What can we learn about being green from our grandparents?

Our grandparents lived their lives, they didn’t think about “being green”, recycling and being more energy efficient. They did all these things without thinking about it. They recycled in their own home, reusing or repurposing everything they had, when their clothes wore out they became cleaning rags. They used the vegatable scraps to create compost to replenish the soil. They reused glass jars for canning and storage.

The term “Green” is a term vastly over used. I prefer to thinking of it as getting back to basics. Our parents and grandparents didn’t have to be “green”, they were sensible. They didn’t have vast lawns in desert regions to keep watered. No plastic bags for them, they used canvas bags, does that sound familiar? They caught rainwater to water their gardens and made do with what they had. They reused everything.

What we are now doing as “green” they were doing as a way of life.

As homebuilders we can learn from them as well , many aspects of older homes which we think are quaint, actually serve a purpose. Porches are a great example of form meets function.  There are many styles of porches. Enclosed porches were used to facilitate removal of work clothes and help keep the house clean. Front porches cover the entrance to protect you from the elements as you fumble for your keys or your guests as they wait for you to answer the door. Wrap around porches can help keep a home comfortable by shading windows in the summer and allowing for solar heat gain in the winter when the sun is at a lower angle. Porches are a comfortable sitting area and a wonderful extension of your home. 

 

Large kitchens are another lesson we can take from the past. Nothing brings a family closer together than the kitchen, it truly can be the heart of your home. It’s a place to gather with friends and family, and a place to work together. A large kitchen can provide a place for your children to do homework while you make dinner.

 

Then                                                                              Now

There is much new technology to make your home more comfortable, ICF’s or insulated concrete forms,  triple-paned windows, high efficiency heating systems and many options to make our homes as efficient and comfortable as possible. I believe we need to embrace the new technology but not at the loss of what has worked so well in the past.

Home trends change, but there are certain classic aspects that will never go out of style. Comfort and convenience will always remain in style.

Apache Creek Builders – Charlie Kattnig owner and ICF Builder in Southern Colorado including Pueblo, Westcliffe, Rye, Colorado City, Hatchet Ranch,  and surrounding areas.

www.apachecreekbuilders.com 719-251-3003

How to build a home that saves you money!

In my last posting I discussed smart ways to save money when building your new home. Today I am going to suggest ways to actually build a home that will save you money. When choosing energy-efficient building materials you may dramatically reduce the costs of daily living.

Using ICF (Insulated Concrete Forms) for your walls and foundation will not only add to your homes R-factor it also reduces air infiltration, which is almost as important. ICF’s create a continuous solid wall that is poured in place to eliminate any possible places for infiltration where dissimilar materials meet.

Windows are extremely important, triple-pane windows are coming down in price and low-e glass is a standard feature, upgrading your windows no longer has to break the bank. By using high-efficiency windows properly placed, in conjunction with ICF’s you have the basis of a building envelope that will save you on heating and air-conditioning costs.

Combine this with properly positioning your home on your lot to take advantage of natural passive solar and using wider overhangs to shade your windows in the summer will help keep your home comfortable.

Skylights*, high-efficiency furnaces, and on-demand hot water heaters can also reduce your energy consumption. Forced air furnaces are less expensive and more efficient than many other home heating systems and have the added benefit of using the same duct work for the Air-conditioning and ERV (Energy Recovery Ventilation system).

Using today’s technology along with some good old-fashioned common sense, you can build a home with not only incredibly low utility bills, but one that is also much more comfortable to live in. There is no reason to sacrifice comfort for efficiency, you can have it all.

If you do have a limited budget to work with, cut the luxury items, which are easily added later and make the structure of your home as energy-efficient and comfortable as possible.

*Just a note skylights themselves are not typically very energy-efficient, however there are ways to make them more so. Skylights do add light to a dark interior room during daylight hours to reduce the need to turn on a light. The tubular skylights are particularly good at this. Another great option is clerestory windows.

Apache Creek Builders – Charlie Kattnig owner and ICF Builder in Southern Colorado including Pueblo, Westcliffe, Rye, Colorado City, Hatchet Ranch,  and surrounding areas.

www.apachecreekbuilders.com 719-251-3003

Noun

1.

clerestory– part of an interior wall rising above the adjacent roof with windows admitting light clearstory window – a framework of wood or metal that contains a glass windowpane and is built into a wall or roof to admit light or air

Smart tips and tricks to stay within your home building budget

It is very easy to go over budget when building a new home. It is easy to fall in love with a beautiful tile and it’s only $500 more than the budget and aren’t those kitchen cabinets incredible? They are only an extra $2000. It sneaks up on you and suddenly you have blown your budget.

As a builder, one of the most difficult tasks I face is to keep you on your budget. I know it is your dream home that I am building and I want you to have everything you want, but I must also make sure you can afford it at the end of the job.

Unfortunately the place to cut your budget is on the things you want the most, granite countertops and high-end kitchen cabinets. The place to NEVER cut your budget are on the things you don’t think you care about, the bones of the house.

High-efficiency windows will pay for themselves very quickly in the comfort and energy savings they provide. I know windows aren’t as glamorous as granite countertops, however countertops are easily replaced and windows are not. My best advice is to build your home to be as energy-efficient and comfortable as possible. This is the hidden aspect of your home that over the years you will come to appreciate far more than the luxury items you believe you can’t live without.

Easy cost saving ideas – that may be easily upgraded later

Interior doors – choosing a nice looking lower end door can save lots, in a few years you can upgrade to more expensive doors merely by replacing the doors themselves and leaving the door jambs

Kitchen and Bath Fixtures – Kitchen and bath fixtures are easily replaced and are a good way to save money at the beginning

Countertops – choosing Formica over granite is a huge savings and there are some very attractive Formica options. Countertops are very easy to replace upgrade to granite after you have been in the home for a few years

Appliances – Possibly the easiest items to replace are appliances they come in standard sizes, it is very simple to purchase lower end appliances and in a few years swap them out to the ones you really want when you can afford it

Cabinets – Kitchen cabinets are a more difficult to replace, but it is more of an inconvenience than difficult. Purchasing standard low-end cabinets to start and then later, remodel the kitchen with high-end cabinets. The added benefit to this option is that you will feel like you have a new home when you are done

Flooring – A mid-grade carpeting is an option, it will last for a number of years and is easily upgradable to tile, hardwood or a higher quality carpet.

Tile – It is not easy to replace tile, however a great cost saving idea is to purchase a less-expensive tile and trick it out with some small detail tiles

As a builder my goal is to get you the best home for your money, and budgeting is an important part of that process. I can build a beautiful home within any budget, but my goal is to build a comfortable efficient home that you will love and will serve you well for years within your budget! The reality is, that no matter how much you love your home when it is new, there will always be things you will get tired of or want to change in a few years.

Insulation, windows, exterior doors, high-efficiency HVAC units, and Tankless hot water heaters will save you money every month on utilities and that money may be placed aside so when you are ready to upgrade the countertops in the kitchen you can do it without taking out a new loan or using credit cards.

Apache Creek Builders – Charlie Kattnig owner and ICF Builder in Southern Colorado including Pueblo, Westcliffe, Rye, Colorado City, Hatchet Ranch,  and surrounding areas.

www.apachecreekbuilders.com

719-251-3003

How do I choose the right vacant land to build my home on?

There are many choices that go into choosing a rural propertyfor your new home. The decision is easier if planning a home in the city. Everyone looks for the incredible views, a stream, trees, or whatever seems important to them.

What is far more important to the cost of building a home is power, water, and soil conditions. How far is electricity? Bringing in electricity can be expensive, the cost begins at the last pole in existence and you, not the electrical company is responsible for the cost of each pole and the service to your site location. In most rural locations there are no public water and sewer systems. Cost for drilling a well, can vary dramatically depending on how deep we must go to reach good water. Septic systems and foundation costs depend on soil conditions. I recommend that before you purchase property you hire an excavator to give you an evaluation. A couple of hundred dollars now may save you many thousands later.

Last, but certainly not least is the location of your home on the property. I recently built a home for someone who had purchased 40 acres of property with power, a well and great soil conditions for building, but she insisted on building in an area with a lot of shale, a type of rock that is difficult to build on, but it had great views. The added cost of digging a new well, moving power, an engineered septic system and added costs for the foundation due to soil conditions increased her building costs by aproximately $30,000.

She had already paid a premium for the property because of the power and well that existed, by thinking through the process, it would have been better for her to save money on the purchase price and find a property without utilities, as it was she paid for them twice. I can build anything anywhere, if you are willing to pay for it. I prefer to advise my clients to think through the process and ask questions before purchasing property. Location is another cost consideration, if the property is on the side of a rocky mountain a good road to get materials in is also going to add to the cost of building.

I understand that sometimes property is purchased years before you intend to build, but some common sense and “big picture” thinking as you are purchasing the property will save you money when you do build.

Apache Creek Builders – Charlie Kattnig owner and ICF Builder in Southern Colorado including Pueblo, Westcliffe, Rye, Colorado City, Hatchet Ranch,  and surrounding areas.

www.apachecreekbuilders.com 719-251-3003

What does it mean to be green?

What is “green“? What does it mean to conserve? This is an e-mail that was sent to me that I thought was interesting and puts a different spin on the idea of “being green”

In the line at the store, the cashier told an older woman that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren’t good for the environment. The woman apologized to her and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”

The clerk responded, “That’s our problem today.  Your generation did not care enough to save our environment.”

He was right — the older generation didn’t have the green thing in their day.

Back then, they returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over.  So they really were recycled.

They walked up stairs, because escalators and elevators weren’t in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.

Back then, they washed the baby’s diapers because they didn’t have the throw-away kind.  they dried clothes on a line, wind and solar power really did dry the clothes.  Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters. If they were lucky they had one TV, or radio, in the house — not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen, not a screen the size of the state of Montana.

In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn’t have electric machines to do everything for us. When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

They used a push mower that ran on human power.  They exercised by working so they didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. They drank from a fountain when thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle. They refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances and they didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

We approach building homes with the same common sense that the older generation approached “the green thing”. We do what makes sense to make your home the most energy-efficient and comfortable it can be so that you don’t need to think about changing your lifestyle to be green. Your home will naturally be more comfortable and use less energy.

Charlie Kattnig – Apache Creek Builders- Serving Pueblo, Colorado and surrounding areas. 719-251-3003

 

Demand for eco-friendly single-family homes is up.

The demand for green homes is up, stated an article in The Pueblo Chieftain, quoting recently published findings from McGraw-Hill Construction. Construction of eco-friendly single-family homes represented 17% or $17 billion of the overall American residential construction market in 2011. In 2005 that number was 2% and in 2008 it was 8%. The number is expected to rise to as high as 38% within the next 4 years.

Remodelers expect to carry out 65% of their projects in a “green” manner by next year with that number increasing to 77% by 2016, in 2009 only 22% of remodeling projects incorporated green practices.

The study states that higher quality and increases in energy costs are the driving forces that keep these numbers on the rise. I really thought these numbers would be higher but they state that the obstacles include a “lack of consumer education” and a “higher perceived first cost”  These issues have lessened between 2008 and 2011 signaling that green building is becoming more mainstream.

With new building products and technology and rising energy costs it just makes sense to go green. I believe if homeowners knew the actual cost of building with “green” eco-friendly and energy-efficient products combined with energy cost savings and the increased comfort of a highly efficient home, these numbers would be much higher.

Some homeowners will price just the structure, when in reality they should be pricing the complete home. The exterior building envelope may be slightly more expensive with ICF ( Insulated Concrete Forms) than wood-frame construction, but there are other cost savings. An ICF home will typically require smaller HVAC units which can be a big cost saving as well as needing no additional insulation except in the attic. The reduced energy bills year after year will further make a homeowner happy they made the decision to build “green” or eco-friendly. It is no longer just about wanting to save the planet or being responsible for our carbon footprint. It is now a financially responsible thing to do as well.

Charlie Kattnig – Apache Creek Builders serving most of Southern Colorado, including Pueblo, Hatchet Ranch, Locke Mountain, Red Canyon Park, Canon City, Florence and many other areas.

719-251-3003

What is a Construction Bid Package? Or Construction Cost Analysis?

When I put together a construction cost analysis package I review all plans and put together a sub-contractor and material list complete with costs associated with every aspect of the project, this may include engineering, wells, septic systems, utilities and finishes: carpet, tile, hardwood flooring, or custom exotic wood cabinets. Every cost associated with taking your bare dirt to a turnkey home. My cost analysis packages are complete and ready to be taken to a building department for permitting and to the bank for a construction loan. These bids take a lot of time and effort to put together and may not be what you need.

Before asking for a Cost analysis, ask yourself: Realistically how close am I to building this home? If you want to determine when your budget might allow you to build, a ballpark estimate may be all you need. If I bid the project and put together complete material costs and labor, then you don’t build for 6 months or more the numbers may change dramatically and the analysis will be useless. The materials chosen may no longer be available or new technology may alter your choices. The cost of LED lighting is becoming more affordable all the time, what may have been unattainable in your budget might now be within reach. Don’t ask for a cost analysis until you are close to actually building your home. To get realistic costs it is best to have your lot chosen, soil conditions, proximity to utilites, drainage and many other factors will affect the costs.

Ask questions about your bid package to determine what you are actually getting. I have spent many long hours putting together a good cost analysis package for clients to have them go with another builder who gave them lower costs. Once they have committed to build with the other company, they are told that those were only estimated costs and once the plan reviews and material lists are created the number is magically inflated and my analysis would have been less. Read the fine print to find out what the actual numbers are before signing any contracts.

I strive to put together a very comprehensive package with realistic numbers. I typically ask for an amount to be set aside in escrow for my time and experience. This amount will vary depending on many factors, you are required to release the funds once I have completed the terms of the contract but you will be credited for the amount if you proceed with me as your builder in a timely manner.

I believe that unless you have realistic numbers, you cannot make a good decision in the building process. It does no one any good if I lead you to believe that your home may be built for $200,000 and the actual cost is $275,000. The difference in costs may make be the difference of your dream home or a disappointment. Knowing what you have to do to accomplish your goals gives you power to make decisions. It might mean working another year before you retire, it might mean putting off building for a year or sending the kids to a junior college instead of Yale. Whatever the decisions are, you will have the real information needed to make them.

The Cost Analysis that I provide WILL take you from dirt to dream home with NO suprises.

Charlie Kattnig – Apache Creek Builders serving most of Southern Colorado, including Pueblo, Hatchet Ranch, Locke Mountain, Red Canyon Park, Canon City, Florence and many other areas.

What is sick building syndrome and can an ERV help?

“Sick building syndrome” (SBS) is a combination of ailments (a syndrome) associated with an individual’s place of work or residence. A 1984 World Health Organization report into the syndrome suggested up to 30% of new and remodeled buildings worldwide may be linked to symptoms of SBS. Most of the sick building syndrome is related to poor indoor air quality. This syndrome is a phenomenon of tighter building techniques and higher energy standards.

According to an Energy Star site air leakage accounts for 25–40% of the energy used for heating and cooling in a typical home.” So how do we build homes that are both energy-efficient and do not cause SBS? The answer is pretty simple an ERV or an HRV- Heat Recovery Ventilator, which is a type of ERV.

Energy Recovery Ventilation Systems

Energy recovery ventilation systems provide a controlled way of ventilating a home while minimizing energy loss. They reduce the costs of heating ventilated air in the winter by transferring heat from the warm inside air being exhausted to the fresh (but cold) supply air. In the summer, the inside air cools the warmer supply air to reduce ventilation cooling costs. These systems may also reduce indoor humidity and improve overall indoor air quality.

Think of it as the best of both worlds, you have a system that works much like the old drafty house, constantly exchanging stale indoor air for fresh outside air. The difference is, now it is done on your terms with little loss of energy. Giving you a more comfortable and healthier living environment.

When a building cannot breathe, problems occur. These problems may be mold, chemicals, dust, germs or other contaminants. These contaminants come from our carpeting, furniture, pets, children, tracked in on our shoes, trapped humidity, cleaning supplies and a myriad of other sources. ERV’s and HRV‘s are types of Air Exchange Ventilators or AEV‘s – none of these units will lower your utility bill, but many Regional Building Codes require certain cfm (Cubic foot per minute) of air to be exchanged. Because HRV’s and ERV’s salvage most of the heat from the indoor air going out and transfer it to the outdoor air coming in they are more efficient than other varieties of AEV’s.

ICF homes are so well insulated and have almost no air infiltration, we will not build without an ERV. In fact our homes would not pass our local building codes without one. There is no longer a need to open a window to get fresh air and forget to close it when you leave for work, worrying all day about your air conditioner working to keep your home cool with the windows open. You may still open the window if you wish, but you won’t NEED to.

Charlie Kattnig – Apache Creek Builders – Building quality, energy-efficient ICF homes for every budget and lifestyle serving most of Southern Colorado, including Pueblo, Avondale, Rye, Walsenburg, Canon City, Penrose Hatchet Ranch….

What does an ICF home look like?

           

An ICF home looks like an any home, if you can imagine it we can build it. ICF construction can also look like a multi-story skyscraper. The sky is literally the limit when it comes to ICF’s. They can take any exterior or interior finish that a standard wood frame house can. An ICF home looks like a lower energy bill and a more comfortable living environment. It looks like lower insurance premiums and special mortgage rates.

Chances are that unless you watched an ICF home being built you would have a hard time to pick it out from the house next door, until you were inside. Typically ICF homes have thicker walls so that will look like wider window sills and a place to put your plants or for your cat to sun himself. They are quieter so you might wonder why your neighbors are complaining about the kids next door.

The benefits to using ICF‘s :

• e-star rated
• green building material, environmentally friendly
• save an average of thirteen trees per house
• homes are six times quieter than ordinary wood frame homes
• have a three to four-hour fire rating
• provide 25% to 50% energy savings
• homes have lower insurance costs
• homes qualify for energy-efficient mortgage rates
• have an R-50 wall insulation value
• require smaller HVAC units

So basically anything you could want in a lumber-framed home you can have in an ICF home only better. An ICF home looks like your dream home.

Charlie Kattnig – owner – Apache Creek Builders, serving Pueblo, Avondale, Walsenburg, Colorado City, Rye, Canon City, Florence, Wetmore, Westcliffe and most of Southern Colorado. Specializing in  building in rural areas.

 

Frame Construction and ICF’s a side by side comparison of two nearly identical homes and energy consumption

What are the real benefits of ICF’s (Insulated Concrete Forms) compared to stick built homes? In a side by side comparison for energy consumption preliminary data shows that the ICF home is consuming almost a third less gas than the lumber-framed home next door.

The Greenbuild 2010 Legacy Project is interested in comparing “apples to apples” to get real data on energy consumption. The homes have identical floor plans, 1,300 square foot, one story with 3-bedrooms, 1-bath, ranch style homes. The  windows, doors, mechanical systems  and interior finishes are the same.

Home A is built of LOGIX ICF’s with fiber-cement siding and a metal roof. Home B was built using conventional lumber-framing and spray-foam insulation with vinyl siding and concrete tile roof. Both homes were built by volunteers with donated materials in November 2010 as a demonstration project that benefited Habitat for Humanity Lake County.

According to U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) about a quarter of the heating losses and gain in a new home is due to air leakage through the thermal envelope. Tighter homes consume less energy and are more comfortable due to less air-infiltration and fewer drafts. They are also more durable reducing the flow of moisture and lessening the risk of condensation within the exterior envelope.

A blower door test was conducted on both homes, this is a test used to determine the tightness of a building. Overall the ICF home tested 2.4 times air tighter than the lumber-framed home. Remember the wood-framed home was insulated with spray-foam insulation which seals much better by filling in gaps than a fiberglass batt insulation. However, the spray-foam insulation cannot match the performance value of ICF’s. Wood-frame construction will always have gaps where panels meet and at each butt joint, ICF’s by comparison have no gaps or joints in the wall structure. Another factor in traditional wood-frame construction is that you have long joints where dissimilar materials meet. The concrete slab has to tie to the bottom plate of the wood-frame wall and it’s very difficult to get a good seal there. On the other hand ICF’s have 100% continuous insulation on both sides of the wall and you complete the air seal with the concrete pour.

The R-value of the lumber-framed home was 20.13 and the ICF home was 24.63, this isn’t a huge difference and both homes far exceeded the 16.17 R-value required by the local code. This project demonstrates that R-value isn’t the only thing to consider, air-infiltration is also an important factor in the efficiency of a home.

Read more on this project in Concrete Homes Magazine March 2012 and in upcoming articles here.

Apache Creek Builders – Charlie Kattnig owner and ICF Builder in Southern Colorado including Pueblo, Westcliffe, Rye, Colorado City and surrounding areas.

www.apachecreekbuilders.com 719-251-3003