Permission to build, Granted!

Posted on May 7, 2012 by Roger

The weather here in Maine has been exceptionally cooperative for an early start to the outdoor construction season.  We had a very mild winter with little accumulated snow on the ground; that snow melted away long before the calendar showed … Continue reading →

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Changing Horses Before We Wade into the Stream

Posted on April 20, 2012 by Roger

To plagiarize a slogan from the Occupy Wall Street movement, we are, I suspect, part of the 99 percent of the population for which building a custom home is the single most expensive undertaking in their life.  So choosing a … Continue reading →

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When is a Passive House NOT a Passive House?

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Roger

Want to build a house to the Passive House standard?  That used to be an easily recognizable target.  There was only one Passive House standard, an international specification established in 1996 by the German-based Passive House Institute (PHI).  It’s a … Continue reading →

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Finding Value in a Green Appraisal – Part IV: Still a Very Long Journey Ahead

Posted on March 25, 2012 by Roger

We have received a revised appraisal on Edgewaterhaus.  This third trip to the appraisal well is decidedly a mixed bag.  As the title of this blog suggests, those who want to build green via a bank loan have an uphill … Continue reading →

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Backup Electrical Power for a Passive House?

Posted on March 11, 2012 by Roger

Should we include a backup electrical power supply for Edgewaterhaus, since it will be an all-electric home?  If so, we should include provisions for a backup electrical source as part of the overall plan, whether we decide to implement it … Continue reading →

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Passive House Certification of Edgewaterhaus: PHI or PHIUS+?

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Roger

We’re ready to submit Edgewaterhaus for Passive House Certification. Which begs the question: should we even bother with certification, particularly after the fracturing of the Passive House movement last August?  That’s when the Passive House Institute (PHI), the international organization … Continue reading →

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Bieber vs Intus windows

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Roger
Bieber window installation detail

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Enough suspense on windows. It’s a Bieber!  And yes, that’s our final decision.  We’ve made a sizable cash deposit and started precise shop drawings for the windows. It had been a tortuous four, yes, four long months working with the … Continue reading →

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Can We Get More, Pay Less, To Keep About The Same?

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Roger
"After" west wing

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Let me explain this rather cryptic proposition. Is it possible to tweak the design of EdgewaterHaus to simultaneously (Get More) energy performance from the building, (Pay Less) to build it, and still (Keep about the same) square footage and floor plan? We liked … Continue reading →

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Finding Value in a Green Appraisal – Part III – Calculating the value of energy upgrades.

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Roger

We are striving to attain the Passive House standard, LEED Platinum rating, and net zero  energy status.  If that ain’t green, then we should all throw our hands skyward in color-blind despair. A few weeks ago, we got the results … Continue reading →

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2011 – a Retrospective

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Roger

Wow, it’s been nearly two months since I updated this blog.  Time to get back in focus.  It’s not that there haven’t been things to write about; there has been a lot going on behind the blog screen.  I attribute … Continue reading →

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