If you are putting a green roof on a Brooklyn brownstone (like we just did) chances are you don’t have a lot of space for soil and plants to be laying around. This means you need to get your materials the day before you plan on installing your green roof. We recommend getting the plants […]
Sourcing Green Roof Plants for Brooklyn Read More »
We just installed the green roof on the Brooklyn Green Show House. Here are the material costs to build a green roof on a Brooklyn brownstone. Total Roof area 600 sq.ft. Green Roof area 500 sq.ft. Roof Prep This stage is about getting as much insulation and waterproofing on as possible. A green roof gives
Brooklyn Green Roof Material Cost Read More »
There is nothing more wonderful than feeling that your actions in this life are meaningful and good. That is why I am so happy as a green builder in Brooklyn. I feel my actions better the world now and for generations to come. Another person who I think is doing the same in his own
Cambodian Children’s Painting Project Read More »
Here is a great rundown of alternatives to normal decking. It is by a fellow emailer Tim Keating, director of Rainforest Relief. — Re: wood-plastic composite lumbers (WPCLs) a la Trex, Weatherbest, etc.), imho, these are fine for a home but have problems that ‘true’ recycled plastic lumbers don’t have. First, many of these lumbers
In Brooklyn there aren’t that many pitched roofs. You get a lot of them in certain areas, especially Ditmas Park. We have a client in that area who approached us to replace their asphalt roof with the same. We are green roofers in Brooklyn so we come up when people do internet searches. But since
Pitched Green Roof Alternative Read More »
What I love about Brooklyn gardens is that they lend themselves so perfectly to permaculture and edible gardens. Brooklyn gets plenty or rain and temperate weather so it is so easy to create an edible and visual bounty in a Brownstone back yard. And a Brooklyn garden is like a canvas by its very size
Brooklyn Permaculture and Edible Garden Read More »
Brooklyn has a lot of wood floors. The common finish is some toxic varnish. As a Brooklyn green floor installer we don’t use that and are constantly researching more natural floor applications. Our floors are always salvaged and usually need a good sanding and sealing. Recently I was discussing this on an email list and
Natural Floor Finishes Read More »
Well before you go hooking wires up to any LEDs you should first know a little about electricity. First of all there are two main forms of electricity in commercial use today. (All of which are dangerous even if you know what you are doing. So with that in mind do not attempt to play
AC/DC the shocking difference Read More »
An LED driver is a self-contained power supply that has outputs matched to the electrical characteristics of your LED or array of LEDs. There are currently no industry standards, so understanding the electrical characteristics of your LED or array is critical in selecting or designing a driver circuit. Drivers should be current-regulated (deliver a consistent
Here is an article from LED Professional January 30, 2009 – Gallium Nitride (GaN), a man-made semiconductor used to make LEDs (light emitting diodes), emits brilliant light but uses very little electricity. Until now high production costs have made GaN lighting too expensive for wide spread use in homes and offices. However, with funding from
Low–Cost LEDs to Slash Household Electric Bills Read More »
