A big redirection - we bought another home instead

I'll spare you most of the details but Jen and I decided to buy the home we were renting.  So, we won't be building our "CasaArey dream home" but will instead be settling into the house that has been our home for the past year.

Why the change...big(gest?) reason was financial.  The cost estimates came in for this house and it was more that we wanted to be financially tied up into at this point in my life.  When all was said and done, the estimate was for $450-$550k and with my eventual transition from the Army, now just was not the time to get locked into a large payment.  Patience is a virtue.

But I really like the house I'm in now.  After living here for a year, I realized that it had everything I was looking for in a home.  It's about five hundred yards from where CasaArey was going to be built.  A really wonderful, private backyard, a great long driveway for our boat trailer, and we're still only 5 minutes to the boat ramp on Stillhouse Hollow Lake.

Let the renovations and energy improvements begin.  The hot water heater insulation blanket was an easy $23.  We just has more insulation blown into the ceiling (we found some poor insulation when we had a home inspection performed...never, never scrimp on a home inspection!).  I may install some solar screens over a front window that catches the rising sun.  Other improvements to come.

So for those of you that followed this for the last year, I'm sorry for any disappointment.  But I'm a big believer that everything turns out for the best and this is likely right in line with this!

Scot

Builders are estimating and bidding!

Standing by for some quotes from some of the local builders.  

House plans are complete!

Finally!  It's been a great experience with Curtis Cook of Salado.  Jen and I are thrilled to have the finished plans and ready to start the building process.  A copy of this was sent to my past mortgage broker/banker...same person who financed (and refinanced) my last home in Harker Heights.

So what do we have??  An open floor plan designed for our family.  A small craft room for Jen (she deserves it after years of boxes), an innovative home gym (garage doors are the vogue!) and very important for my own professional future...a solar ready roof over the garage, free of all panel obstacles, at the right pitch for optimum solar gain.  On that, I learned that there are many different "optimum models" for best solar angle.  We settled for a 7/12 pitch which is about 30 degrees.  The roof orientation is approx due south and while I would have preferred a slightly west of due south orientation for max gain during peak load periods, one quickly finds out that compromises and economic value decisions are a fact of life.

I'm sure this won't be the first compromise.  Now we get to the "wants versus needs" stage combined with our own personal "1 to n" list.  As always, I'll keep you informed.

We're back in business! New designer and a great meeting with an innovator.

As you can tell by my sparse writing, I was in a bit of a lull and that really was mostly to do with changing designers...

Jen and I are now with Curtis Cook Residential Designs from Salado (http://curtiscookdesigns.com/) and all we can say is that working with Curtis has been marvelous.  Jen is especially happy with the back and forth dialogue that has made our plan right for us.  The layout is very much like we set in an earlier post.

Timing on construction will now be difficult and it's hard to see how building by this summer is feasible.  So many pros and cons: take time and do right...risk of interest rate rising.  More to follow on this.

Now the innovator...I attended the ImagineSolar open house yesterday.  Many of you know that I desire to get into the renewable energy field after my military career is over.  So, I always wanted our home to have some renewable and energy efficiency features that could help me learn and demonstrate to others.

The open house was enjoyable and I sat next to Shey Sabripour, who is the president and CEO of Altumaxis Technologies (altum- latin for sustain; axis - point of pivot...nice).  A 24 year veteran of the Space Systems industry, he has now innovated his own company dedicated to smart home design using demonstrated technologies from the space industry.  I love to meet entrepreneurs.

Now a consultant to many of Austin's renowned designers and architects, I see a bright future for Altumaxis.  America's strength is innovation and application of technologies for the next level of energy efficiency will be important.

My chance meeting with Shey was a good reminder for me that I wanted to incorporate solar PV and other technologies with best rate of return on investment to achieve lowest possible cost of ownership.  So maybe my project delay is going to give Jen and me the time to find the highest value innovations and get them built during construction.

Check out Altumaxis at http://altumaxis.com/

I'm still here...but a building and design lull

A long absence from blogging.  I spent a week at Solar Power International at Dallas to learn some things for my likely next career.  Then I spent another week in Alabama for an Army conference.

Also have shifted/delayed/ some efforts on CasaArey.  Will add more later but we've recognized that moving forward not completely as easy as me hoped.

So...I'm still here.  Still designing and finding that right design/ building team.  I'll let you know when we get fully back into the swing of things!

The best and greatest value ideas from Solar decathlon (and Central Texas!)

I'm jealous that Passive House Jake is at this year's solar decathlon.  I visited it in years past when I was stationed at the Pentagon and it's really amazing what great, innovative ideas there are out there from our university students.

This one from the University of Maryland caught my eye and I believe it's in first place so far:

"Watershed" from this year's solar decathalon - nice ideas

This drought makes me realize we must use both rainwater and grey water as smartly as possible and as you can see, this house implements the necessary technologies.

Innovative, outside the box thinking is happening here in Central Texas, too.  This weekend was the start of back to back weekends of home tours, solar tours...this weekend was the local home tour.  Saw some wonderful homes but mostly what we anticipated - traditional.  Still, one home caught both Jen and my eye in Killeen:


 Relatively simple floorplan, with a loft/4th bedroom upstairs.  This minimizes the metal roofing total square footage.

I can't say we 100% loved this home but its interesting roof - relatively low angles likely with optimum solar panel angles made me realize that there is a way to design enough "breaks" in a roof line to make a modern, contemporary home interesting without being over the top in terms of the other homes in the neighborhood.

Nice mix of limestone, metal roof.  Interesting and ideas worth implementing in our home.

Finally...this is my idea of a great "outdoor room."  Great size to take advantage of the Texas climate (well not today - we broke a record with a 106 degrees :(

Next weekend  - the family is off to Austin to round out the ideas.  

Houzz - a great App to help us say "this is what we like"

I cam across Houzz while looking at another app (Flipboard) on my daughter's iPad.  Exploring and surfing begets more discovery, indeed.

This app is great because as we see photos that best show what we like from a design or architecture, we simply add the photo to our Idea Book with a caption if we desire.

This new button to your right links you to our Houzz profile where you can see those pics.

Houzz updates with new ideas all the time so I expect our Idea Book to expand so check back often.

I think this will help a lot as we try to describe what we like to others involved with our project.

Power Idea Weekends!

Two exciting weekends to firm up ideas, and narrow down the searches for builders for CasaArey.

Next weekend is the Parade of Home, hosted by the Central Texas Homebuilders Association.  This will be a great opportunity to find local builders.  I have had not one but two people tell me not to assume that Austin-based builders will cost more.  Indeed, one new homeowner pretty assuredly said he knew it was cheaper in many cases.  Still, I'd like to find out for myself and we do like the idea of a local builder who can oversee construction instead of dropping in from time to time.  I'll report following our visits.

The following weekend in Austin are two great, simultaneous events: The Hill Country Solar Tour



 and (not associated) the AIA Austin Homes Tour.  Click the pics for links to their sites.  I'm really excited about the latter weekend because there will be lots of fresh ideas and real-world applications of solar power.   We're pulling the mobile CasaArey (i.e. a travel trailer) down to Austin as the base camp for this weekend of exploring...

Saw the most interesting home (and person) in Salado yesterday

We had the most interesting and enjoyable visit/discovery yesterday.

Long story short for this blog...Passive House Jake told us about an old friend, Stephen, from Salado, who was an "artist / builder" (and I'll add to this shortly) who might possibly put Jake's Passive House ideas into action.

We do like the idea of a local builder who can be around to supervise progress and from Jake's descriptions of his house, I was intrigued.  A google earth search later, there was no doubt I found the right house so yesterday, I figured we'd drop by to introduce ourselves.

Ashley met us on the long driveway and was extremely gracious to allow us into their great home to wait for Stephen, but Stephen showed up right away and I've got to say, I was once again just fascinated talking to another advocate for sustainable, enduring building techniques.

I think it would be safe to say finding the equivalent of Stephen's house in Austin (and read the next blog entry for more on this) might not be terribly difficult, but to find this in Salado, Bell County Texas...what a find!  Rainwater collection via a 150 yard beautiful rock way system, use of corrugated steel, absolute perfection in its south orientation to maximize use of the sun, beautiful handmade furniture from an obviously experienced craftsman father.  I really had a great time and to Ashley - I'm sorry I took up so much of a precious weekend.  I hope Stephen was as excited about my project as we are.

Stephen and I exchanged emails and phone numbers as well as the address to this blog (which does continue to introduce me to people who can help us build this project).

So just as you know "Passive House Jake," I hope Stephen is comfortable with "Artist / Builder / Renaissance (ABR) Man Stephen."  ABR Stephen had such a great working, but demonstrated in action through his own home, knowledge of energy efficient, sustainable practices.  And was quick to say what he learned and would do over again - we like that and hope to work more with ABR Stephen in the future.

...and the wood ceiling will really look nice!

Heat Pump Hot Water Heater...who knew??

http://www.geappliances.com/videos-media/?video_uuid=ylz2ud48

Jen and I just finished meeting with Passive House Jake and he mentioned  he saw this in Austin.  We're seeing more and more of this today - treating the heating and cooling of the home as a "system" instead of using up electricity to perform discrete heating or cooling. Whether it's using warm air from an AC compressor to heat water, or this pump that uses the the air in a home (like that found in a summertime Texas home!) to heat the water.  The cool air expelled from the HPHWH can cool (or at least augment the cooling) of a home and in an uber-efficient home, every bit of helping with the cooling load can go a long way.

We like that Passive House Jake is up to speed with the latest and most innovative technologies to consider.  

Here is the link to the features and more of how it works:

http://www.geappliances.com/heat-pump-hot-water-heater/electric-water-heater-features.htm

Pics really are a 1000 words

How best to describe that I like an open kitchen that opens to a "somewhat less than full formal" dining room...well, a picture helps.

Found this while waiting at the hospital today.

Passive House Jake if you're reading, please add this to my house plan.  Good use of ceiling height changes to show different rooms.  But no fireplace necessary!

Views of the lot (and our first cut at a floorplan) as we walked it with Passiv Haus Jake - Picasa Web Albums

Drop Box - Scot Arey - Picasa Web Albums:

'via Blog this'

Views of the lot as we walked it with Passiv Haus Jake.  Our first meeting with a designer and I must say it was great to hear his passion for energy efficiency.

And here is the 1st floor plan concept we forwarded to Jake tonight.  Jen and I are not firmly set on this...we want the GREAT view to the lake, in a simple, open floor plan.  Just a rough layout using the Punch Home and Landscape software.

In case you're wondering...lots of technology experimentation tonight with the blog.

Meeting with Passive House Jake today

Couldn't resist taking the pic of the rising sun against the ridge...way in the distance are two homes.  Our lot is right between them.  Beautiful view from the Corps of Engineer land.

Oh by the way, today is my first day to report to the new assignment so exercise is over. Time to take a shower.

Excited to meet Jake who I referred to in the Passive House blog.

Finally met Dan and Karen and saw their wonderful home - THANK YOU

A great big "thank you" to the Cripe's for allowing me and my family to drive down and see their home in Round Rock, TX.  First thing I noticed on the drive down is that Texas has been doing some great interstate improvements and that there has been phenomenal growth - WOW!

What a wonderful couple, obviously passionate about their home and its green concepts (wrong words..."green applications" is better because they've put ideas into action).  Here are some impressions we got:

- "How much for the concrete floors?" I ask...Dan: "they're free."  I guess I always thought concrete floors were overlaid over the original foundation but Dan informed me that it's one and the same except more carefully laid, then covered during other construction phases.  There is a real cost-saver and like Dan says, we can always lay other things over the concrete later if desired.  Very nice.

- SPRAY FOAM!!!  I could have relaxed in their attic it was so comfortable.  I will definitely have that in our home.  We've already had three other homeowners and local builders advocate for spray foam so this seems like a no-brainer at this point.  I have heard 2x6 construction over 2x4 construction but Dan told me how his builder used 2x4 construction with more modern spacing to minimize thermal bridges and lower materiel costs.  Will have to think whether the extra 2 inch width is worth the cost...

- "Silestone" was a big hit with Karen (and Dan).  Add this to my list of things for Jen and I to look at - beautiful  durable.  When I asked Dan if he had anything he'd do differently, the thing that he said was "put Silestone in the bathroom."

- the metal roof is an investment for the longer term life-cycle costs.  Lasts forever, lower insurance cost...and with the PV solar panels, there is a roof that won't have to be replaced in 10-15 years requiring the panels to be taken down.  Smart.

- We're both fans of the "Not So Big House" concepts.  Build the house you need for your family and don't build extra spaces "just because."  Karen said she'd have gone with even less space if she could have.  another reminder to find a builder that is read and willing to help build the house for the Arey family, and not some slightly modified "standard template" they're comfortable with building.  The Cripes obviously love their home.

A great trip so thank you again Dan and Karen!  I look forward to getting you up to Harker Heights in the months ahead so you can see what we're up to.

NEXT TOPIC: finding the right builder...and Jen and my major effort over the next two weeks before I get back to work.  Already, we're getting a wide range of recommendations from folks on the Ridge.

PS: I loved the solar tubes, too.

Back from Afghanistan...time to get serious on this house now

I'll be back in Texas tomorrow after a beautiful drive through the Shenandoah Valley and to the southern end of the Appalachian Mtns.  In Vicksburg now and cross into Louisiana tomorrow for the long home stretch.

Passiv Haus in Central Texas

What might be more appropriate for a land based largely on German descent?  Passiv Haus design concepts have caught my eye during my off-duty reading but I wonder if they are applicable to the climate of Central Texas. My recollections of Germany as a young lieutenant are of cold, wet, dreary winters and relatively mild summers. My memories of Texas – confirmed by my wife’s present day reports from Harker Heights, are that Texas is just HOT! So today, I’ll go about a great article I found from the Passive House Institute’s website.
So about “Passive House.” A simple concept, before one adds all sorts of renewable gizmos, why not just make the house uber-airtight and energy efficient: “first, use less energy” is the mantra of the Passive House Institute of the United States. I like it. But don’t for a minute think they have a monopoly on this concept. The LEED certification and the Austin Green Building rating systems certainly apply the same concepts. The Austin checklist mandating no use of skylights is a great example – why open your well-sealed home to the heat of the Texas sun? But I’d say that the PH Institute’s laser-like focus on sealed walls makes it the de facto standard-bearer in this area.
So, let’s do some looking at this great article about passive house design. The PHIUS website has a fantastic page of linked articles but this one really caught my attention because it discusses how critical that a “tight” house is to attaining this efficiency. Check out this diagram and the R-ratings!

Some things really jump out to me:
1. Pay attention to the basics of construction – find a builder who does not jump right to solar panel discussion. Start with the basics: tell me how you build your walls?
2. Airtight homes need energy recovery ventilators – why re-cool or re-heat exchanged air from the outside. Put this on my list of things to research because I think it goes hand in hand with a tight house.
3. If…and a big if here…do I need a central heating system in a well designed Central Texas house? Or can a tight house, with central A/C use passive solar and individual room solutions to attain comfort during the winter? I don’t know enough about this yet so here’s another “to research” task.
4. Windows – both their U Rating and the sealing techniques will be critically important.
I see there is a gentleman in Temple who is certified in Passiv Haus techniques and I’ll call on him when I get back to Texas. And by the way, I’m about two weeks (11 days now!) from leaving Afghanistan. My replacement has arrived, he has taken over most of my duties, and now I’m finishing up some projects for my General. Yes, I am getting excited because a year (another one!) is a long time to be away from my three girls (for those counting, that’s one wife – Jen and my two daughters).
Next topic…send your suggestions in.  I’d love to hear them.  All the best, Scot

I'm still here!

Sorry for the lack of writing.  I've had some internet...deficiencies.  And, I've been away in Kandahar for a bit.  Now I know Texas is hot right now, but Kandahar is HOT.  106 degrees, but a dry heat!  But, dry heat really doesn't matter with 20-30 pounds of body armor and a helmet.  Still, I know there are so many Soldiers who day in, day out are carrying on in these conditions - absolutely amazing that young Americans choose to serve like they do. 

If you read the last blog, I think you'll see I'm nudging toward the Austin Energy Green Building Rating system...LEED just seems more complicated than it needs to be.

Oh by the way, I used to fly these...but this year's job allows me to be just a passenger...sigh.

Austin Energy Green Building rating or LEED???

Sorry for the delay since my last blog, but the internet here has been not so good. Whenever I catch myself about to complain about the internet and that I can’t make a Skype call, I remember that I’m in Kabul Afghanistan. Twenty years ago as a lieutenant in Desert Storm…no calls for five months. As a major in 2003 in Tikrit, Iraq…no call for first three months. Slow bandwidth or day to day interruptions just really aren’t than bad!

OK – what are we talking about today?? This has been on my mind for last several weeks and that is what are the differences and similarities between the Austin Energy Green Building checklist and the LEED checklist. I’ve gone through both quickly and here are my initial findings:

1. The AEGB checklist is simpler and more user friendly. I find the LEED for Homes categories and flowcharts just way more complicated – less user-friendly.
   
   
2. The AEGB checklist seems better tailored for living in Central Texas.  Shouldn't be any surprise here…this makes me think that shouldn’t it be intuitively obvious that green building MUST be tailored to the environment the house is going up in. Heck, it’s sunny and hot here in Texas – make sure the house accounts for that. The LEED checklist does appear to allow for local necessities.

Without sounding rash, my quick assessment is that the Austin system is more for building the house right to live in it while I get this impression that the LEED system has this…how do I say it, “I want to show my green bling” edge to it. I mean, why should I worry about a point for public awareness for advertising or having an article by my builder for a LEED awareness website?

What don’t I know yet?

• How far from Austin can a house be certified for the “1 to 5 star” rating? I’m 60 miles away, but is this Austin standard becoming the defacto Central Texas standard?
• Will the Austin Energy standard provide as much of a future marketing benefit as saying my house is “LEED certified?”
• Will getting a house LEED certified provide full life-cycle benefits when I sell? In other words, will it be cheaper to operate, quicker to sell at a higher price than an Austin Energy certified building?

I think everyone knows this, but no matter which checklist and guide – I expect this house to be more valuable in the future than other “standard build” homes. Because electricity isn’t getting any cheaper! See this article.

I’d love to hear your comments and suggestions on this topic because I sense that if LEED is the way to go, I've got much more prep to do.

The other reason I'm building Green - Sun, Veterans, and Entrepreneurship

I might be going off topic with this blog but hang with me - everything is related - I promise!

For those that know me and have seen my LinkedIn profile, you know I want to be involved in renewable energy for my next career after the Army...although I hate to say it, at a certain point, all Soldiers eventually retire when it's time to leave the helicopter flying, parachuting, commuting into the Pentagon (ok, that's not super fun) to somebody else.  I'm not the first Colonel to see that the end of the fun is closer than the beginning and it's only smart that I start planning now.

So what does one do...some become defense contractors in all sorts of support functions or go into government service.  These are important.  Others like me, are very interested in doing something totally new.  But for me, it's important to do something that I think is valuable to the nation, something that makes the United States better, stronger, more vibrant.  Something I can be completely, totally, 110% passionate about.

I want to be part of renewable energy!  I think it's absolutely essential for this nation's future strength.  So this brings me to two articles I've come across in my readings.

This from the WSJ: 

• MAY 11, 2011, 5:15 PM ET

Why Vets Are Likely Entrepreneurs

 
I'll summarize - Vets both young and old (correction...older) are in great positions to be entrepreneurs.  Good skills and as importantly, financially able with a military retirement to take a leap whereas fear of financial  failure may hold others back.  There, I've said it - I'd like to be some sort of renewable entrepreneur...but what is that first step and in what direction?  I think building this house is going to open my mind up to the  opportunities in Central Texas - who does solar, small wind, geothermal, radiant heating???  The list goes on and on.

So here is the second article and I have to say this was quite the shocker...

California, Oregon, Massachusetts, New York, and Colorado Top the Nation in Clean Energy Leadership

By REW.com Editors
May 20, 2011   |   1 Comment

Clean Edge's U.S. clean energy leadership index provides companies, Investors, and governments with critical data and insights on the clean energy landscape.

Where is Texas???  Well, we're actually #18.  I thought we'd be much better because for those of you who live here, you know it's sunny and windy.  And this state is so business friendly!!  We've got the innovative (crazy) Austinites!  Why aren't we in the top 5?

So, this is one reason I've chosen to live in Texas - there is just so much potential to match the renewable possibilities with the plethora of smart, eager, educated, hungry military veterans who still want to do something important for their country.

The other reason...well, if you've ever spent a spring or fall here you'd understand!

Tell me again why we want to build a "Green" home...

I have come to the simple conclusion that half of being a green designer/builder is being able to interpret the "Green" certification checklists...ok, I know there is much more to it than this but have you ever downloaded and read one of these guides??  SEER, roof slope rating, permeability of driveways, VOC, etc, etc.  distance from faucet to heater - yikes!

Lots to think about for sure but then I got back to thinking: why is it that I want to build "Green?"  We all have different reasons -

1. For some it's the satisfaction of doing our part for the earth and our local community.  
2. For others, it's about energy efficiency and long term cost of ownership. 
3. And still for others, it's a bit about #2, and hey, the "green" designs are often great to live in.

To be honest, I'm really reason #2 and #3.  Ok, ok, I can see that by going through this process, one can't help but be more informed of how these techniques help the environment (nobody wants oily water running down to the lake they swim in and why wouldn't I want to minimize scrap?)

But I'm looking for energy efficiency!  I don't think electricity is getting any cheaper, and as a guy who has spent 23 years in the Army, I understand the cost of defending our national interest in assuring our access to energy resources.

Now if during our quest to get a "green" home that sucks up as little energy as possible (or creates it!), we find ourselves living in a "wow - this is beautiful" home, all the better.  And I betcha that as more folks see homes started for reasons #2 and #3, they'll get smarter and more informed on Reason #1.

And isn't this good for everybody?