Author Archive
insatiable hunger of growth vs nature
There is a myth in Western society that growth is a positive thing. If your company grows it is considered a sign of success. Growing ones wealth is thought to be a universal desire.
But growth is an energy without morality. We are the ones that make it moral. It is not good or bad. Or [...]
Brownstone: No Heat Needed!
We just went away and left our brownstone for two weeks. We turned off all the heat. The only appliance making heat was the fridge. And while we were gone NY got hit with one of the worst snow storms in history.
How cold was our home when we came back? A balmy 60 degrees. Not [...]
Green Spiral Staircase
Here is a spiral staircase we are designing for a client. We salvaged an antique round oak beam. It measures 14 feet long and is a solid 8 inches in diameter. The wood is so dense it takes four guys to lift it. We tried cutting it with a chainsaw and broke the chainsaw. It [...]
Why So Many Houses?
We are on holiday. This morning my daughter asked, “Why wherever we go in the world there are so many houses? Why are there so little open fields with flowers?”
What have we done to this world?
I don’t care if all the houses are green. We’ve got too many of them.
We are in Aruba, a desert [...]
Net Zero Brooklyn Brownstone
A net zero brownstone means that it consumes a net zero amount of energy, meaning over time it creates as much energy on site as it consumes. It does this by using very little amounts of energy (few and efficient appliances that are sparingly used) and producing a lot of energy (lots of solar panels [...]
A Brooklyn Green Builder Day
Wake up –
7:30 – Arrange Plumbing Delivery to Client Job Site
7:45 – Make kids breakfast, send to school
8:00 – conference call with site manager at Client Job Site
8:30 – Work on NYC Water Runoff Management Contest
9:00 – Arrange delivery of salvaged insulation from upstate NY to Brooklyn
9:30 – inspect Green Show House gray water & [...]
Your Rubber Duckie is Killing You
One aspect of green building is about reducing the toxins we use in the building process. For example our green renovations of Brooklyn brownstones use no toxic glues (Liquid Nails, for example). Our meter is that if a child can’t be in the room while we are doing it then we aren’t interested in doing [...]
Greening the Community through Education
Here is a video put out by Sustainable South Bronx about their green training program, BEST.
They have it down in the sense that they understand training green builders is more than technical info. It is about community outreach, personal empowerment and large scale advocacy – essencially a holistic approach to living and teaching.
Check it out [...]
Tribute to a Solar Hero
Here is an email blast from one of my favorite organizations, Solar Energy International. They wrote a great eulogy to Walt Ratterman, a real pioneer in humanitarian renewable energy. I never knew him and I wish I had. He is a great example of what it means to be a green builder. Green building is [...]
What Do Brooklyn Green Contractors Do On Their Day Off?
What do brooklyn green contractors do on their day off?
Build igloos of course!
The trick to building a good igloo is to use deep cake pans or small storage boxes to make snow bricks. The other trick is as you slant the walls inwards be careful NOT to slant the bricks. The walls slant inwards but [...]