Category: Podcasts
-
148 Designing for your climate
Graham Hunt goes into a lot of detail when researching the local climate that will impact the comfort of a home. Designing for your climate includes an analysis of both the macro – the temperature, rainfall and humidity of the region, but also the micro – the local wind, shading and exposure of a particular site.…
-
147 Living Homes
Who’s the most influential person in a real estate development? The architect, the owner, the builder…? What about the developer? Real estate developers are often seen as the bad guys, out to make a bunch of money without really caring about the quality of homes or lifestyles resulting from their work. Steve Glenn’s philosophy…
-
146 Can you afford an architect?
Angus Crowe of True North Architects believes that you definitely can afford an architect. In fact, you can’t afford not to have one. Learning from the Tropics The tropics might seem a world away from very cold climates, but these regions do share one trait – they both required good design in order to achieve…
-
145: How to build a passive energy home
Dennis Dowling produces finely crafted, passive energy homes in Queenstown. What’s a passive energy home? Basically, it’s a good quality one. If you’re looking to build a healthy, energy efficient home, then you want to find a building company like DCD. Part of my mission here at Home Style Green is to find these builders…
-
143: Why is foam such a good building material?
Many people have concerns about using foam (polystyrene) because of the chemicals used to make the stuff. In fact some of those chemicals are on the Living Building Challenge Red List. So why is foam such a good building material? Foam is a Great Insulator It’s all about R-value. Foam is an incredible thermal insulator. For…
-
142 Bamboo is Sustainable
Bamboo Technologies, LLC (Bamboo Living) design and manufacture structurally certified bamboo homes. Founded in 1995, Bamboo Technologies has produced over 350 homes in Hawaii and around the world. I spoke with founder David Sands about why bamboo is sustainable and a great building material. Bamboo is Sustainable The speed at which it grows is a key reason why…
-
141: Are Passive House and Green Building Relevant in a Temperate Climate?
I love Rich Williams’ enthusiasm for what he does. Even if you don’t live in the temperate climate of San Diego, you can learn a lot about the relevance of concepts like Passive House for a better performing home. Alliance Green Builders are dedicated to ‘building tomorrow’s homes for today’. As well as being Passive…
-
140 What happens when eco becomes mainstream?
Marketing can be used in an ‘evil’ way, but Kristy Hoare always wanted to use her marketing skills for good. She’s done this by helping to promote products that she believes can me the world better. As solar power and eco homes become more mainstream, it’s increasingly important to have somewhere to find unbiased information, and that’s…
-
139: The Future of Green Design
The terms ‘sustainability’ and ‘eco’ are not obvious on Adam Taylor’s website. They are there (see if you can find them). But perhaps the future of green design is embedded in good design. Not something separate. Homestar Practitioner Among other things, Adam is a Homestar Practitioner. There’s nothing particularly special about this nowadays, except when you…
-
138 Dr. Allison Bailes Energy Vanguard
Dr Allison Bailes III uses his PhD in physics and his background in teaching, to educate the world about better buildings. Through his company Energy Vanguard, Dr Bailes has been recognised as a great communicator, turning complex ideas like relative humidity and psychrometrics, into understandable fundamentals for better home performance. The Phsyics of Good Buildings…