As an owner/builder, I’m always on the lookout for new products that make a difference in how we build or use materials. Walking the tradeshow floor at Globe 2010, I found four products that caught my eye as we look toward the future of the built environment.

Solar Shingle installation. Photo with permission of Dow.

USA – Dow Chemical Company- The Dow™ POWERHOUSE™ Solar Shingle is the company’s latest innovation showcased at GLOBE 2010. A recent recipient of GLOBE 2010’s Foundation award for “Environmental Excellence in Emerging Technology,” their solar shingles not only protect a roof from the elements, but serve up a photovoltaic charge at the same time. The unique product design has similar weight, reveal and installation practices as an asphalt shingle while also generating electricity. DOW’s Solar Solutions (DSS) technology uses a cost-effective and durable PV material called CIGS (Copper Indium Gallium diSelenide). The electrical circuitry is integrated into every shingle and is connected by wireless plug-style connectors. Dow also recently announced in February, its plans to build the first full-scale production facility for its solar shingle facility in Midland, Michigan, bringing with it more than 1,200 jobs to the marketplace. Could it be affordable, renewable energy roofing solutions are on the horizon?

A sample piece of a MagWall panel shows foam on the inside and a magnesium oxide base sheathing. Photo by Robert J. Pennington

Canada – MagWall Pacific Inc. Tucked into a small booth on the tradeshow floor is a new SIPS (Structural Insulated Panel System) building product that has some very cool new features. SIPS built homes are generally much more efficient than stick-built homes. Think of SIPS like an extremely efficient Oreo cookie. A hard crust on the outside, (generally OSB plywood) with a fluffy foam filling in the middle. On the MagWall systems, the OSB is replaced with sheathing boards that have a magnesium oxide base making it fire and insect resistant and impervious to mold, because there is no wood product in it. Additionally the ability to erect structures in wet or cold conditions is not a problem, so costly delays in schedules are minimized. As a bonus, it can also eliminate the use of costly additional products used in construction. For example, interior and exterior walls can be finished without additional sheathing, and the company claims vapor barriers are not necessary. Currently the company’s focus is on providing healthy, affordable, sustainable and energy efficient buildings, that require less dependence on highly skilled labor. The company is currently in talks with multiple countries, and even UN and Disaster relief efforts. After just completing the envelope of my own SIPS house, it wasn’t hard to see how these MagWalls would have made a huge difference in shaping the course of our project. www.mag-wall.com

MicroHeat’s 9kW electrical instantaneous hot water system. Photo by Robert J. Pennington

Australia – MicroHeat® Technologies PTY LTD. Tankless hot water heaters are nothing new to the market. But behind this little white box is a whole house hot water heater with a 98% efficiency rating saving both water and greenhouse gas emissions. Normal tankless hot water heaters rely on the flow of water to run through heated coils to deliver hot water to a faucet or shower system. This can mean running and wasting water longer than necessary until it is at the right temperature to use. MicroHeat’s electrical instantaneous hot water system eliminates that heating coil element altogether and instead uses water as the conductor. The water is energized (or heated) via inert electrodes in the water stream. The result is instant hot water, but water is not the only resource being saved. Instead of a constant flow of electricity running to heat big tanks of water, this smart system turns on when you need it and can be placed in convenient locations closer to the source of use. The system on display was a 9kW single-phase unit. The best part is, it senses when it needs to add more juice to the system and delivers absolute temperature control. You can increase the flow but retain the temperature. Still in the research and development phase, MicroHeat has already received grants from the Australian Government and support from the Victorian Centre for Advanced Materials Manufacturing. But this little heater is keeping cool about its technology. Currently no website or marketing efforts are available to the public. We’ll just have to wait.

Sherpa aluminum timber connectors. Photo by Jen Pennington

Austria- Sherpa®- Good things come in small packages, and this little mounting and assembly hardware introduces a new technique for traditional timber construction. Available in a variety of shapes and sizes, the product provides a simple, safe and reliable connector between load bearing trusses, joints or any other timber connection. Two aluminum-molded plates contain a male and female piece that slips into each other to form a very strong connection. A concealed fastener and a good alternative to Simpson® Strong ties and a semi-concealed fastener allows the beauty of the hardware to become a part of the design. What makes the product sustainable is in the fact that a structure can be just as easily disassembled without wasting valuable wood resources. Beams are lifted and joints can be non-destructively disconnected.

Find information in English regarding this product here.

Find more images from Globe 2010 at www.RhizomeImages.com

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 installations, and light construction on other people’s homes. We’ve both read a bunch of owner/builder books, articles, and said to ourselves, “pishaw…we can do this.”

The first new shed built

But just like any good personal relationship, you need to have a relationship with your projects. Courting smaller projects with the kind of puppy love we all have at the beginning of a project is important. It’s only after that, that we can work up towards more meaningful projects where becoming jaded and exhausted is par for the course.

Bob and I bought five acres on Whidbey Island just after we were married in 2003. We decided it would be best to test the strength of the marriage right off the bat by doing a few small projects together. The first project was a small cedar shed enough to keep our tools dry. We camped in our 82 Volvo station wagon on the weekends during this time. With Bob at 6’5” and me at 5’10” there ain’t a lot of room to get comfortable. But we were newlyweds and it was fun. The shed turned out really cute and as it was the first building it was our crowning accomplishment together. The marriage was still intact, so we were game for another project.

Lots of digging and leveling

Next project, a small 110 sq. ft kit sleeping cabin. It actually wasn’t building the cabin that almost killed us. It was the leveling, squaring the foundation piers, building the floor, fighting mosquitos and shoveling. Lots of shoveling. (Shovels have since become our icon, with our mantra being, “keep shoveling honey.”) It took us 4 weekends to do by hand. We would come home exhausted on Sunday nights, get out of the car, and feel like we had been through some forestry version of Boot Camp. Everything hurt, and there was no way either one of us would cook. It was this routine that earned us voice recognition with Pagliacci Pizza operators and many unnecessary pounds.

Finally after hauling in five kit loads with the Volvo, we laid out all the pieces, a convoluted puzzle with the craziest of instructions which I read out loud to Bob. Luckily the cabin itself went up in one weekend. After we had finished putting on the last metal roof piece, we walked inside and the rain just came down in buckets sounding like a 14-yr kid shooting BBs straight down on us. It took us a while to stop ducking. Nothing leaked! The feeling of accomplishment was overwhelming. It is a beautiful place and we built it together. After that we were hooked. Our marriage had again triumphed even through me barking instructions and Bob actually having to listen them.

Later that fall we knocked out a 3rd storage shed in two weekends and realized we were actually getting good at this. We wondered how hard could a house be…

Large scale puzzle kit

A popsicle stick cabin

Completed cabin