that you have enough ventilation (open area) when operating a whole house fan. Usually you need to open at least 1-2 windows (preferably on a shaded side of the house) to ensure that enough air can be drawn in and cycle through smoothly. Because these fans are really only effective when the outside air is cooler than the inside air, they're unfortunately not going to help offset those unbearably hot & muggy Philly summer days. They will help the most during the spring and fall swing seasons when the temperature drops at night. By cooling down the house and fully exchanging the stale indoor air with fresh outside air, whole house fans reduce the need for mechanical cooling during the day and- depending on your climate- can allow the elimination of some or all mechanical cooling at night.

Two important things to keep in mind when selecting a whole house fan are:

CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute) - Basically, how much air can it move? In order to determine whether a certain CFM is enough, you'll first need to calculate the approximate amount of cubic feet in the building (SF x avg clg ht). We have roughly 15,000 cubic feet of space in our project. The fan we selected is 800 CFM which means that (after a bit of math) we found out that it would be able to empty the entire house of the inside, stale air in about 20 minutes. Which means that after 20 min of running the fan, theoretically, the house will be totally filled with outside, fresh air. Crazy, huh? Now this is all a little subjective for the ideal "CFM per SF" for one project might be different than another project. You should consult an expert, if necessary. All I can say about our situation is that we could only find one fan to fit that would work and it only has one speed, so there wasn't much of a choice this time. Fortunately, it will work very well for this size house.

and the other factor is...

Sones (unit of perceived loudness) - Essentially, how much noise does it make? To put this in perspective...1 sone = about 40 decibels. But it gets tricky here because the ratio is not 1:1 (i.e. 2 sones do not equal 80 dB) when determining how "loud" a specific sone rating is. "Loudness" ranges from 0 dB (inaudible) to around 200 dB (loudest sound possible). "A quiet library" is around 30 dB and "normal conversation" is around 60 dB. The fan we selected is 3 sones, which actually equals about 48 dB - right in between the two. So, for a fan that moves that much air...well, that's pretty darn quiet! BTW...how loud is the 'loudest sound possible'?

Most whole house fans are designed for sloped roof homes that include a traditional attic space above the conditioned area. Because the fans are not directly exposed to the elements, it's not necessary for them to be weather-tight. In our case, since we have no attic, we are planning to mount the fan in the wall at the top of the stair at the third level which means that it will be oriented vertically rather than horizontally. We will also need the fan to be weather-tight or at least capable of being somehow retro-fitted to prevent cool air loss during the warm months and heat loss throughout the winter months. Through our exhaustive (no pun intended) research (or at least according to Google) there only seem to be three commonly used whole house fan manufacturers. Of these brands, there is only one fan that we've come across that is designed for installation in a location that directly meets the exterior. This model (by RE Williams) includes exterior insulated panels that prevent air leakage and provide a rating of R-6. While our exterior walls will be achieving an R-25 rating on average, this does represent a large reduction in performance which we will have to address in some fashion. Maybe with an additional removable panel on the interior? Oh, and the price of the fan is in the $800 range- a big jump over the typical $300-400 mark. While the "payback" might not be as good as we had hoped, we feel the benefits are worth the extra money.


















Another thing to keep in mind is that whole house fans aren't for everyone. They may not work well for individuals who have allergies, as they draw in air directly from the outside (unless, of course, maybe some sort of HEPA filtration is put into place at the point of air intake.) HVAC systems filter the outside air and therefore have a better ability to reduce particulate matter. Whole house fans don't do much to control humidity, either. Some HVAC units integrate dehumidification systems into their cooling systems which can be a big help during the summer. We are currently looking into how much it would be to add this feature onto our system. During times of high humidity, whole house fans can create a cooling effect by creating a light, constant breeze during operation, and as they won't help with the actual humidity, they do increase the overall IAQ (indoor air quality) by circulating fresh air through the entire home. You can also easily run the on/off switch directly through a thermostat that kicks the fan on when it gets up to a certain temp and then turns it off automatically, in order to save electricity.


If you've ever experienced Grandma's whole house fan that almost took your socks off , you'll be happy to know that today's fans are much improved. Think quieter, gentler, smarter, and more efficient than the days of old. Sound like anyone you know?

In the end, we're convinced that a whole house fan will still save money in the long run, despite a higher up-front cost. And while it's by no means the most technologically advanced option out there, it's a least a time-tested strategy that relies on good ol' Mother Nature to provide comfort. For a row house with a relatively small footprint, we think it will make a big difference. One of the toughest things about the long, narrow shape of a row house is getting good cross ventilation since the only openings are usually only at the front and rear. While we're fortunate to be able to have additional windows on one side (due to our lot's placement next to an adjacent utility easement) the fan can only help to promote more of those rare South Philly breezes. And hopefully that's a good thing. :)

LEED update...

Well, today was a very exciting day indeed. We had our second meeting with Ted and Karin at the ECA (Energy Coordinating Agency), the LEED for Homes provider for Pennsylvania. We spent a couple of hours running though all the sections on the checklist and figuring out various interpretations. Since our first meeting with them we have made a few 'green' upgrades, with the most significant being the green roof, so things have changed a bit. When the dust cleared and we finished adding up all the sections, guess what we discovered...











We were not expecting this. Of course, it is 'preliminary' and there is still a long way to go as far as this becoming a reality, but it is very encouraging. The last we left it, we were comfortably in the Gold category (and very happy about that.) We figured achieving Platinum was frankly an impossibility for this project. More on all this later...

Also, we finally got the straw bales in place to help with our erosion control during construction. The images below show the bales at the rear of the back yard (basically, the property line) and at the front gate where the side alley easement meets the sidewalk.

Gimme Shelter... (preferably well-insulated with a lot of natural light and good ventilation)

Here are some images of the roof insulation arriving last week. All those palettes of white plastic contain separate layers of 2" thick rigid insulation. We have 4 layers laid on top of each other (staggered) and then adhered together. The resulting 8" thickness gives us an R-value of 40. Typical insulation provides roughly R-5 per inch. Our roofer, Ray Nocella (of Nocella Roofing) did a great job on the installation and subsequent waterproofing. After the insulation was installed, a 1/4" layer of "DensDeck" was adhered to the insulation, he then applied 2 layers of "modified bitumen" roofing membrane (laid in alternate directions to ensure water tightness), then added a "silver coating" element. Next, goes the root barrier, and at that point, the green roof installation guys take over. So by the end of last week, the roof was totally waterproofed which allowed us to install all the windows. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, after all is said and done, we should have an R-value of about 50 for the roof. Very cozy indeed. And oh yes... many thanks to our next door neighbors for the letting us use their roof as an access point.














Here's a shot of the Third Floor windows installed (and opened up). The small image on the right is looking out the side window of the Master Bedroom. There is a beautiful tree next door that provides a bit of privacy and lot of shade. As you can see, when these large casements are opened it allows a tremendous amount of fresh air to pass through the house. We are very impressed with the overall look and the quality of the Kolbe windows and doors. We decided to go with the factory pre-stained for the wood interior (Chestnut color) and flat black for the exterior aluminum cladding. It's a nice combination.

The contractor says the enormous front window in the bedroom (which he is still cursing my name due to the difficulty in getting it up there!) makes the Third Floor feel like a airplane hanger. Just wait till we clad it in metal.


















A few images of the casement windows and patio door installed in the kitchen. Being able to have all these casements (along with the door) open up will really connect the kitchen with the back patio. If you look at the upper left image, the horizontal wood blocking in the wall framing indicates roughly where the kitchen counter will be and the generator (on the floor) is roughly where the kitchen sink will be (centered on the middle window.)