The "Open House GREENOVATION" Project: July 2009

7/25/09

Okay, so here's the deal...

I'm doing a fairly large renovation on my tiny little house. I'll be adding about 1,300 square feet, renovating some other parts of the existing house, and I want to do it all as "GREEN" as I can.

On this site, I'm going to open up every aspect of the project. Through this site, you will be able to watch the entire process of doing a major renovation in a "green" way, or as I like to call it, a "GREENOVATION". One of the main focus points will be to explain everything "Green". The tax credits, the rebates, the products, the contractors, the savings, we will try to decypher it all for you.

You will get to see all the mistakes I make while acting as my own general contractor. You will see all the potential stumbling blocks that you will run in to if you ever decide to do a project like this. You will see new products, materials, and techniques that we will be using.

Now, because I'm not exactly the next great design star, I would appreciate any ideas that you might have. Please feel free to offer ideas for everything from construction methods and paint colors, to tankless water-heaters and home theater and surround sound. Don't get carried away though, I'm on a seriously slim budget.

I have no idea of the direction this project will go, but it should be informitive, entertaining, and sometimes very agonizing, at least for me.

---------------ABOUT ME---------------

I'm your average homeowner ,okay, maybe not average...did you ever see that movie "The Burbs", well there ya go, now you have an idea of the disaster this project could end up being. Anyway, I work for a Company called Eco-Science Solutions, and we market a line of green products for the HVAC industry. The products are designed to make all types of AC and refrigeration units run more efficiently and use less energy.

However, because I work in one part of the "Green World" does not make me an expert on all the other green products and techniques, and it certainly does not make me an expert on how to renovate a home. What it does make me is the same as most people. I just want to have my house the way I want it. I would like to save money on the renovation. I would like to live in a more environmentally friendly way, and I would love it if after everything, I could actually lower all my monthly bills! You know what, that sounds like a challenge (dramatic pause) Yes! I am going to try to more then double the size of my house, and lower my monthly bills at the same time. If I can't do it, I'll throw a big fiesta with a live band and lots of Wawa subs and stuff. It will be a giant "HoagieFest" (cha-ching!)

So, in all seriousness (you better turn down your radio, I think he's serious) what I'm trying to do with this project is to figure out things like what green products work the best in our area, what local contractors work the best, and at a fair price. I hope to decypher the green tax credits situation, and maybe even loby to get them increased, so that more people will get interested in going green in order to actually save some green.