Blogs

Scenes From the Tar Wars

At a small airport in the northern Alberta town of Fort McMurray, a rickety, single-engine Cessna hurtles off the ground with a roar. Dr. John O'Connor ignores the shuddering fuselage, the tail wiggle, the steep climb above the spruce trees at the end of the runway. For O'Connor, a bush doctor who has tended to some of Canada's most remote Native American communities for more than a decade, Christian louboutin shoes sale  this October morning is the start of a routine commute.

Corrugated Fiber Cement Siding and Roofing

Corrugated Fiber Cement Boards

Corrugated Non-Asbestos Fiber Cement Boards can be used for Roofing or Siding.  With many different sizes, corrugations, and colors available, the options are endless.

For roofing, the sheets are made with polypropolene reinforcement strips inserted along precisely engineered locations, which run the full length of the sheet in each corrugation.

Confessions of a Green Builder

Twelve years ago I set out in designing and building an addition to my off grid house and a workshop. After a lot of thought about design, cost, and implementation I now realized I made a mistake. Well, a few. The largest mistake was not fully appreciating how a building worked. I am typing this newsletter in that house right now, looking over a snowy morning where 9 degrees Fahrenheit seems just about right. I am comfortable, have a great view, and am in need for some coffee.

It's Time We All Start Building Quality Affordable Energy Efficient Homes

Isn’t It Time You Start Saving Money On Utilities!!

WHAT IS THE LARGEST OPERATING EXPENSE A HOMEOWNER HAS?
ANSWER: UTILITY ENERGY.

Small Business Energy Saving

Small business may be Australia’s biggest and fastest growing sector, but running a small business is still hard work. Long hours, endless tax requirements and, of course, the ongoing expenses; keeping your head above water can sometimes seem impossible.

Wages, rent, overheads; it’s becoming increasingly important in small business to save money, but harder and harder to find places where you can. Luckily, there’s an easy way of reducing your small business overheads, and all you have to do is spend a few minutes online.

Year of the Energy Audit

Your government wants you to save energy and they are getting ready to help you do it. The buzz from Washington is a "Cash for Caulkers" program that puts your home front and center. Nobody knows what this really means yet, but you can bet the Energy Audit will be a central part of it. Many local utilities and cities have already made energy audits available. A home energy audit provides an invaluable diagnostic of the two largest energy and comfort issues of a home: air infiltration through the air barrier and heat loss/ heat gain through insulation.

The Gift That Stops Taking

Welcome to the holiday gift guide from the sustainable line. Rather than soap boxing about how you should stop buying more stuff (want less) or to start giving your money to well-deserving charities, I thought that this holiday season we could celebrate by buying more that uses less. First, of course, don't buy gifts that are cheap crap.

Your Third Skin

 A house essentially acts as your third skin. The second skin is your clothing and the first skin is what you buy all those moisturizers for. Comfort and protection is the name of the game. Your own skin is excellent at this. Your clothing is not so bad and when it doesn’t work you can put on something else. Weirdly, to me, your third skin often does a miserable job at keeping you comfortable. The unfortunate thing is you’re willing to pay so much for it none the less.

'Legal and Regulatory Issues in Green Building'

GreenSteps principals Paul Thompson and Laura Blau are presenting at 'Legal and Regulatory Issues in Green Building,' a one-day seminar in Fort Washington PA on Wed Dec 16, 2009.

Sustainable Building: Location and Site

 Ideally, sustainable building is about setting priorities and moving to the next decision when the previous one has been adequately addressed. Simple as a concept, but often not a reality when you hear different green building folks chime in to say that they have the “green” solution for you. In this spirit, I have tried to boil down what I think of as the core principles that guide sustainable building and how they should be ranked in importance. This is for new and old buildings, large and small.

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