Building An Ecologically Sensible Home

Peak Moment 103: Wanting to live a "reasonable, comfortable life" in tune with nature, Ann and Gord Baird are building a near "net zero energy" home on Vancouver Island. Their plans: the first load bearing, seismically engineered, two story, insulated, cob residence in North America. Solar PV panels for electricity with grid tie. (Wind power will come later.) Passive solar design with solar thermal for hydronic heating and domestic hot water. Composting toilets to enrich the earth for gardens along with grey water recovery for orchard irrigation. Rainwater catchment from a living roof tops off this sustainable, affordable, natural home for their three-generation family of six. Follow their progress at www.eco-sense.ca.

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Category:

Howto & Style

Tags:

• sustainability
• simple
• living
• humanure
• off
• grid
• cob
• natural
• building

[80spopQueen]

this is not new, original or unusual, in africa they been doing from the biginning of time, in south america thousands of years, in asia they've been doing it for thousands of years even in america before whites. the only people new to this is whites who've burn up the amazon with their costly stupid unflexible,flamible, version of housing

[peakmoment]

@80spopQueen, you're right -- there's so much we could/should learn from indigenous peoples, who built sustainable shelters befitting their climate, and using local materials. But modern buildings also have electricity, running water, space heating -- that invite the same kind of mindset as the original cultures. Little waste, smaller spaces, local resources.

[secrets0stolen]

Any word on an update?

[peakmoment]

@secrets0stolen, good news! We videotaped an update with the Bairds this fall (2010). Look forward to a forthcoming show including a mini-tour of their completed house -- what has been called "The Greenest Modern Home in the World."

Since it is one of 40+ programs we've videotaped in the Pacific Northwest since August, we're not sure when it'll be produced. You might want to subscribe to peakmoment channel to be notified when it's there! Thanks for asking.

[ab7470]

An AC motor has an efficience of around 85%, you can not doble that.

[peakmoment]

@ab7470, DC motors are more efficient than AC motors ... not quite double the efficiency.

[FaeryComeDraw]

I soooo loved this video. I want a life like that!

[bagOprions]

"global warming is a farce" says the climatologist. Oh, I forget, it's all a giant conspiracy of the scientists to lie to the public. I just never figured out why people thought the SCIENTISTS were the liars, and not the ENERGY COMPANIES that want to kill the idea of global warming. Scientists have such a great reason to lie about this. Or is it the energy companies that have a motivation to lie? As do the politicians they have in their pockets.

[80spopQueen]

@JuniorsMex Tell that to my history book. Romans were the first to whip out mass biodeversity through destroying trees, middle ages people built a lot of things out of wood

[JuniorsMex]

@80spopQueen Not true. The English have been building Cob homes centuries before the Spanish discovered America.

[80spopQueen]

@fl260 Color of skin? What the...

Listen person, Arabs built cities out of marble, South americans (ancient) build cities out of stone, Egyptians (anceint) built cities out of clay, India built cities out of marble, Eroupians built cities out of wood it's not racism (if that's what your thinking) it's the truth. The nothern eroupians were first to deforest their own landscape for building houses.

[fl260]

@80spopQueen Since good white people exists, you should point a way of thinking rather than the color of a skin. It's about being better, not the contrary.

[80spopQueen]

@peakmoment i'm glade you agree.. i think. NExt step is telling Obama about this so he can stop the lumber companies from destroying our biodiversity and our oxogen. Dirt is such a inexpensive raw material that is fexible, insulated better and isn't flamible. Maybe the lumber companies should just make companies by building cob bricks.

[SidneyBou]

Watch out those chickens may become pet chickens. It is not as easy, as it seems to kill and process and eat a creature you rased.

[sofatho]

if the fuel it food then the biproduct is....community? Great video. Excuse me, I gotta go take a community