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A lot has happened since our last post… we’ve installed insulation, begun drywall and had both the ductless AC and radiant heat boiler installed.  Al has started working a full time job to help make ends meet and we’ve been invited to speak at Gnomedex!  Also I have been selected to judge a local green home building competition.  We’ve managed to plant our small test garden this week and received a few bids for the septic system as well.  We’re very excited to get drywall done and be onto the finish work as moving around the house/jobsite is a bit tight these days with all the materials and scaffolding around.  Here are a few more specifics on the insulation, more posts to come on the rest…

Insulation:

For energy efficiency, sound dampening and (of course) environmentally friendly reasons we’ve chosen EcoBatt. Often times, even “environmentally friendly” products use a lot of energy to produce (solar panels for instance). Insulation, however, saves 12 times more energy the first year in use than it takes to manufacture it. EcoBatt is made from highly renewable organic materials and does not contain phenol, formaldehyde, acrylics or artificial colors used to make traditional fiberglass insulation. It is made from bio-based materials rather than non-renewable petroleum-based products commonly used in insulation. Instead, EcoBatt is created with sand, one of the world’s most abundant and renewable resources, and post-consumer recycled glass.

Ecobatt is also not as scratchy as typical insulation.  Sadie was continually finding pieces to curl up on for a nap.

The house felt instantly more protective, quiet and substantial once it was fully installed, but we had a few mix-ups/complications with the company we had contracted to do the work.  After some wrangling, phone calls and adjustments things got done right though and we were very happy with the results.

One of the complications happened when we returned from an afternoon of running errands to see the attic cavity full of non-Ecobatt insulation.  Apparently they hadn’t found the right size of batts for that part of our home.  I called into see what the issue was and the guy on the phone said, “Well the only real difference is the yellow stuff uses a formaldehyde product as a bonding agent.”

“Exactly!”

Initially we were told they didn’t make Ecobatt in the correct dimensions for our ceiling.  Our trusses are 19″ o.c. instead of a more typical 24″ or 16″, but after a couple of calls to Ecobatt we learned they did indeed come in the needed dimensions.  So, we explained why their substitution of convenience didn’t meet the goals we had for our new home and they managed to find the correct size of batts and finish the job without a hitch.

If you’re goin’ green you gotta stick to your guns.  We’re pleased with the end result and looking forward to wrapping up drywall now in the next couple of weeks.  We’ll be writing about our heating and cooling decisions and installations sometime soon.  Talk to you later.

-Scott