Green Building

Waste Crete Systems, LLC has unveiled a new patent-pending concrete washout system called EnviroWash.

The EnviroWash process is one in which all concrete wastewater, once removed, is treated and reintroduced back into the EnviroWash unit, which is then used to clean concrete equipment over and over again. This process is designed to allow companies to reduce the liabilities and expenses associated with onsite concrete wastewater handling while reducing the amount of water used to rinse off concrete equipment at construction job sites after they have emptied their concrete loads.

Waste Crete Systems will showcase the EnviroWash System at the World of Concrete 2008 Tradeshow in Las Vegas, Jan. 22-25, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The technology will be available for viewing at booth #N553 and at a 3 p.m. press conference on Jan. 23.

According to Waste Crete Systems, the EnviroWash System exceeds current EPA "Best Practice" standards for water contamination from concrete truck washouts and prevents nearly 90 percent of rainwater and groundwater contamination from concrete wastewater throughout the building process.

R-Value Concrete Structures LLC has been awarded the Exemplary Project award from the Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association for its “foundational participation” in the Onekama Hybrid Home.

The home features Build Block ICF walls from footings to trusses, stained concrete floors, and incorporates Lite-Deck floors with radiant heat/snow melt for the garage, porch and a unique second-story deck, all installed by R-Value. Many challenges had to be overcome during construction including very narrow window spacing, the second story concrete deck, and high winds throughout the building process.

According to Jake Vierzen of R-Value: "I am excited to see ICFs being recognized as an excellent complement to renewable energy technologies, and very pleased to work as part of Team Hybrid on this and other innovative homes. The Team concept incorporates many of the trades, starting with the architect, in order to deliver the absolute highest performance home possible.”

In addition to the highly efficient building, the Onekama Hybrid Home discreetly incorporates both a wind generator and solar hot water. It is expected to earn the highest rating possible under the new LEED for Homes program.

It’s hard to sell much of anything in Michigan these days, let alone $500,000 homes, but green building with insulating concrete forms helped make it possible for one building group to have its best year ever in 2007.

Battle Creek-based Summit Investment Group recently had success with a development it called The Ridge at Cedar Creek, which featured energy-efficient homes in the half-million-dollar range.

Summit mainly uses Polysteel forms. Owner Daniel Kiefer says he prefers Polysteel forms – although he is willing to try others – because they come in bigger components and he likes how they are put together structurally.

While Michigan’s economy has been the worst in the nation for several years, Kiefer said quality building and competitive prices – helped by a recent reduction in the prices of green building supplies – have made it possible for Summit to buck the state’s economic trend.

“We are bucking it because we’re building in a price range that’s not nearly as economically labored as some others,” Kiefer said. “Our houses in this particular development start in a half-million range. We also do a lot of commercial construction, and I find that if we work hard and we’re a quality builder, and we associate with customers that are of the same mind – if you do a good product, there’s always a market for that. Even in the worst of times.”

A Port St. Lucie, Florida home built with insulating concrete forms will be sold for $10 as part of a fundraiser for the YMCA of the Treasure Coast, which serves Martin and St. Lucie counties.

The winner of the raffle, for which tickets are $10, will take possession of the home.

The home, which is being built on Escobar Lane in Port St. Lucie, is being donated by Homecrete Homes, and is valued at $349,800. It will feature thick, insulated concrete walls and a closed-soffit roof system aimed at making the house more energy-efficient, said Bob Cenk, vice president of Stuart-based Homecrete Homes.

Workers have finished putting plywood on the home's roof and plan to put up interior walls this week, Cenk said. The home is expected to be finished March 1. It will have four bedrooms, three bathrooms and a two-car garage.

The drawing will be March 20.

Homeowners in Pasedena, California will soon break ground on the first structural concrete insulated panel (SCIP) home in the nation to seek LEED certification.

At 1,975 square feet, the Pasadena EcoHouse will be built into a rocky hillside in the San Rafael Hills. A wall of sliding windows will offer panoramic views of the San Gabriel Mountains and Old Pasadena and give the cantilevered roof the appearance of floating atop the home.

The project will feature top-of-the-line green building and design products, including a grid-tied solar electric system, a solar hot water system, recycled glass countertops, a ductless high-efficiency heating and cooling system, permeable hardscape, a rain and greywater catchment system and much more.

When completed, the Pasedena EcoHouse aims to be the first single-family, SCIP home in the nation to have earned Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED for Homes.

"The Pasadena EcoHouse represents our dream of creating an environmentally sound home, and within our strict budget," said the homeowners. "We are ready to break ground, and we look forward to sharing our green building adventure with the world."

A spate of fires in Montana several years ago inspired Stewart Hansen to find a way he could build homes with all the character of traditional log homes, and all the fire-resistance of concrete.

The solution was to develop concrete log homes, which his company, Missoula-based Concrete Logs LLC, is now doing successfully into its fourth year.

With 30 concrete log homes on the market, Hansen said the company is now developing between 10 and 15 new concrete log homes each year.

Concrete Logs LLC sells just the exterior wall system, not the entire house, and charges between $70 and $80 per square foot. Finished turnkey costs can run anywhere from $130 to $500 per square foot depending on the customer’s preferences.

Using forms cast from actual wood logs, Concrete Logs LLC has also placed a premium on energy efficiency in its homes. Hansen said a recent test conducted by the National Center of Appropriate Technology indicated Concrete Log homes are seven times as airtight as traditional wood-log buildings and six times as airtight as traditional wood-frame buildings. A recent 10,000-square-foot custom home in Colorado has monthly utility bills of $322 per month, he said.

A new study by the RMC Research & Education Foundation indicates that pervious concrete has performed well in freeze-thaw conditions – a finding that could lead to the material’s expanded use in northern climates.

Pervious concrete reduces drainage issues in parking lots, sidewalks, decks and patios because water is able to seep through it. While the use of pervious concrete has consistently increased in the southern United States, concerns about its ability to perform in cold and freezing conditions have limited its popularity in the North.

The RMC study, conducted over three years through Cleveland State University, is the first broad test of pervious concrete’s performance in colder regions.

“This latest study should provide assurance that it can be successfully placed in cold climates, resulting in safer parking lots and roadways with reduced icy conditions as melting snow runs through the pavement rather than re-freezing on it,” said RMC Research & Education Foundation Chairman Dominique Calabrese.

The full report is available for download from the foundation’s website at www.rmc-foundation.org where information on the foundation’s other pervious concrete, research and educational projects may also be found.

Habitat for Humanity of New York City is using Insulating Concrete Forms in the construction of nine Brooklyn homes.

Habitat is building the homes in the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, using ICFs in an effort to make the homes energy-efficient.

The nine families who will own the homes have contributed 300 hours of "sweat equity" per adult to the construction of the homes on Halsey Street and Marcus Garvey Boulevard.

The homes are expected to be move-in ready by 2008.

The Portland Cement Association has released a new online “briefing kit” designed to help its members communicate effectively with various audiences on the role cement and concrete can play in sustainable development.

The kit contains basic communication materials on cement, concrete and sustainable development that are designed to be shared with audiences such as customers, business leaders, government officials, builders, architects, journalists and students. Included are:

• • Fact sheets and background materials on cement, concrete and sustainable development
• • Case histories of notable projects
• • Support materials such as images, logos and presentations
• • Guidelines and background materials for conducting programs in media relations, community affairs and government relations.

Those wishing to access and use the kit can do so by going to http://www.cement.org/Briefingkit/index.asp.

The Portland Cement Association has outlined industry goals to reduce carbon emissions by adopting a three-part approach by 2020. The information is part of PCA’s 2007 Summary Report on Sustainable Manufacturing.

According to the report, the cement industry aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 10 percent below 1990 baseline levels by a) upgrading plants with state-of-the-art equipment; b) improving product formulation to reduce energy of production and minimize the use of natural resources; and c) conducting research and developing new applications for cement and concrete that improve energy efficiency and durability.

A major element of the effort is the recycling of cement kiln dust, or CKD, which is created during the third stage of manufacturing when clinker is formed. Electrostatic and bag filters capture the dust for recycling. The industry recycles more than 75 percent of cement kiln dust — nearly eight million tons each year — directly back into the cement kiln as raw material. Recycling this byproduct also reduces the need for limestone and other raw materials and helps conserve energy. Other uses for CKD include agricultural soil beneficiation and soil stabilization.