Built Green Custom Homes Naramata Penticton Summerland Peachland

Custom Homes Kelwona

2010-02-15T15:25:00.001-08:00

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250-809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Okanagan Custom Homes Kelowna BC

2009-12-06T09:27:00.000-08:00

Our primary focus at Okanagan Custom Homes is to ensure that each and every customer has the most pleasant home building experience possible.

At Okanagan Custom Homes we are committed to working with you every step of the way to ensure that we build you the custom home of your dreams.

We specialize in Custom Homes, Built GreenTM, Custom Finishing’s, Design and Renovations.

Personal attention to detail is the trademark of this company. The highest standards are achieved by the team members and pride is taken to present the client with outstanding results.

As a General Contractor, and a Licensed Residential Green Builder it’s our belief that every client has a unique set of goals and expectations for their project. We provide the necessary attention, in order to achieve those goals.

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250-809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Helpful hints for insulation in Kelowna

2009-09-10T13:56:00.000-07:00

INSULATION

Insulation is the biggest way to reduce the energy use and environmental impact of your home. As an added bonus, improving the insulation of your home will lower the energy bills! So stop throwing your money away, and follow these tips for green insulation.

Quick tips to insulate your home:

Wrap your boiler

Wrap your water boiler in an insulating blanket. The better the insulating material, the more energy you’ll save. Cork and wool are good natural materials that can be used as insulators.

Seal leaks

The tighter the seals in your home, the less energy you’ll need to keep it warm. Identify and seal air links around chimneys, window frames, and openings for plumbing and electrics.

Close the curtains

Keep the curtains closed at night and make sure you don't just heat the space between the curtains and the window. You can install a radiator shelf to deflect heat past the curtains into the room. Bigger projects to insulate your home

Attic Insulation

Attics should have approximately 150mm of insulation, but older homes usually don’t. For example, in the home we just purchased built in 1955, we found only 25mm of insulation, which means heat (and money) have been pouring out of our roof for decades! In many houses over 15 years old, you will find that the depth of existing insulation is quite small as old insulation settles over time and becomes much less effective. If your home is older, adding additional insulation is one of the best Green projects you can do! Insulating your attic is a relatively easy project, especially if you use a natural insulation product that doesn’t require as much protective clothing.

Wall Insulation

The best time to add insulation to walls is when you’re making other renovations.

for the full article click here

Terry Laurin
http://www.tlces.com/
250-215-8020
“Helping you become Energy Efficient”

For a review of your green custom home build call:

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250- 809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Ways to heat your water

2009-09-10T13:50:00.000-07:00

Ways to heat your water by John Thomson

Water heating options

Where you live, as well as the life style you lead, the number of people in your household, and where you'll put the water heating system, you'll need to factor these realities in if you're going to purchase a new hot water system, or getting a back up system.

Having this basic information at hand, will ensure you'll get hot water every day of the year, when you want and however much you need - at the best cost possible. This will also help you decide, if you should stick to the traditional water heating system you've used or if you'll step out of the box and try an alternate water heating system.

Here's a short list of the different water heating systems, available today

Electric hot water tank

This system uses heating elements that are located at the topmost and bottom parts of your tank. Because they don't need vents, you can install or put them wherever you feel is the best location. For example in Canada many R-2000 energy saving homes have this water heating system. Induced draft gas hot water tanks

This heating system has a fan that's found at the top of the tank itself. What the fan does is to induce movement of the combustion gases to go through a sealed plastic pipe and then out the sidewall of the house. You'll find that a lot of these units use combustion and dilution air found inside the house. However, due to the combustion gas exhaust fan pressure; you won't have to worry about the backdrafting combustion gas spillage. You'll need to buy a condensing furnace that works well with this kind of heating system. Natural draft gas hot water tanks

These are inexpensive units, which come with a naturally aspirating burner and draft hood, which is connected to a vertical chimney vent. However, this particular equipment more prone is more subject to combustion gas spillage compared to the other models mentioned, here, so you'll need to make sure you have a furnace that works well with this equipment. Another factor you'll need to think about is, if you live in an highly energy efficient home. These homes experience a higher degree of air tightness, so it's not advisable to install a unit of this kind.

Direct vent gas hot water tanks

As stated a direct vent or sealed combustion water carries combustion air in from the outside, while venting the combustion gases out through a single concentric pipe. As there is no interconnection between the burner and house air, they are spillage resistant and work very well in the more closely sealed Homes.

Tankless water heater

You could purchase an instantaneous water heater or tankless water heater, which as its name indicates provides hot water, without the aid of storage tank. You can choose either a gas or electricity driven unit. In tankless water heaters, temperate water runs through a pipe into the unit, and then either a gas burner or an electric element heats the water.

Solar Units

Or you could try a solar powered heating water system. Solar heaters derive their power from the sun's energy, and channel the heat to water.

You can purchase a reliable solar heater and use this as your main source for heating water. Or you can decide to use this unit as the back up system. If so, then select a solar heater, which allows you to be the back up for either electric or gas water heater.

Take your time to do research on this system - find out the differences between the different water heating systems - so you can save on money, your time and resource. Not only that but the right water heater for your home will mean a lot of difference on whether you'll have hot water when you need it, in the amount, you want to use the water heater to produce.

About the Author
John Thomson is webmaster at http://www.heaters-heating.com where heating related information is a click away. Easily find patio heater and tankless water heater resources at http://www.heaters-heating.com/

For a review of your ustom home build call:

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250- 809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Custom Finishing’s Kelowna

2009-08-05T17:36:00.000-07:00

Custom Finishing’s – At Okanagan Custom Homes we can be hired to put the final high quality finishing’s for your custom homes: We specialize in the following areas of service:

Window liners and Trim
Interior and exterior custom door installations
Crown moulding
Custom Stair cases and railings and ....
so much more..... a picture is worth a thousand words!!!

Book your appointment today: Call Joe Wackerbauer@ 250-809-9519

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250-809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Pentiction / Naramata Custom Finishings

2009-07-18T15:32:00.000-07:00

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250-809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Introduction to Structural Insulated Panels and Green Homes

2009-07-10T13:41:00.000-07:00

Introduction to Structural Insulated Panels and Green Homes by Richard Bose

Structural Insulated Panel or SIP is the new buzz-word in building construction industry as 21st century "green" building material. SIPs can be used in the construction of exterior walls, floors and roofs of residential and commercial buildings offering advantages of low cost and energy conservation over traditional wooden frame construction. SIP addresses two major concerns while building "green" home - energy efficiency and diminishing natural resources.

The general characteristics of all SIPs are two exterior skins sandwiching a rigid foam plastic core made up of low cost expanded polystyrene material. The skins most generally used are oriented strand boards (OSB), plywood or gypsum board. The resulting sandwich panel is exceptionally solid, cost effective and energy conserving which can be used as load bearing walls, partitions and roof insulation.

When used as a load-bearing wall or roof insulation, the two skins act as lean columns constantly supported by the rigid core to resist buckling and compression. When bending is applied to the panel due to a live or a wind load, the skins take most of the compressive and tensile forces and the core offers resistance to shear. Skins and rigid core acts internally to provide exceptional strength to the structure.

The most important characteristic of Structural Insulated Panel which has led to rapid growth in its demand is excellent energy efficiency and improved thermal performance. Today, one of the major challenges for any home owner is to control increasing energy costs. SIPs are practically airtight panels due to the nature of material used and fabrication process. This results in less cooling during winters and less hitting in summer! Hence buildings made with SIP panels require less expensive cooling and heating systems than a normal building saving more energy and costs. A building constructed with SIPs takes less time than the one with wooden frame. This saves you labor and wastage at the job-site. Overall building a home with SIPs can save you energy, costs, time and labor too!

Design of Structural Insulated Panel requires good amount of structural drafting & design services.

To know how we can help you design SIPs for your home email us at info@outsourcestructuraldrafting.com
or visit http://www.outsourcestructuraldrafting.com/

About the Author

Richard Bose is certified structural engineer at OSD - a leading Structural Drafting firm based in India providing quality Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) design services to its offshore clients based in US, UK, Canada and Australia. For further details email us at info@outsourcestructuraldrafting.com

For a review of your green custom home build call:

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250- 809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Greywater is Greenwater

2009-06-05T06:34:00.001-07:00

This is a great article I found on the Flywheel Building Solutions site by Ken Kunka,

Enjoy,

Joe Wackerbauer

Grey water, also spelled graywater, is wastewater generated from processes such as showering, bathing and laundry. Greywater gets its name from its cloudy appearance and from its status as being neither fresh (white water from groundwater or potable water), nor heavily polluted (blackwater). Greywater can be used for internal use for toilets and or for irrigation use. There are also programs for rainwater recycling.

As Greywater recycling is soon becoming a necessity and a mandatory requirement in many countries (see links below). Canada has been slow in developing and adopting a grey water standard. With the changes to the 2006 BC Building Code, local jurisdictions can make rulings to allow for grey water systems as an alternative solution. Kelowna is one municipality who has allowed the use of Brac Systems - Grey Water Recycling

When recently speaking with local BRAC representative Blair Gautschi, he stated that more people are becoming aware of the growing water problems facing us in the Okanagan (The Okanagan could double in population by the year 2020). However there has been much resistance in establishing a valley wide grey water program because of a lack of urgency due to our seemingly abundant fresh water supply, a resistance to change and the risk of liability if something goes wrong. The Canadian government has recently prepared a draft grey water recycling standard and hopefully more jurisdictions will take the initiative to introduce recycling programs in their areas.

For more information on BRAC or Grey Water recycling contact:

Blair Gautschi, Master Plumber
Excel Ventures, BRAC Systems Inc.
250 212 9750
excel@bracsystems.com
http://www.bracsystemsbc.com/

Suggested Links to review

Australia - http://www.greywaterreuse.com.au

Video on Middle East water crisis - http://www.rana.lilypadresources.com/greywater/upehi.html

Grey water info - http://www.oasisdesign.net/greywater/index.htm

Grey water codes - http://www.resourcecenter.pnl.gov/cocoon/morf/ResourceCenter/article/1638

Joe Wackerbauer - Benifits of Built Green™ homes

2009-05-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

I ran across this great article on green built custom homes and the benefits of building green and I have posted for your convenience.

Joe Wackerbauer

Built Green™ is moving the home building industry forward in producing quality homes and enhancing healthy living. These benefits extend beyond the walls of your new home. Built Green™ is helping to ensure that these benefits are available to all homebuyers who purchase a home that meets Built Green™ standards. By choosing energy efficient options you'll be making a choice to help protect our environment for the future as well as make a difference to your bank account today.

Energy Efficiency. As energy costs take a noticeable chunk out of homeowner budgets, using energy wisely is being widely promoted. We also need to be aware of the source of our electricity. (For example, in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia, non-renewable resources such as coal is predominately used in the generation of electricity.) Next to a mortgage, energy costs are the most significant household expenditure. An energy efficient home offers lower energy costs.

Comfort. A less drafty home with improved ventilation increases the homeowners control of humidity and temperature. Appropriate design and orientation can take advantage of the sun's warmth in the winter and reduce the sun’s impact in the summer.

Water Efficiency. Given past drought conditions experienced almost everywhere in Canada, water is becoming a precious resource. Installing water efficient appliances such as low-flow fixtures or dual-flush toilets, Energy Star washing machines and dishwashers along with water aerators on the faucets and showers can significantly reduce the amount of water a household consumes. Planting a water-wise landscape also reduces the water demand and requires less maintenance while still adding beauty to your home.

Healthier Indoor Air. Tightening a home to make it more energy efficient without adequately addressing the ventilation can create health problems. Built Green™ encourages well-sealed duct systems, combustion appliances that are sealed and/or direct vented, controlled fresh air and uses interior building materials that reduce indoor air pollution.

Durability and Less Maintenance. Built Green™ encourages the use of building materials that are more durable both inside and outside the home. This reduces maintenance and replacement costs.

Global Benefits. Building a Built Green™ home results in some direct benefits to the owners but there are also benefits to the community and the environment in general. For example, the use of local materials is encouraged, thereby reducing transportation costs and stimulating the local economy. Also, focusing on choosing materials and products made from recycled content reduces the need and energy to extract new materials. They are resource efficient and produce less waste than typical products and usually have a long life-cycle, requiring less maintenance.

Built Green™ homes just make sense. For the building industry to sustain itself, increasingly more efficient and creative ways to build homes without sacrificing the environment and quality of life must be achieved.

To read full articlew click here

For a review of your green custom home build call:

Joe Wackerbauer

President

Okanagan Custom Homes

250- 809-9519

http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Joe Wackerbauer - Green Custom Home Development

2008-11-30T20:05:00.000-08:00

Going green is not only a great choice for the Earth it's a big seller for Kelowna and Okanagan custom built homes. Eco-friendly options abound for custom home builders: Save water in the kitchen, reduce electricity use in the office and cut back on volatile organic compounds in building materials.

Custom home developers employ a multitude of techniques to decrease a home's carbon footprint. Some of the most common steps are installing solar panels and energy-efficient appliances and using low-flow toilets. But, there is much more available to developers of custom homes, such as using recycled building materials and installing radiant floors.

1. Educate yourself on the requirements to become a green custom home builder and to understand the constantly evolving greener home options.

2. Find local providers of eco-friendly materials. In custom home development, a contractor is more likely to keep customers happy by providing many options.

3. Custom home community developers benefit from building green homes because the entire neighbourhood boasts a low carbon footprint.

For a review of your green custom home build call:

Joe Wackerbauer
President
Okanagan Custom Homes
250- 809-9519
http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/

Okanagan custom built homes

Green Built Custom Homes

Joe Wackerbauer - Green building in a nutshell!!

2008-10-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

So what exactly is green building or sustainable architecture? What are the main principles behind this concept? Below is an overview of the principles underlying this growing trend. Green building first and foremost as a method of designing buildings in such a way that resources are used responsibly, focusing on the protection of the environment and occupants’ health, while ensuring the building’s long-term profitability. In other words, green architecture relies on structures whose design, construction and use have been thought out with a view to using energy, water and material resources efficiently. In addition, in green building, prime importance is given to the health of its occupants and, in the case of work environments, improvement of personal productivity.

Benefits across the board

Home Builders recognize that building according to eco-friendly criteria may appear expensive at the outset. This is because start-out costs in the green building approach are generally determined from cost analyses of a project’s entire life cycle. However, once construction is completed, the lower daily operating costs, being actually much lower than those of "traditional" constructions, compensate largely for the initial cost. For homebuilders on a limited budget, nothing prevents the introduction of just a few eco-friendly elements which can be done without significantly raising the costs. Everyone benefits in the end: operating costs are lower, the house and its occupants are healthier, and of course the planet benefits too.

The characteristics of green architecture

Constructions are said to be "green" or "eco-friendly" when they are built according to certain principles relating to choice of site, building materials and architecture.

Material efficiency

Qualities to look for when choosing materials for green architecture have to do with the efficiency of the material itself, maintaining good interior air quality, ensuring energy efficiency, saving and re-using water, and overall affordability. Compliance with these criteria in a green building means working with materials that are beneficial to the owner, to the environment and to the building’s occupants, due to:

Lower maintenance costs throughout the building’s lifetime
Optimization and conservation of energy
Better health for occupants and higher productivity levels
Low-cost, efficient configuration of space
Flexible design

With a little planning, you can do a lot for the environment and reduce your building costs at the same time. Rooms designed on multiples of 4 feet, for example, conform to standard-sized wallboard and plywood sheets and therefore optimize the quantities of materials used. Oriented strand board, made from engineered wood sheets and which does not require the cutting of mature trees for its manufacture, is a durable, resource-efficient material used in the roof and wall construction of most new homes.

Materials should be chosen for their ability to provide a comfortable environment inside the home, whatever the outside temperature. The secret lies in installing windows and doors made from intelligent, high-efficiency glass, capable of filtering the sun’s rays to maintain a comfortable temperature indoors. Durable roof coverings, such as steel or fibre cement, reduce the frequency of roof replacement. There are now also solar roofing products that integrate materials such as asphalt shingles, slate or concrete tiles.

You can also reuse and recycle materials salvaged from building demolitions or from the current job site. There are various materials made from recycled products intended for the structural elements of a home, as well as materials designed for the decorative aspects too. For example, some contemporary floor coverings made of rubber or polymer mimic slate admirably – and are also lighter in weight and easier to clean. Other materials manufactured for countertops, walls and floors are composed of 75% recycled glass and 25% concrete.

Wood is also often used in green architecture; it is an essential material in construction and renovation in general and is appreciated for its warmth and decorative charm. There are a number of new wood products on the market, and innovations are constantly being developed in response to the need to protect the earth’s forests. Lumber from endangered forests is increasingly being replaced by that of sustainably managed forests. In the same way, fast-growing species are being increasingly used; bamboo, for one, is enjoying a surge in popularity due to its aesthetic appeal and durability. Locally produced materials are also an excellent choice.

Recycled wood and plastic composites offer excellent resistance, are easy to clean and contain no harmful or toxic elements. Alternative flooring solutions include laminate, natural-fibre carpet or linoleum.

Vinyl is an excellent choice for exterior siding because it is low-cost and requires little maintenance. Fibre-cement siding is water-resistant and carries a 50-year warranty.

Walls, floors and ceilings are built with new types of insulated panels made of rigid Styrofoam insulation sandwiched between wood boards. These new products are recent arrivals on the building market but have already proven their worth as energy efficient products.

Joe Wackerbauer - Okanagan Custom Homes

“We build the Custom Home of your Dreams”

http://www.okanagancustomhomes.com/