DIY Green Home Building
Welcome to The DIY Green Home Building Section
DIY Green Home Improvement is divided in two sections. The DIY Green Home Building section is structured in an outline format and is focused on the process of building a home along the lines of an informal CSI Specifications format structure that you must go through to build a home. The outline will address the following general areas:
- General Requirements
- Build-It-Yourself Considerations
- Foundations
- Structural Systems
- Mechanical Systems
- Exterior Finishes
- Interior Finishes
- Landscaping
and the detailed sections underneath the categories in expanded detail. There will be overlap between the the Home Building Sections and the Home Improvement Sections and there will be links back and forth to drive you to additional content.
Home Building and Home Improvement are related, but defined by degree. When you plan to build a home from scratch there is an extended process that must be traversed as opposed to building a home addition or remodeling a kitchen or completing a window replacement. I chose this format so as to bring some discipline to the home building aspect so that those contemplating building their own home. Remember though that all projects that occur in the nature of home building or home improvement are achieved quicker and at lower cost by investing more in the planning than in the doing. Ad-hoc projects done on-the-fly will add tremendously to the final installed cost of any home improvement. Homes built in an ad-hoc process could actually break the bank so-to-speak.
Future Plans
The plan is to implement a rating feature so you can rate content that you fins useful and eventually a comment feature to allow you to contribute your knowledge for the benefit of others. It also my hope to include video of projects from fans that will contribute to the body of knowledge exposed in the site. If you have comment or suggestions, or would like to ask a question, please send us an e-mail through the contact form. We will do our best to offer a detailed answer to your question or point you to a source that could. So browse the article summaries below. Click the link next to "See the article". They will ink you directly to the full article.
The Federal government is toying with a new Federal mandate that could dramatically affect the cost of a new home. Mandating energy efficiency standards within Model Energy codes across the country does not account for regional conditions and could have a deleterious affect on the economies of local communities. See the article: If you live in a high risk Radon Zone but do not have a Radon Mitigation system installed in your home, see how such a system can be installed fairly easily in this video. Radon is a serious threat in many areas of the country. Radon gas is the #i leading cause of lung cancer. Before building your new home, plan to incorporate an Radon Mitigation sytem. DIY-Geen-Home-Improvement.Com has added the newsfeed of the Nationa Association of Homebuilders ToolBase.Org website. ToolBase.org is a website with articles, resources and information on building products, materials, new technologies, business management, and housing systems. PVC Form-A-Drain Footing Form, also serves as a perimeter hydrostatic drain and a Radon vent for basement, crawlsspace and slab-on-grade foundation. Insulated Concree Forms are an excellent structural system that offers strength, durability and high insulating properties. DIY home building projects can be made simple using this system. When evaluating the performance of windows and doors, the three primary criteria are Solar Heat Gain coefficients, Visibe Light Transmission and U-Value. Understand what they mean and how they interelate before making a final decision on your new windows and doors. French Drains can solve tough drainage problems in your yard. Allowing water to run unchecked across you lot can cause damage to structures and landscaping. Understand how French Drains work and what you need to install one in this article: Summertime is upon us and a little preventive maintenance now will keep you HVAC system functioning to its peak efficiency. It can also reveal emerging problems that can be avoided. Concrete sometimes gets cast wrongly as a material that does not support green building objectives. Analyzed in the right light, concrete is indeed a green, earth friendly material for home building. The concrete basement foundation is probably the most common foundation found in the United States. There are carefull preparations that need to be made to avoid water infiltration and they are not suitable evrywhere. As you begin to design your home, you need to think about it abstractly. How many people will live there in the time you own the home, how many baths, how many bedrooms will you need? These are all questions that you need to think long term about. If you do not, you may design a home you may grow out of before you intended. Start planning your floorplan by using a bubble diagram to relate the importance and location of the spaces your family needs in your new home. What are the the factors to consider when you are selecting a building site. Understant those factors that make Location, Location, Location, not the only thing you must consider. Plasma Gasification is a technology that has been around for awhile but is finding new life as a solution to both pollution and energy scarcity. Read this articel from PopSci.com. Discover the value and performance that vinyl windows can represent. Understand some of the considerations you must consider when looking for the right window for your home. This article discusses aspects that you must consider as you think about the design of your new home. Discover some of the pitfalls and what you can do to minimize their impact on your "home building" project. This article discusses some of the new trends in clad wood windows. Trends that include cladding in noble metals such as copper, bronze and zinc. The article also talks about some significant manufacturers, their committment to greeen building objectives and their station in the market.
Coming Changes To the Model Energy Codes
Icynene Sprayed Foam Insulation provides superior sealing and insulation properties and is non-toxic. Learn the benefits in the article.
See the article:Icynene Insulation - Full Seal Against Air Infiltration
See the Article: "Install A Radon Vent"
'See the Article:'"Planning For Radon Mitigation"
See the Feed: "ToolBase Feed"
See the Article: "Form-A-Drain Footing Form"
See the article: "Insulated Concrete Forms"
See the Article: SHGC, Visible Light Transmission and U-Value
See the Artice:"French Drains - Solutions to Poor Draining Yards"
See the article:"Summertime Preventive Maintenance for HVAC Systems"
See the article: "Does Concrete Support Green Building Objectives?"
See the article "Basement Foundations":
See the article "Floorplan Programming":
See the Article "Bubble Diagrams":
See the Article Selecting a Lot.
See the article "The Prophet Of Garbage" by Posted 03.01.2007.
See the article "Vinyl Windows, Top Value And Performance":
See the Article "DIY Home Design":
See the article "New Trends In Wood Windows".
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