Archive for June, 2009
June 30th, 2009
Commentators take pot shots at the bike storage and showers credit available in the LEED Green Building Rating System, but I’ve always liked it — it’s hard to ride a bike to work when there’s no bike rack. Certainly bike transportation is good for the environment, and Bike Arc has designed a modular bike park system that I believe will be huge in the next few years. The company incorporated the system into several designs to suit different needs: the Rac Arc is low profile, the Umbrella Arc saves space (see video below), and the Tube Arc and Half Arc versions protect vehicles from the elements.
With these designs, Bike Arc
presents an intelligent system that is elegant, compact, and safely secures bikes. So the truth is, there’s no reason not to incorporate this kind of
modular park system into more projects.
Indeed, Bike Arcs are popping up all over the place. 116 University Avenue in Palo Alto has 2 Half Arcs and 2 Rac Arcs;
Redwood City Hall has 8 Rac Arcs; and Palo Alto City will purchase 8
Half Arcs. And the company is also working on design improvements. For example, in the future, Bike Arc hopes to have a version that integrates photovoltaics. We’ll keep our eyes out for solar Bike Arcs, but in the mean time, if you see one, use it.
Renderings: Joseph Bellomo Architects; real photos: Stirling Elmendorf.
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June 30th, 2009
Long Horned Beetle Researcher at Los Amigos Research Station, Peru. Image via: Rob Holmes, Green Living Project.
This year, you’ve decided you want to do more on your vacation than lounge around like a beached whale, eh? Well why not volunteer, but not just volunteer anywhere, why not check out the Los Amigos Biological Research Station which allows guests to work alongside and with researchers in the Peruvian Amazon. Pretty cool, right? …
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June 29th, 2009
Using seven recycled shipping containers, architect Bernard Morin and wife Joyce Labelle built this contemporary residence in St. Adele, Quebec. The home is the first of many to come for their new company, Maison Idekit, which will help homeowners turn containers into architecturally unique, and inexpensive, homes. The company has two more residential projects set to break ground in the next couple months using a total of twelve container modules.
IDEKIT’s first home is 3,000 square feet with four-bedrooms. It cost about $175,000 to build
and turns container design on its head. Rather than feature the
exposed containers on the exterior, the containers are exposed on the inside — you can even see serial numbers, dents, and corrugated detail in several places throughout the home. On the outside, the home has five inches of insulation that is topped by brown wood siding. You can see more in these videos:
[+] Container creativity by CTV.
[+] Building cheaper, green homes by CTV.
Photo credits: Maison IDEKIT.
June 29th, 2009
After nine bids on eBay, some lucky duck ended up with a reclaimed prefab for $75,100. The prefab was built by Reclaimed Space for Dwell on Design and the proceeds went to both Habitat for Humanity of Greater Los Angeles and Hollywood for Habitat for Humanity. Ecofabulous created the interior using a number of stylish, green products. According to the eBay listing, this 400 square foot home included the following:
- 100-year-old reclaimed oak and pine finishes;
- Full bathroom, including a Caroma Profile Smart toilet with an integrated sink, reusing the sink waste water for flushing;
- Queen Murphy bed;
- Outdoor shower;
- 85% recycled newspaper insulation;
- Contemporary polished chrome fixtures;
- Vintage barnwood accents;
- Low-e transom windows;
- Built-in porch area; and
- Hinged roof overhangs.
Congrats to the purchaser! Wonder where it will end up?
Photo credits: Ecofabulous.
June 29th, 2009
photo: Brian Snelson via flick
Hopefully you already are aware of the plight of orangutans in Borneo and Sumatra as logging and palm oil plantations continue to rapidly destroy their habitat. The rate of deforestation and habitat loss is so great that some scientists are predicting that the orangutan will be the first great ape to go extinct in modern ti…
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June 29th, 2009
Wikipedia
Swifts, described in the Times as “those soaring harbingers of summer”, have declined in population by 47% in the last twenty years in the UK, and some suspect it might be because of people fixing their houses….
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June 29th, 2009
Photo credit: AP/Colorado Division of Wildlife
Spring brought a surprise delivery from the stork: A litter of 10 lynx kittens—the first newborns documented in Colorado since 2006, gladdening the hearts of biologists leading the charge to restore the mountain feline, as well as drawing waves of squeals from computer monitors everywhere. (Warning: clicking on the below link may cause your screen to explode from the intolerable cuteness.)…
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June 29th, 2009
Images by Chris Routledge via Shedworking
Seaside towns in the UK have had a rough go of it in the last few years; the weather can often be described as “character building”, while Spain and other places with better weather and warmer sand became so cheap and accessible by plane. But they are making a comeback, as are the beach huts that used to be so common.
Alex at Shedworking points us to these lovely new ones in Blyth, Northumberland….
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June 29th, 2009
Here are today’s picks for what’s wow in the world of green. Enjoy!
Bringing green home: One S.F. business
Design Showhome structure has green theme
Does Green Building Have to Break the Bank?
New Washing Machine Uses Plastic Instead of Water
June 29th, 2009
The Dwell on Design show is exceeding our expectations. Eye candy everywhere! We love the Reclaimed Space house and are honored to have created the beautiful interior that echos the story of the house – reclaimed, repurposed, restyled.
The house is made from reclaimed materials, including 100 year-old wood from delapadated barns that have seen a glorious rebirth. Most of the furniture in the house are pieces that we sourced from eBay and had Ekla Home reupholster with natural tapped latex, covered in either recycled PET from Valley Forge, Mod Green Pod’s organic cotton or Q Collection’s organic wool fabric. The house has been stocked fill on O Organics food that’s been keeping the team healthily well fed! Ok, way too many details to share, but stay tuned; many photos and stories to come!
