Nob Hill Haus in the News

Last Saturday, the Los Angeles Times ran a 3 page article about the Nob Hill Haus under the heading "where the future lives". The article can also be viewed online. We celebrated this by opening the house to the public for the afternoon and although this was on very short notice, about 200 interested visitors came- from Topanga Canyon to Costa Mesa to take part in one of the guided tours.
This tremendous outcome shows that there is a great interest in sustainable architecture and design and we hope that with the Nob Hill Haus, we could demonstrate that sustainability does not mean to make sacrifices to the design- to the contrary- It can enhance the design and function of a building if properly incorporated. we'd like to thank everyone who made their way out here to take a look at the home!

Nob Hill Haus is certified!

Today, we received notice that the house has passed the green building certification-Now we have 3rd party verification of the sustainability level of the project. Build it Green, a California based Green Building Rating System recognized 149 points-the majority being in energy and Water which was our main focus for the project.

Composting Report

As we are using the house with all it's functions now (except the A/C because it hasn't gotten really hot inside the home yet) and testing the facilities we designed for their practical use. One is the composting bin of the recycling center in the kitchen- The location is very practical, since it is located right where the food scraps area being generated- however, the food scraps still need to be taken outside the the actual composting bin in the yard, where worms and bugs can do the real work to generate fertilizer.
So far, we only had the grass from brush clearance in the composter- mostly semi-dry matter that took forever to decompose. With the fresh food scraps, additional moisture should be introduced to help accelerate the composting process.

We are also closely monitoring the power consumption and generation on a daily basis-It is really interesting how this can change user behaviour (turning off lights that you don't need for example) in order to save energy. The solar output largely depends on the weather- While on a clear sunny day up to 21kWh can be generated from the sun, a full "June Gloom" day only results in 9 kWh. A big difference!

Interiors

After the USGBC tour, we spent some time to decorate the interior, most notably with artwork by fellow designer and architect Nerin Kadribegovic. We also made a trip to Germany in May to visit Freiburg, the Route du Vin in Alsace and Basel in Switzerland and brought back 2 Gavina Wassily chairs for the living room (quite a logistical endeavor I have to say)- but they look great in the house. Our PV system has been producing a lot of power from the sun- with about four weeks into energy generation, we banked about 300kWh in surplus energy. The concept of using dimmable fluorescent light fixtures in conjunction with the high insulating properties of the walls, windows and roof (no A/C use this year so far) have reduced our energy consumption dramatically. We also had an energy audit performed and the home now scored 24% better than the California title 24 energy requirements due to improvements made during the construction phase of the project. We are now confident to achieve the high goal of “net-zero” over the course of the year.

USGBC Tour

Last Saturday's USGBC Tour was a full success and over 30 people took the tour of the Haus- It was also the first time we opened the cistern lid and discovered that it was full to the brink with rainwater!
We've been using the water to irrigate the plants, but the low water pressure led us to believe that there was almost nothing in it- well we were wrong. Our solar system continues to produce more than we use at this time (still no AC running) and we hope that we can build up a reserve before the heat of the summer hits us with $$$ in electric bills.
We also had the Solar water heater inspector in house to verify that the installation complies with the CSI requirements and the deck coating installer put on the last coat. We also finally cleaned the garage to a point that we can park the car inside. It's looking more and more like a house now...

Net Metering

Last week, the PV system has been inspected and put into service by LADWP. The PV’s have their own meter, indicating the amount of energy in kWh generated, while the city meter next to it shows the net-energy- i.e. the amount of energy used minus the amount of energy generated by the system. This net metering concept does not encourage users to maximize their solar potential and to produce more power than they need and in the end effectively still requires some power to be drawn from the grid- in contrast to other regions of the US and some countries in Europe, where the utilities want people to maximize their solar power generation in order reduce the need to build new power plants.
The good thing about the two meters is that we always see how much we are generating and how much we are actually using, so we are able to adjust our demand to maximize the effect of the PV array- Currently we are producing more than we need, thus the weird number on the net-meter. However, once the heat of the summer starts and we will be forced to use A/C. this might change.
The photo shows a 98 kWh generated and a net reading of 99992 kWh- so we have 8 kWh in reserve already- and counting…

Nob Hill Haus- Open to the Public

We're in (and enjoyed that gorgeous sunrise we had last week from our bedroom!). Now, that you've seen and read all about the Nob Hill Haus on this blog there's only one thing that's missing- to see the real thing. And that chance is coming! On April 30, the US Green Building Council's Los Angeles Chapter will feature the Nob Hill Haus as one of the main attractions of the Los Angeles area Green Home Tour: Here's the description:

"Join USGBC-LA San Gabriel Valley branch for a self-guided tour of six sustainable homes throughout the San Gabriel Valley. Locations include Pasadena, South Pasadena, Atwater Village, La Verne and Mount Washington. The Tour will feature single family homes, a condominium project, a single family home development and sustainable gardens that will showcase the latest in residential sustainable technology. The first ever permitted gray water system in Los Angeles, a rainwater harvesting system and a solar water heater will be on view. Additional sustainable features on the tour include: photo voltaic systems, permeable paving, a rain barrel, Energy Star rated appliances, bamboo flooring, natural cooling and ventilation, high performance glazing and a kitchen recycling center. The sustainable gardens include native and drought tolerant plants, drip irrigation, a composting center and a vertical infinity fountain. All registrants will receive their ticket and tour booklet at registration at the first house. Directions and descriptions of each of the locations will be included in the booklet. There is plenty of street parking available at the first house."

and the link to the website: http://www.usgbc-la.org/

Hope to see you at the Haus!