Category Archives: Proud Green Home
Zero Net Energy Home, Performance Results and Best Practices, Revealed
Zero Net Energy Home, Performance Results and Best Practices, Revealed The owners of the Proud Green Home at Serenbe, near Atlanta, GA, will never pay for electricity as long as they live there. Before the photovoltaic panels were considered for the home, it was rated, using the HERS Index, to use more than 60% less energy than […]
WINNER: 2013 EarthCraft House Project of the Year
…and the winner of the 2013 EarthCraft House Project of the Year is… THE PROUD GREEN HOME AT SERENBE (10556 Serenbe Lane) BUILDER: Luis Imery, The Imery Group ARCHITECT: Chris and Jodi Laumer-Giddens, LG Squared, Inc. EARTHCRAFT TECHNICAL ADVISOR: Chris Laumer-Giddens, LG Squared, Inc. LG Squared, Inc. is proud to share with you all the news that the […]
Green Home From the Get Go – Guest Post
GUEST POST: GOING GREEN FROM THE GET-GO This article was published in the Atlanta-Journal Constitution (AJC) on Sunday, September 1st in the Homefinder section, and was written Lori Johnston of FastCopy Communications BY LORI JOHNSTON FOR THE AJC Lori Johnston is a writer and editor who writes about anything, from the housing market to personal finance to […]
Attention to High Performance Details In New Homes Pays Off
On the One Hand… …the Proud Green Home at Serenbe has been a kind of Experimental House for High Performance Design and Construction. Some of the features, products and practices we’re trying for the first time with this home, others we’ve used or done before, but they are still relatively new to the industry. To […]
PGH at Serenbe is 90% Tighter than Energy Code – Before Drywall!!
Before drywall was installed, I tested the infiltration (air leakage) at the Proud Green Home (PGH) at Serenbe, and the home achieved 0.72 ach50, or 0.055 ELR (more on these numbers in a minute). In other words, it’s really tight!!! The 2009 International Residential Energy Code (IECC), which is adopted in most states, requires an infiltration rate of […]
Serenbe Modern Proud Green Home Update: Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning Systems
Things are really moving along on the Proud Green Home at Serenbe. This past Friday, the mechanical inspector paid a visit and we passed! Ahead this week; the builder has ordered the final plumbing inspection, the sprayfoam contractor is installing the open-cell foam in all the walls and roof, we will be performing the pre-drywall inspection for […]
Designing A Perfect Residential Wall – Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta, Georgia has a reputation for getting pretty darn hot, but it can also get pretty dang cold (No snickering from you Northerners, please!). Believe it or not, Atlantans use more energy to heat their homes than they do to cool them. The design temperature set by ASHRAE for the Metro Atlanta area to use when designing heating systems, is […]
I’m an HVAC Magician, I Make Mini-Splits Disappear
Making Mini-Splits Disappear A lot of homeowners and folks in the building industry in the United States don’t want to see their HVAC (a.k.a. heating and air) systems exposed, even if it means high performance, healthy living environment, and total control. There is a magical (OK, maybe that’s a bit of a stretch) way to have cake and […]
Design and Build Smart: Use Advanced Framing to Save Time, Money and Energy
Employing Advanced Framing Techniques during the design and construction phases saves on labor, material and the amount of heat loss in a new home. 25% of a the building shell area in a typical home is made of wood. The other 75% is primarily windows, doors, insulation, finishes and cladding. When you factor in the […]
Construction Update: Contemporary Proud Green Home at Serenbe
WEEK 5: Jodi and I spent a day last week at Serenbe, which included a mandatory stop at the Blue Eyed Daisy. Aside from that, our main purpose was to check-in on the construction of the Contemporary Proud Green Home being built by Luis Imery and his crew at The Imery Group, and they’re moving right […]