Part of the Green Green Owner/Builder series
by Jen Pennington
Since I’ve been writing about efficient alternative vehicles and recently with coverage of the November SEMA 2009 show, it’s probably only fair that I share some of our own auto choices. While purchasing a hybrid would surely be nice, it was not practical for us at the [...]

Part of the Green Green Owner/Builder series
by Jen Pennington
When you first start to think about building a house, you think in large sweeps. How you move about a space, what it should be made of and how it should breathe. A concrete floor, radiant heating system, energy efficient windows, doors and appliances, good room flow, [...]

Now that my husband Bob and I have built two small sheds and a 110 sq. ft cabin, it was time to take on the Big House. A term generally reserved for a jailhouse, the locked in feeling to this project both financially and physically has us doing two to five with some time off for good behavior.

A home performance contractor is the GP for your home. “Home Performance” is the term used to describe how well a house functions in terms of thermal comfort, indoor air quality, energy efficiency, and durability. Because all of these elements interact, the science-based, whole-house approach taken by home performance contractors is the best way to solve problems with a house.

by Jen Pennington
As someone in the early stages of building my own home, (at this point, a bare earth foundation pad), when I actually allow myself the luxury of dreaming about kitchen finishes, I can’t help but look at the various treatments with a certain unrestrained design lust. My mind wanders to the rich variety [...]

When the road to building a “green” house is paved with a little mud.
by Jen Pennington
When we purchased our property, I always knew I wanted to get it certified as a stewardship forest. I loved seeing those cool little green and brown signs along someone’s private drive. How do you get one of those things? [...]

When the road to building a “green” house is paved with a little mud.
by Jen Pennington
The sustainable marriage test.
Okay so my husband and I know enough about construction projects to make ourselves very dangerous. Though we’ve never actually built a house before, Bob is extremely mechanically inclined and I’ve done my fair share of art [...]