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12455 Via Cabezon San Diego, CA 92129 CA Lic # 878838 |
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Roofs continued There is also insulation that can be applied to the top of your roof. Make sure you hire quality workman that can do the best job so that you roof will last a long time. Please also ask your contractor how he will dispose of your roof, asphalt and many other roofing materials are recyclable.
Trash That brings me to trash. Contractors should either separate materials at the site or take the material to disposal sites that separate and recycle. Here is a link to several other things that contractors should do and are required by law to do. http://www.asu.edu/fm/documents/Construction_Site_Procedures_for_Contractors.pdf. Unfortunately Miramar (San Diego`s main land fill) is closing in 2012 and refuse will have to be trucked to riverside. This will add to the impact of trash on our lives as it will significantly raise the cost of disposal and burn CO2, use tires, impact traffic and degrade roads, there is the oil dripped by the trucks and congoolies that will drip from the trash
The Envelope The envelope includes the roof but I already did that. Roofs were my first trade so I started there. The remainder of the envelope is the seal below the concrete and the walls and openings, including ventilation. The envelope is very important as it stops moisture from coming in and destroying wood or the steel frame. It also slso reduces the amount of air transferred between the outdoor and indoor environments. * The foundation should have a vapor barrier below it. Moisture transmission can destroy floors and other items on them, pipes should not be placed under slabs as this has caused way too much heartache and waste of materials * All reinforcement should be installed and if extra can be afforded it should be considered. * A synthetic vapor barrio should be used as they are better for the building and the environment. They are better on the environment because the entire building can be weatherized to stop wind and moisture from entering the building. They also cut down on energy cost, Yes it contains petrol but building paper does also. It is also 10 time stronger by weight.
Design This is probably the biggest one. Buildings should be designed to take advantage of the environment around them. They should also be designed with a life expectance of at least 100 years. A lot can be done to make materials last longer and we also need to ask our self's do we want materials that can be change out easily so we can remodel a building at a lesser cost and impact on the environment
Fenestrations (windows and doors) If you live in a older building you should change out you windows and exterior doors. As much as 75% of your heat and cooling goes out through them. New windows also need less cleaning (film burns off the dust) and less noise (better for your health). The government also gives you a rebate (some restrictions apply).
Landscape and agriculture I would like to start with sad fact that most of our crops are grown with genetically modified seeds that are resistant to round up so farmers can spray roundup on their farms in an ever increasing war to out smart weeds that develop immunity to the round up so we make more kinds of round up and more modified seeds. Then that round up runs in to or streams and rivers. That being said we can at least cut down on the use of pesticides in or home. The safest compound that I have found is Diatomaceous earth. This can be placed under cabinets, in wall cavities and behind base boards to slow entry of pests. I have to say slow because of legalities. It works by scratching the wax and shell of the insect and then they dehydrate and die. It can also be used out side but does not work when wet. Call for more info. DO NOT USE THIS PRODUCT WITH OUT A RESPORATOR. It is safe once it has settled.
We live in a desert not London. We need to rethink or use of lawns or at least use modern subterranean irrigation. There are several ways to reduce water consumption. Plants, synthetic lawns, pave the area (this does have negative side effects) and a host of other water reduction techniques can be employed. As much as 58% of our water is used for landscaping while farmers have to not plant crops.
Solar Solar is a great choice. Thermal is the most cost effective but Photovoltaic is leveling off now and is a good. It is still more cost effective to weatherize your home and then put on photovoltaic after you have reduced its energy consumption. Solar tubes and skylights are a good also.
Lighting Changing out the light bulbs to at least CFL is ok , Halogen next and then LED which use as much as 1/100 th of an incandescent light. Anther thing that people can do is not have lights on in public and private areas that are not in use. Lights that also produce an equal amount less of heat If we made exterior lights motion controlled it would actually make crime go down. If light are always on it is some thing you do not notice. But if they are controlled by motion sensors you could easily track a criminals path by the light that was turned on as they went by. This system will still provide light for people as the go about their activities.
Exterior wood Exposed wood should be back primed (have an oil based primer painted on the cut ends as this is the part of the lumber that wants to absorb water the most (it is the end that carried water to the top of the tree and is made up mostly of tubes the run the length of the wood). Wood species should be limited to cedar, redwood and treated. The top of any member should have a membrane or metal place on top. This is to prevent moisture from entering. Moisture get in almost every night in the for of dew. I cant tell you how many beams I have seen where the area past eave is rotten and the part that is under the eave is fine. Same goes for patio structures. The top is totally gone while the remainder is fine. This is because we don't see the top and the paint/stain is worn out in a 10th of the time and then nature does what his done forever. We sell these membranes click here to purchase this material. Over 15% of all wood used in the US is to replace dry rot that means we waste that resource. We also sell Aluminum and fiberglass patio structures.
Fire protection We lose thousands of homes every year to wild fires. They are fire resistant coatings and we can place mesh in our screens, Place fire resistant material under our tile. In fact researchers now believe that a mission barrel roof with un-granulated underlayment is as much fire hazard as a untreated shake roof. The reason is that we test fire resistant with an ember on top of the tile not blowing underneath. Install tempered windows. We can spend a little money and time now and save thousands of homes.
Conclusion This is just a partial list. The possibilities are huge but it is only now are many people coming to the realization, that we cant waste our precious resources and we should be thrifty. Boy I hate to say it but my Mom and Dad told me “waste not want not” when I was a kid and their parents told them. Please have some one come out to your business or home and give you a couple ideas on things you can do. Generally you will save money if you do green things, it is the nature of green. This really is only the beginning and we can make this work |
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858-722-9108 info@genemccormickconstruction.com 619-581-5950
Green We can save you money through a longer life on materials and a lower energy bill. This is good for you because it will help your pocket book in several ways. We use less oil, the resulting decrease in demand will lower prices. The terrorists will have less money. Yes our intelligence agencies know that certain oil producing nations give money to terrorists to fund their disruptive activities. This figures are speculative because they don`t report them but they range from 100 million to 5 billion a year. Less bombings lower insurance and less wars to rage. Lowers the government budget and taxes (that I cant guarantee). We know coal has all sorts of negative aspects aside from it contributions to CO2 (there are over 1000 coal fire burning right now releasing CO2 and other nasty chemicals into the air we breath and that CO2 is not in the above calculation (the fires are man made)) like this dam break (link below) that polluted fields, streams and ocean with heavy metals (maybe more heavy metals than Chernobyl) ) and there are the oils spills. I could go on forever with the list of negatives. http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/12/23/.tennessee.sludge.spill/index.html. Businesses and the government have to clean this up and wont get all of it and you pay for it. The only good thing about oil was that it was cheap.
Demand for energy will most likely increase while the supply gets more expensive. Buildings in the U.S. account for 14%of potable water consumption, 30% of waste, 38% of CO2 emissions, 40% of raw materials, 24% of energy consumption and 72% of electrical consumption. Buildings used 6,500 trillions BTUs last year. Just changing lights, putting modern controls on HVAC systems, catch rain water. Please see the list below all of these things can save you money. Buildings components have also cased illness to inhabitants. We can improve on these numbers and practices, help the economy and save money doing it.
What we do to help. Our company does every thing it can to stop the waste of materials, dispose of materials properly and uses wash outs. We are also working on new materials, new ways of doing construction and have several patents pending. We also do research on the materials we put in your building to make sure they are safe and were constructed with green building practices. We also strive to do the best quality work because a little thing like not reaming a pipe can cause a water leak or fire 20 years after the building is constructed. If you work in a green industry or have ideas to help, Please contact us with your ideas and any thing that you know of that might help.
Roofs If you own a building and it has a low sloped roof, please consider a vegetative roof. * It cuts down on the heat island effect * It is cost effective because they last twice as long * The roof can be harvested * Reduce energy consumption * Absorbs storm water and reduces flooding and runoff * Plants absorb CO2 * It can provide a nice are for recreation * They are expensive though and do require maintenance Another choice is to go with a cool roof which is generally light colored (dark colored roofs will soon be available). * Coatings are about one third of the cost of a new roof but can add 10 to 20 years * There are tax rebates for certified cool roofs http://www.coolroofs.org/ * They lower energy consumption * Improved comfort as you house will be cooler * Longer life on you AC * Longer life on you roof Look at the building below and the difference between a coated roof and non coated
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Phone: (858) 722-9108 (619) 581-5950 Fax: (858) 345-3847 E-mail: info@genemccormickconstruction.com |
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Environmental Responsibility |
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Thermal image of a roof Photo courtesy of A3C Architectural Collaborative The orange and yellow are heat as compared to the cool side (blue) |