Showing posts with label carbon footprint. Show all posts
Showing posts with label carbon footprint. Show all posts
Building Houses
Did you see the article on Bonin Architect's lakefront cottage project makeover in the Upper Valley Home Improvement Guide?This great cottage has won several design build awards, including a Merit Award and the People's Choice Award from the 2011 AIANH Excellence in Architecture Awards!
The homeowners were involved from conception to completion, reusing every bit of material they could in the cottage renovation.
Missed that issue? Read all about this cottage on our website at http://www.boninarchitects.com/lakefrontcottage.html.architect schools online
Building Houses
The cottage renovation project had two primary goals: creating an open, efficient space that looks and feels larger than it really is and reusing as much as the original building material as possible.
The result is an efficient use of space, with a new cathedral ceiling and sleeping loft created when the original ceiling was removed. Apartment-sized appliances maximize space in the kitchen.
Creative storage space was addressed with shelves, cubbies, benches, and hooks.
architect schools online
Interior Design
Being green architects, we are very concerned about our ecosystem as a whole. All of us working together can make a huge difference in protecting the environment. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a new “Pick 5” program designed to identify areas of improvement and take action. The object is to look at the list and pick five things you can implement in your daily life.
1. Use less water! Take showers instead of baths, fix leaks, and turn off the tap when brushing your teeth. And buy efficient fixtures by looking for the WaterSense label.2. Commute without polluting! Use public transportation, carpool, walk, or bike whenever possible to reduce air pollution and save on fuel costs.
3. Save electricity! Do a home energy audit, get programmable thermostats, buy Energy Star products, turn stuff off when you’re done, and change your bulbs to compact fluorescents.
4. Reduce, reuse, recycle! Try to find products with less packaging, take reusable bags on shopping trips, creatively reuse other products, and recycle what's left.
5. Test your home for radon! Radon is a naturally occurring, odorless gas that can seep into your home and cause lung cancer.
6. Check your local air quality! When you exercise outdoors, use your local air quality forecast to help plan the best time for a workout or run.
7. Use chemicals safely! Read pesticide labels carefully. Lock up pesticides, paints, and cleaners where kids can't reach them.
8. eCycle! Take your old computer, DVD player, or other electronics to a recycling center. This helps keep hazardous substances out of the landfill.
9. Enjoy the outdoors safely! Find out the quality of beach water from your state office and get the UV Index to protect yourself from the sun.
10. Spread the word! Teach others where you work or go to school. Encourage people to Pick 5 for the Environment!
Of course, this is a short list, feel free to add items you feel you can tackle to improve your local community and personal environment.
Interior Decoration
If you think you’re living sustainably and are up for a little challenge, check out “Consumer Consequences”, an interactive game designed to illustrate the impact of our lifestyles on the Earth. Consumer Consequences is part of American Public Media's™ special series, "Consumed," which explores whether the modern American lifestyle is sustainable in the long run.
Consumer Consequences asks a series of questions about your lifestyle, and as you play, it will show you how many "Earths" of natural resources it would take to sustain all 6.6 billion humans… if everyone lived like you.
The impact of your lifestyle is calculated based on the "ecological footprint" model created by American Public Media’s research partner, Redefining Progress.
Consumer Consequences lets you compare your lifestyle with other players and gives you a chance to modify your choices and reduce your footprint.
Ready to play? Click here
Interior Decoration
As seen in a recent online issue of The New York Times, soon you will be able to monitor the energy efficiency of your home on your cell phone, wherever you are.
The soon-to-be-released tool, called TREE (Tendril Residential Energy Ecosystem), will allow homeowners to turn appliances, heating, and cooling systems on and off from work, the theatre, or the kids’ soccer practice. Similar to a video game, TREE will integrate with a collection of tools to track energy consumption and broadcast the results to local and distant displays. If your electricity consumption rises above certain levels, a display will start flashing a different color, allowing you to decide which systems you can shut off.
TREE will compare your home’s energy consumption with similar sized homes in your neighborhood, make suggestions on how to reduce your energy, and predict how much lowering the thermostat will lower your bill. How's that for monitoring your carbon footprint?
TREE is expected to be released late this year. To read the full article, click here.
Interior Decoration
This year, Earth Day, April 22, 2009, will mark the beginning of the "Green Generation Campaign", a two-year initiative to encourage action and civic participation in a sustainable future by supporting the campaign’s principles: Where do we fit in? Certainly we all participate on a personal level, but moreover, Bonin Architects is committed to participate by using sustainable design practices and incorporating green and/or energy efficient materials and systems into our home designs. With an increased awareness of renewable energy systems such as solar energy, wind power, and geothermal heating systems, many of our clients come to us with a formulated sustainable philosophy and know which systems they would like to include in their design, how much they cost, and what they can expect for a return on their investment. Others, perhaps overwhelmed with the amount of information disseminated on green technology and renewable energy, have ideas and are open to possibilities, but have no clear objectives outlined for their home design.
Whatever their background and exposure to sustainability, we guide homeowners through the process of designing and building a comfortable, healthy, energy efficient home that reduces their negative impact on the environment, and their carbon footprint, in many ways by:
Certainly April 22, 2009 will be a memorable Earth Day, as people around the globe make a concerted effort to become a "Green Generation". How will you participate?
interior decoration
Interior Decoration
A green home minimizes the negative impact on its environment through its home design. Here are a few considerations your architect takes into account when designing a green home:1. Site: Evaluations and analysis of access, slope, ledge, soil, bodies of water, and vegetation in order to limit the home’s impact on the site environment. This includes the site location (farmland, wetland, protected species habitats) and proximity to public transportation, parks, schools, and stores.
2. Size: A green home is efficiently designed to keep the square footage to a minimum. This reduces the amount of energy to heat and cool the home, lighting, and the quantity of building materials used.
3. Solar: Whether or not you plan to install a solar energy system to heat your water or produce electricity, there are several other solar considerations in green home design. Designing the home for passive solar makes the most of solar energy by harvesting it into the homes’ natural energy flows. Passive solar systems include day-lighting strategies, heating and cooling control techniques, and natural ventilation. When a whole-building approach is taken, energy savings can be great both in terms of reducing the home’s carbon footprint and the costs associated with heating, cooling, and maintaining the home.
4. Energy: Lighting, heating, and cooling systems are an important consideration in green home design. Renewable energy systems such as solar, wind, and geothermal systems use the earth’s natural energy to heat and cool your home, as well as provide electricity to run appliances and technology. Water usage, including toilets, showerheads, and sink faucet aerators, is another important green home design consideration.
Of course, you want your new home to use minimal amounts of fossil fuels, last a long time, and cost you less money. Many home design strategies don’t cost a dime in materials but can save you hundreds of dollars on heating and cooling costs. The result is a beautiful, healthy home – both for your family and the environment.
interior decoration
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