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Building Quality

Building Quality » Green Building

Olympia Builders is proud of our commitment and our continued membership in the Green Building Initiative. Green building is the practice of increasing the efficiency with which buildings use resources energy and materials while reducing building impacts on human health and the environment, through better design, construction, operation, maintenance, and removal -- the complete building cycle. Olympia Builders is totally committed to building the most energy efficient home possible.

The Olympia Builders Green Building Process

1. BioBased Foam Insulation. Bio Based was the Green Product of the year in 2005 and is still one of the top 100 Green Building products in 2007. It is made from soy bean oil which is a sustainable resource. This method of insulation is relatively expensive; however, we feel the reduced operating cost it provides our Home buyers make this the best possible decision.

2. Specifying Green and Recycling Waste. Our product selection is guided both by Green Building practices and the individual quality factors of each competing product in each category. Where possible and practical, we will spec the green product as long as our quality does not suffer. Also, Olympia Builders construction methods are steered by Green Building guidelines. For instance, prior to construction, we take exceptional care to recycle the existing materials on the original home on all of our infill projects. We have donated and sold items such as used brick, appliances, wood flooring, doors, and HVAC equipment to name a few. This time and effort we spend on this phase reduces the amount of total waste we add to our local landfills.

Building materials typically considered to be 'green' include rapidly renewable plant materials like bamboo and straw, lumber from forests certified to be sustainably managed, dimension stone, recycled stone, recycled metal, and other products that are non-toxic, reusable, renewable, and/or recyclable. Building materials should be extracted and manufactured locally to the building site to minimize the energy embedded in their transportation.

Low-impact building materials are used wherever feasible: for example, insulation may be made from low VOC (volatile organic compound)-emitting materials such as, Bio Based Soybean Foam Insulation rather than the building insulation materials that may contain carcinogenic or toxic materials such as formaldehyde.

Architectural salvage and reclaimed materials are used when appropriate as well. When older buildings are demolished, frequently any good wood is reclaimed, renewed, and sold as flooring.

3. Intelligent Green Building Design. On the aesthetic side of green architecture or sustainable design is the philosophy of designing a building that is in harmony with the natural features and resources surrounding the site. There are several key steps in designing sustainable buildings: specify 'green' building materials from local sources, reduce loads, optimize systems, and generate on-site renewable energy.

We make every effort to design our homes to take advantage of existing trees and vegetation. Each home’s budget contains tree and vegetation protection as well as a tree trimming and feeding allowance. We also reduce our east west window and door exposure whenever possible.

To minimize the energy loads within and on the structure, it is critical to orient the building to take advantage of cooling breezes and sunlight. Daylighting with ample windows will eliminate the need to turn on electric lights during the day (and provide great views outside too). Passive Solar can warm a building in the winter - but care needs to be taken to provide shade in the summer time to prevent overheating. Prevailing breezes and convection currents can passively cool the building in the summer. Thermal mass stores heat gained during the day and releases it at night minimizing the swings in temperature. Thermal mass can both heat the building in winter and cool it during the summer. Insulation is the final step to optimizing the structure. Well-insulated windows, doors, and ceilings and walls help reduce energy loss, thereby reducing energy usage. These design features don't cost much money to construct and significantly reduce the energy needed to make the building comfortable.

Optimizing the heating and cooling systems through installing energy efficient machinery, commissioning, and heat recovery is the next step. Compared to optimizing the passive heating and cooling features through design, the gains made by engineering are relatively expensive and can add significantly to the projects cost. However, thoughtful integrated design can reduce costs -- for example, once a building has been designed to be more energy-efficient, it may be possible to downsize heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipment, leading to substantial savings. To further address energy loss hot water heat recycling is used to reduce energy usage for domestic water heating. Ground source heat pumps are more energy efficient then other forms of heating and cooling.

4. Generating Power and Reducing Waste. Finally, onsite generation of renewable energy through solar power, wind power, hydro power, or biomass can significantly reduce the environmental impact of the building. Power generation is the most expensive feature to add to a building.

Good green architecture also reduces waste, of energy, water and materials. During the construction phase, one goal should be to reduce the amount of material going to landfills. Well-designed buildings also help reduce the amount of waste generated by the occupants as well, by providing onsite solutions such as compost bins to reduce matter going to landfills.

To reduce the impact on wells or water treatment plants, several options exist. "Greywater", wastewater from sources such as dishwashing or washing machines, can be used for subsurface irrigation, or if treated, for non-potable purposes, e.g., to flush toilets and wash cars. Rainwater collectors are used for similar purposes.

Green building often emphasizes taking advantage of renewable resources, e.g., using sunlight through passive solar, active solar, and photovoltaic techniques and using plants and trees through green roofs, rain gardens, and for reduction of rainwater run-off. Many other techniques, such as using packed gravel for parking lots instead of concrete or asphalt to enhance replenishment of ground water, are used as well.

Proving Olympia Builder's Commitment to Green Building

Each Olympia built home is individually rated by an independent certified Energy Star rating company prior to construction. The HERS score that is generated from this rating procedure is dependent on many variables. Home orientation, window location and type, Insulation material and thickness, HVAC efficiencies, and water heater types are just a few of them. Each and every home we built is physically inspected prior to sheetrock by an independent Energy Star inspection company to insure that the insulation envelope is installed per Energy Star guidelines.

Also, each home is tested with a blower door and duct blaster test when the home is nearing completion. These tests use mechanical testing equipment to verify the air leakage integrity of each HVAC system and the entire home. These tests must be passed to achieve the Energy Star Designation.