Category: Tips

During construction after the mechanical and electrical inspections, take photos of the interior walls and ceilings of your home from every room. This needs to be done before the insulation is installed. Label these so you know later what room, wall or ceiling it is. This will provide valuable maintenance information for professionals that may need to come into your home to repair or update anything from plumbing or electrical to structural problems. This can also be helpful with finding studs when hanging pictures or ceiling fixtures.

Costs of construction and materials are on the rise, so the biggest return on your money is to be conscious of the size of your home. The design of your home is crucial to this. Ask yourself “How do I really live?” and “What do I need in my home and what do I want?” In many cases you may find that some of your wants can combine with some of your needs. In stead of having formal and informal dining areas, you may create an open kitchen — dining area that suites your entertaining needs. Or you may desire to have a library and a home office. A creative design may work this into a hall way with a row of bookshelves on one side and a hideaway office nook on the other. These kinds of space saving solutions will save you far more money than your choice of materials. With a quality design team, you can have a beautiful, spacious, square footage conscious home that doesn’t break the bank!

During the construction phase of your new home or remodeling project, it is a good idea to have 2 large trash bins erected. One of the bins will be for trash items, while the other is for materials that can be re-used. Before the project begins, discuss with your builder that you intend on re-using or recycling materials to either go back into your project, to Habitat for Humanity or other job sites. Recycling materials helps keep the cost of your building materials down, provides usable materials for others and reduces the cost of waste removal and dumping fees. Hiring a builder that believes in this philosophy will help your cause tremendously.

Many people hear that word as a “catch-all” term for any synthetic flooring. Not true! It is a natural product invented in 1860 and is made of linseed oil, pigments, pine rosin and pine flour. Linoleum was later replaced in popularity by vinyl floor coverings of the 1960s, but is regaining popularity today as an affordable natural alternative to vinyl… There are a great many styles and colors to choose from including wood grain and slate.

Installation should include a 0-VOC adhesive by Forbo called L910. This adhesive takes several days to cure so be sure that water does not seep in at the edges, your Linoleum will bubble and will have to be re-installed. To help prevent that from happening, a 0-VOC caulk should be placed at the perimeter seems at the time of installation.

There are so many systems, material and ideas that it can become overwhelming. The most important Green building concept is to build a home suited for your land. The second most important thing to do is to visit the Green Building Program website often and become familiar with terminology and concepts. This will allow you to ask the right questions and suggest what is most interesting to you during the design process.

What you desire for your new home, is an understanding of how you like to live, what your real needs are and how those needs can fit into your budget. Make a wish list of all the visions you might have for your new home and try to include pictures. The more specific you are the more likely your home will meet your needs.