How can the public keep up with all the new green products?
Connie: People shouldn't take our word for the best green products. We'll share what we know, but we also encourage them to do their own research. They can go to the Build it Green website where a technical review committee analyzes different products and materials. It's a third party certification that also lists local places to buy products. There's also a green spec catalog put out by the USGBC (U.S. Green Building Council) that can be very helpful.
Often, the easiest way to research a product is to Google it and read the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS). It will tell you all of the testing that's been done on a product. A lot of times we'll pull up the MSDS sheet and have it in a file for our clients so they know what products we're using and what government testing says about them. There's so much information on the internet. You just have to learn the language. You learn to look for red flags. VOCs, for example, are volatile organic compounds often used in paint. Urea-formaldehyde in insulation produces toxic fumes. And you probably want to avoid anything that ends in 'cide' because that means to kill.
Dennis: In the San Francisco Bay Area, Build it Green has a service called "Ask an Expert." It puts you in touch with staff that are very, very knowledgeable. You can ask any question about green products, and if they don't know the answer, they'll research it and get back to you. It's a wonderful service that we use a lot ourselves. You can also submit questions on the Build It Green web site. If a client wants a countertop made out of a product that we haven't heard of, we'll often go to Ask an Expert. They'll then research the product and call back to say, 'It's all recycled stuff, great idea.' or 'Ooh, this is not a good thing.'
Isn't Green Building More Expensive?
Dennis: Not necessarily. We were asked to evaluate a heating system — this was back in Nebraska, but the same thing applies in California. It was a very old system, and the lady was paying a thousand dollars a month for gas in this old furnace. So we found a 92% efficient furnace that cost about $7,000. By replacing her furnace with that super-efficient furnace her heating bills went down to about $150 a month. With her savings of $850 a month, she'll have this new furnace paid off in a year. And the next year it will just be free cash.
Connie: At one time green building was much more expensive but now there are many products that are less expensive, and you get a lot more benefits from them. One example I often use is a small house in Albany where the client wanted to install a photovoltaic system. The system cost $20,000, but he got a 50% credit from the state, so actually only cost him $10,000. Then he took a loan out on his house for $10,000 and the monthly payment for that loan was actually less than he had been paying PG&E per month. So this particular person won immediately.
Dennis: After that we installed a six kilowatt system, much bigger. That system took about 8½ years to pay for itself. But it's going to last 30-35 years, so after 8½ years that system is going to be free. Is green more expensive? In the front end yes, but if you go out through the system's life cycle it can save a lot of money.
Connie: Just using photovoltaics as an example, it is a capital investment up front on your project that you can choose to do or not. We try to encourage our clients to think pro-actively. They may not be able to make the capital outlay for a photovoltaic system right now, but they might want to spend a little money to put the conduit in the wall so that when they do install a solar system they won't have to rip out the walls and redo everything.
Dennis: Often times we'll put three 1.5" conduits from the attic space into the crawl space and cap them off for future use. You just have to keep records on all the details so when the time comes you'll know where to go to hook the system up. It's a great way to keep your options open.
You have an offshoot of Odin's Hammer called ohgreen.com?
What is that?
Connie: The initial concept for the ohgreen.com web site was to educate the public about green products and processes. We were educating our staff and our crews, but we also wanted to educate our clients.
Since, green building has become a grass roots movement changing the building market place, ohgreen.com has developed into a consulting and advance research division to meet the needs of Odin’s Hammer. As a support for Odin’s Hammer’ design projects we have developed new specifications for products and materials and green practices for individual projects. Our consultants can work with and support architects and designers from concept to final specification. ohgreen.com’s green budget approach to design and planning before demolition, allows us to measure both time and dollars for the client. We are committed to delivering beautifully crafted, healthier environments to our clients.
What's the status of green building across the country?
Dennis: There used to be just a few areas with a green focus Boston, Bolder, Austin, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco — but the message is getting out there. People all over the country want to get as much information as possible and green construction is growing almost exponentially. It's a win/win situation for everyone. You have a healthier home, you're saving resources for everyone, you have healthier air to breathe, and you're using energy more efficiently. Everything we do falls within one or more of those categories.
Connie: And everybody is starting to look at it. When we talk to people in Nebraska about energy efficiency or indoor air quality their eyes sort of glaze over, but when we mention that it will also protect their water they pay attention. Water is becoming a huge issue in that area. So everybody has a place in that spectrum of what's important to them. Humans spend the majority of our time in built structures, conditioned spaces, so why not make them as healthy as we can?