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How To Keep Cool without seeing Red this Summer

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The irony of air conditioning in a warming world couldn’t be more poignant. As the thermometer climbs across the globe, under a thickening blanket of CO2 emissions, the first reaction is to flip on the air con. That sucks greedily on the mains, requiring more energy, producing more CO2 emissions, and so leading to warmer global temperatures – a long-lead but inexorable vicious circle. And in the US, the average home uses some 16% of its energy powering air con, according to the EIA.

So if you have your eyes cast warily on where carbon emissions are taking the planet, finding a solution for the air con paradox is a important. We want to keep cool at the height of summer, but we want the planet to stop warming too. As with many technology fixes, however, air con isn’t as irreplaceable as we sometimes think. There are solutions to keeping cool, as the mercury rises, that don’t have to see your level of discomfort rise too. And they’ve been around as long as humans have lived in warm climes.

Good design is inevitably the best way to ensuring that your home handles heat well. Thick solid walls, reduced window size, especially on south facing walls, and roofs that can be used for sleeping on – these are all approaches known about for millenia. Unfortunately, most of us don’t have the luxury of rebuilding our houses. But strategies for keeping cool can be found for even the most unpromising of abodes.

A cool house starts in the garden. If you can break up the incoming sunlight with solidly rooted trees, flowering shrubs and climbers, you’ll find much less heat penetrates through to you house. Vines growing up the southern front of your house can make a huge difference, covering up exposed walls – which would otherwise carry heat through to the inside of the house.

Homes also become uncomfortably hot because of the greenhouse effect – the one before it became commonly used in discussions on global warming. Sunlight comes streaming in through windows, with all of its bounty of thermal energy – but then it’s trapped, and can’t get out. So your home immediately starts to heat up. And if there isn’t a breeze to remove the heat being stored, it builds, and floats upstairs – making your bedrooms unbearably hot at night-time.

You can knock that effect on its head pretty easily, by careful window and breeze management, taking advantage of the natural cycles of heat and cool during the day. The first thing you need to do each morning is to close and shutter windows, and to draw the curtains. That stops the sunlight getting in. You might want to leave curtains on north-facing windows partially open, so some light filters into the house.

Then, as dusk approaches, un-shutter the windows, and throw everything wide open. Now you want to encourage the breezes to move in, especially upstairs. A cool night-scented air will almost certainly be much better for your sleep than the artificial chill of air con. Once you’ve got that basic cycle flowing each day, there are other things you can do to stop the heat building in your home.

Electrical devices are definite no-no; TVs, computers, ovens – all of these will build up the heat budget under your roof, so try to have as many of these turned off during the day as possible. There’s no need to be slumped indoors in front of digital entertainment. Don’t forget, cooking al fresco is one of the joys of a hot summer.

Finally don’t neglect adjusting your own personal comfort zone. There’s a lot you can do to keep yourself cool, just by sensibly managing what you do when it’s hot. Having a ceiling fan going, when you’re in the room, will keep the air moving. But don’t have the fans in all of your rooms on – remember they produce their own heat from electrical motors, and also consume power.

There are many sensible tips that can make a big difference through the day. Things like staying out of the sun, not being too active when the heat is at its height, and making imaginative use of cool water sprays. And if things are really getting too hot to handle, a cool shower is bound to do the trick, reducing your core body temperature, and leaving you feeling refreshed.

None of this is rocket science – and relearning these tricks will hopefully put you in the cool when it comes to a warming planet.

Keeping cool without seeing red – green ways to chill this summer ... This is a guest post by Ally who owns a website focusing on selling high quality adjustable dumbbells

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The HERS Index explained

Even though Bosgraaf Companies has been building Energy Star homes since 1999, terminology and policies change periodically. When I received our latest Rating Certificate for our recently completed home in Prairie Winds, I decided to refresh my knowledge of the rating scale and share that information here.

In order to be an Energy Star qualified home, every home we build (not a sampling) is tested by a 3rd party. Our testers have no ownership or "funny" relationship with our company so it is truly impartial. The tester comes in and hooks up a "Blower Door" to one of the doors of the home to create a negative air pressure situation and this measures the air exchanges.

*It is pretty cool to be in a home when this test takes place so let us know if you have a school classroom or other group that would like a field trip.*

If a window is cracked open, a vent hooked up improperly, or something left un-caulked, it is immediately known by the reading on the Blower Door test and the sound of whistling air that allows our builders to immediately find the source. As you can imagine, this gives us tremendous peace of mind to know that we are delivering a home that is properly sealed against wind and water infiltration.

When the testers are finished at a home, they provide us with a Rating Certificate. That certificate lists the results of the Blower Door test and compiles the specifications provided for the house (R Value of insulation, type of window, etc.). The final number that results, and a number we look at, is the HERS Index.

The following description of the HERS Index was taken from www.resnet.us/home-energy-ratings: Each 1-point decrease in the HERS Index corresponds to a 1% reduction in energy consumption compared to the HERS Reference Home. Thus a home with a HERS Index of 85 is 15% more energy efficient than the HERS Reference Home and a home with a HERS Index of 80 is 20% more energy efficient."

We are incredibly proud of the fact that our most recent home at Prairie Winds in Zeeland tested at 62!! This is the typical score of our homes, but much better than the typical home built to Model Energy Code. Anything below 70 is rated 5 Star PLUS by Energy Star - off the charts, basically. We have always tested out at 5 Star (before they added the Plus category) and 5 Star Plus.

What does this mean for the homeowner? A comfortable home with lower energy costs and a home that is Earth-friendly. For this particular home in Prairie Winds with 3,508 square feet of conditioned space, the projected annual energy cost (based on today's rates) is $2,298 for heating, cooling, all lights and appliances.

Call Maureen or Mike at Bosgraaf to learn more about Energy Star and our green commitment at Bosgraaf Companies.

Bosgraaf to Include Pre-wire for Electric Vehicles in All Garages

Bosgraaf is currently building a home for a client involved in the car industry and has a lot of interest in electric vehicles. At the customer's request, we pre-wired the garage for their family's future electric vehicle, expected to arrive any day. This was mentioned in the Grand Rapids Press this week. Click here for a link to the article.

As you may know, Bosgraaf has been committed to building energy efficient homes by partnering with Energy Star and has been named Energy Star Partner of the Year multiple times. Since 1999, more than 1,085 homes have been built by Bosgraaf and certified by a 3rd party inspector as Energy Star homes. Today, Bosgraaf Companies President Mike Bosgraaf announced his green commitment would go one step further. "Now that Bosgraaf is familiar with the work needed to make a home ready for an electric vehicle, we are committed to building all brand new Bosgraaf homes EV-ready". Mike continues by sharing the statistic that building 1,085 homes to Energy Star standards (versus building to the Model Energy Code standard) over the last decade was equivalent to eliminating emissions from approximately 600 vehicles. Therefore, "extending our green commitment to making a garage ready for an electric vehicle just makes sense for us".

New Teton in Stevens Pointe in Byron Center

The Teton was our most popular floor plan for 2010 and is off to a strong start again in 2011. This Teton will be complete mid-April so will be great for a purchase and move-in this Spring. Located on the Kilburne Court cul-de-sac of Stevens Pointe, you can almost see Countryside Elementary School (a Byron Center Public School) out the front window as it is just across Eastern Avenue. In addition to the benefit of the close proximity to the school, Stevens Pointe also boasts a private pool, it borders the popular Brewer Park, and has easy access to bike paths and nature trails. Click here for all the details about Stevens Pointe.

The Teton is a multi-level floor plan, meaning the floors are staggered instead of stacked on top of each other. When entering from the garage, you can walk down a half flight to the unfinished basement or you can stay on that floor for half bath, laundry, and a wonderful walkout family room. If you walk up one flight, you have arrived at the foyer and front door entrance, as well as the kitchen, dining, and living room. Up another flight and you have 3 bedrooms, including a Master with its own master bath. This is a great floor plan for the family that wants all the bedrooms close by, and two separate spaces for every day living (family and living).

Let's talk exterior. Maureen is not a professional photographer, but she did take a candid photo today so at least you can see the lovely front porch, the stylish dark gray siding (the hottest color trend right now), and stone details. We also think it is nice that our trim carpenter's truck was captured in the photo and matches the siding color perfectly.

We went a little nutty with interior finishes on this one so it features a ton of custom trim, great cabinetry, and GRANITE kitchen counters. With all of these extras, you can still purchase this home for $199,900, and it will be Energy Star Certified after being tested by a 3rd party upon completion. Amazing!

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Now Is The Time To Buy!!

Is the end of the Great Recession near? Let’s look at the signs. National employment statistics are stabilizing… the unemployment rate is improving in MI… jobs in manufacturing are ramping up … new battery jobs are being announced… the development of off-shore windmills is a hot topic. These are all are positive signs.

But what about the housing industry? Consider that only two residential subdivisions were started in 2008, 2009, and most likely 2010 – in all of Kent, Ottawa and Muskegon. The housing market is bottoming out. New home inventory is at historically low levels. New home prices are below 2000 prices – with lot prices well below replacement costs.

What does this mean beyond the obvious great housing deal?
• Historically low prices are not sustainable! Eventually home sites are going to become scarcer prompting either rising prices or the construction of new developments at higher prices due to actual replacement costs.

• Although you may think you don’t qualify for the government bailout, consider that just about everyone is receiving a lower interest rate on their mortgage because the government is actively keeping rates down.

• At some point, as the market improves, members of the building industry – the subs of subs, vendors and contractors – are going to begin looking to make profits again.

So what does this mean for you? Now is the time to buy! Preferably in a community that your family will enjoy living and growing in for decades to come. Prices are right, interest rates have never been better, and there is a great selection of homes in premium locations. Conditions like these will most likely never happen again! It’s time to go new home shopping!


-Michael L. Bosgraaf