Insulation

Wow! Teddy and Curt Wagner at Foam Insulation Company in Spartanburg have been amazing. They sell a Demilec product and were able to get us SEALection Agribalance foam. It is a vegetable oil based foam - saving petroleum is a great thing! They really know their products and are very helpful. The team of installers are friendly, quick and clean. We decided to do foam for several reasons - one it cuts down on allergies which will be good for everyone in our family - it is amazingly energy efficient - and we liked having a product that cut down on the use of fossil fuels. I don't know all of the science but I know Curt and Teddy do and if you are interested in using foam I suggest you look him up online , give him a call at 864-583-3174, or send him and email.

Check out this video of FIC working their magic with the foam.

pictures

here are three that show the house in almost panoramic. we are super excited about our metal roof from Eagle Metals. It is nice to be able to get really green products from a local company. Jamie and the whole Eagle Metals team has been very helpful and accomodating. People ask all of the time why we went with a metal roof and I think there are three real reasons - not neccisarily in order.

1. it looks cool, and will sound awesome when it rains.
2. it is very green and energy efficient.
3. if we ever want to replace it, it goes in the recycling bin not the landfill.

Enjoy the pics.

exciting pictures coming soon

Well the siding is almost complete and Foothills Exterior has done an amazing job. We are using a cement fiber siding by CertainTeed. This product came from Neely's Building Supply who continues to be a huge help in this process.

We started the roof this past week and we are really excited. We chose a metal roof that from Eagle Metals

The particular roof is a grey but it is a "cool metal roof." Learn more about cool metal roofing here.

Pictures will be coming soon.

Also look for a video of the instillation of the insulation in the coming weeks.

doors and windows on the front

the house is starting to really take shape on the outside. While the plumbing and electrical work are completed on the inside there isn't any great photos. Here are some of the windows are doors on the front.

sneak peek at the inside

Kitchen


Fire Place


Loft

Decking

You can see from the pictures that the house has porches on three sides. We are so excited to have Trex decking on these porches. Trex is a composite lumber and will last for a long time.

Here is what the website says about Trex... "Trex decking and railing products are made from a unique combination of reclaimed wood and plastic, giving you the best qualities of both materials. The plastic shields the wood from moisture and insect damage, so there's no rotting or splintering. The wood protects the plastic from UV damage and gives your deck a solid, natural feel. It looks great year after year. And because there is no need to spend hours staining or repairing, the enjoyment of a Trex deck is truly timeless."

Check out the picture of one of the porches.

Windows

We have been very fortunate to develop a partnership with Arndt & Herman Windows. We have installed Cladview windows in the house and are very excited about their effiecincy and how they look. We also will be installing Art and home doors and look forward to sharing those pictures. One interesting tidbit about the company is that they recycle about 250,000 pounds of glass a year.

long over due post

Many of you have mentioned that I have been slack on the blog and I am sorry. Things have moved along nicely and I will try to give you an easy update on the progress. The following pictures outline the final stages of framing up into the "in the dry" phase.

And the work continues...

Late last week the roof rafters went up. Stay tuned for more information on products like bamboo flooring and cool metal roofing!

Being Green.

Green has a lot of different meanings. Everyone ask, "so what does building green mean?" This is a complicated question. Building Earth Craft means that it will be certified by a set of standards that range from products used, to efficiency of the HVAC system. Regardless, I have found several things that embody, in my opinion, building green. Over the course of this process I will share those.

1. Recycling materials at the work site. - We have chosen not to have a dumpster on the property, and I will take the recycling off each week. This means drink bottles and cans from the framers. It also means boxes for the nails, caulk, plywood, and other products will be recycled as well. (my truck with week ones recycling)





2. Making choices based on waste. - I learned this one last week when Parker called me about our porch. The plan calls for an 8 foot 6 inch porch. Parker shared that this would mean cutting 18 inches off every piece of lumber used to build the porch. We decided on an 8 foot porch, loosing 6 inches of space but creating no waste.

3. The little things like covering topsoil count for Earth Craft. One of the measures is to make sure you secure the topsoil that you have displaced. For us, this meant covering the pile until we were ready for it.



Curt

It's been a long time...

It seems like a long time since the last posts because it is... We took some time to get our game plan together and to find a framer. Being one of the first Earth Craft houses in Spartanburg we were very careful and selective. Regardless, we have a great framer and we are moving right along as you can see by the pictures. We are having a great time learning about products and thinking about other ways to be green.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the pictures.

Curt

Partners, Progress, and of course pictures...

When Molly and I started this journey it was our hope to be able to open the house up to people to show that green building was possible and that you could do it on a budget. And we are excited that Weaver Precast/Superior Wall has come on as a supplier. The walls are made right here in Spartanburg, and is a great start to our house. We are using the walls in the basement that we will leave unfinished for now. I really like the system because of the ease of finishing. You can see in the photos that their are already studs built in, a great asset for the do it yourselfer like me!

Learn more about Superior Walls here.


Curt

other details that might be of interest!

So here are a couple of the other details that might be of interests -

• we are building on a half acre lot on Mustang Drive in Spartanburg
• Parker Champion is our Earth Craft Builder
• our house plan is from South Living with minimal changes.

We have gotten started and have cleared a spot for the house. It pained us to get rid of any trees but we feel we did a good job of saving the most possible. The following post will include some pictures!

Curt and Molly

the lot, the boys, and the bulldozer

Welcome!

So here is the background for this project. My wife and I decided that we wanted to build an earth friendly or green house in Spartanburg, SC. We did a little research and have decided to build an EarthCraft Home. This blog will hopefully outline our progress, our findings both exciting and troubling, and serve as a resource for others.

We hope to use this space to highlight the process from a pictorial standpoint as well as a place to talk about products and company's that we are working with. Check back often and let us know if you have any questions.

Curt and Molly