Solar and Sustainable

The house was built in 1984-5 as a Passive Solar Home.  I learned a great deal about Solar Technology in Architecture from a now-discontinued curriculum at the local community college.


Basic Construction--Timberframe and SIPs
I learned about the basic construction technology in an issue of Fine Homebuilding Magazine.  As soon as I read the article, I recognized the value of the technology of building with SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels.)  The location of the manufacturer was nearby in Michigan, so my husband and I went there. (Using local products is a factor in Sustainability)

The manufacturer, Riverbend, was a timberframe company that also made SIPs, which wrap around the timber posts and beams--giving a superior insulation shell.  There is no stud construction in the enclosure of a SIPS home.  When we saw the examples of their beautiful homes, we decided that we would build a Timberframe with SIPs.  The heavy oak frame comes locally from the vast hardwood forests of Michigan, and the OSB used in making SIPs panels is from Weyerhaeuser in Michigan too.  The Expanded Polystrene foam for the SIPS is from petroleum, but manufactured in Michigan too.  Homes can be built entirely of SIPs panels, without the Timberframing, but we fell in love with the sturdy, beautiful frames.

I did a lot of research on this technology and these companies and found solid verifiable evidence of this technology's performance. 
Riverbend Timberframing  go to http://www.riverbendtf.com/
       You can view much of this research on this link.
Insulspan, Riverbend's SIP company http://www.insulspan.com/
(to see how EPS is made go tohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MgvQdnPOvE&feature=player_embedded)

Solar and Sustainable

Oct. 1, 2011 is the date of the annual national Solar Home Tour.  
Locally the event is called the Sustainable Homes and Business Tour.http://www.glrea.org  Nationally the event is sponsored by ASES, The American Solar Energy Society. http://www.ases.org/

My home is one of the homes on the tour--open from 10 to 4.

This blog tells how I have made my home Solar and Sustainable