Hello from Edmonton

jason · 07-30-13, 01:36 PM

Well, I have been building a house for a couple of years now and have been learning more as I go. While doing some more research, I found this forum. Along the way I figured out that I wanted to build a house that used less energy to run and then decided to try to approach Net Zero if I could. Which has slowed down the progress, but will improve the final product. From sealing to insulation to lighting and heating, I have had to learn it all, and the more I learnt, the more I wanted to learn, which is one of the causes for how long it has taken to build the house. Still putting building, but hoping to be in in the fall. If only I can finish the siding. Anyone got a couple weeks free they would like to lend.

Jason

Daox · 07-30-13, 01:45 PM

Welcome to the site Jason.

Would you care to share a little about the house, and/or the plans?

jason · 07-30-13, 03:30 PM

Well, I do not really like talking about the house, but you twisted my arm.

It has

- Insulated Concrete forms construction to the trusses
- Two lb spray foam in attic
- Triple pane windows throughout as well as a couple solar tubes
- HRV system with whole house HEPA filtration
- Waste water heat recovery system
- High efficiency wood burning fireplace with ducting to other parts of the house
- Reduced thermal bridging, air tight construction.
- .66 pre drywall Blower door test but found a couple conduits I forgot to seal since.
- Energy efficient appliances, low and dual flush toilets
- Air chamber in the back entrance (most often used entrance in the house) reduces heat loss (or gain).
- 10 radiant heat zones main floor and second floor using Warmboard, basement in slab
- 95.2% AFUL efficient Viessmann condensing boiler
- non-combustible exterior finish. Stone / Hardie plank/panel
- Conduits run for future PV
- Option for solar thermal that can tie into our boiler, but ruled it out.

Jason

randen · 07-30-13, 08:54 PM

Jayson

That is an impressive list of net-zero type items. It sounds as though you are well on the way to realizing your goals. As a fellow Canadian, you and I know full well what cold is.
I as well installed conduit for the future solar PV. Now I'm watching the market on solar panels and saving some money to purchase when the time is right.

I wouldn't dismiss the solar hot water just yet. I installed close to 300 sq.ft. of flat panel on my home and with the in floor heat (concrete) with full sun I heat the house for 24 hrs. Being in Edmonton you will have more sunny days then here in Ontario. The solar is silent and you can build it yourself.

I'm sure all here are very interested to have a virtual tour of your net zero. Please don't leave us hanging. Eh

Randy

AC_Hacker · 07-31-13, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jason

Insulated Concrete forms construction to the trusses
Two lb spray foam in attic
Triple pane windows throughout as well as a couple solar tubes
HRV system with whole house HEPA filtration
Waste water heat recovery system
High efficiency wood burning fireplace with ducting to other parts of the house
Reduced thermal bridging, air tight construction.
.66 pre drywall Blower door test but found a couple conduits I forgot to seal since.
Energy efficient appliances, low and dual flush toilets
Air chamber in the back entrance (most often used entrance in the house) reduces heat loss (or gain).
10 radiant heat zones main floor and second floor using Warmboard, basement in slab
95.2% AFLU efficient Viessmann condensing boiler
non-combustible exterior finish. Stone / Hardie plank/panel
Conduits run for future PV
Option for solar thermal that can tie into our boiler, but ruled it out.

Jason, your efforts are really a model for us all. Details & Photos & Video of what you have accomplished would be super useful.

You have just raised the bar for us... very exciting. Thank you!

Best,

-AC_Hacker

jason · 07-31-13, 12:22 PM

To be honest, the project did not start out to be near net-zero. Currently the house can not actually achieve it as I have a gas boiler and to some that eliminates it from the running for net-zero. So I would have to switch to an electric boiler or geothermal, but I consider our electricity as dirty as it mostly comes from coal. So that is one reason I went with natural gas. Originally the house was designed with standard 2 by 6 construction, and got out of hand from there. This has caused some problems for reaching our goal, which is a hard target to reach, especially as I do not get any solar gain due to limited windows on the South side. When we started designing the house, we did not take into account the location as we new nothing about building for energy efficiency. The house is in-fill as we lived there since '98 and liked the area. The city further limited the number of windows and placement on the South side due to the neighbouring property. Currently the way the house is designed, it will be rated as 86 on the energuide chart without the renewables. I have a couple more ways to improve the rating, but have held off for now. Just want to finish so we can move in.

As to the solar thermal, there are a couple reasons I decided to shy away from it. One being the fact that they can get very complex, very fast when used for space heating. Especially when I am involved. I spent a year designing how I wanted the whole system to tie together with my boiler system, but when it came down to it, I just felt that it was not worth the trouble. The cost of solar thermal does not seem t be dropping as much as PV has in the last could of years and I have limited roof space. Which tends to make me lean towards putting up PV instead. Simpler to install, and you do not run into the problem of having the system provide heat when you do not need it in the summer, and not enough heat when you do in the winter. Did really want to put in a solar thermal system as I love tinkering and was able to lower my costs by building some component myself, but when it came down to it PV had so many advantages over it.

Just want to add, that the house will have the possibility of being near net-zero, as I doubt I will ever be able to hit net-zero. I do not want to give any false impressions that it will. I am trying and improving where I can, but I have to be realistic.

Any particular parts of the house you would like to see photos of please let me know. I have too many to post.

Jason

nascenta · 08-05-13, 10:23 AM

Hi Jason,
I am also in Edmonton and would like to help with the siding. Please e-mail me. I live on the South side. I look forward to meeting someone who also enjoys this forum.

Daox · 08-05-13, 10:31 AM

I would like to see pictures of your wall construction.

jason · 08-07-13, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nascenta

Hi Jason,
I am also in Edmonton and would like to help with the siding. Please e-mail me. I live on the South side. I look forward to meeting someone who also enjoys this forum.

Hi nascenta, If you want a tour, just drop me a PM. I have no problems showing people around. As to the siding, it is a dusty Job dealing with the Hardie. Just glad I decided to go with the metal trim.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daox

I would like to see pictures of your wall construction.

I will see what I can do, but ICF wall construction is fairly simple. As I always explain it, it is like working with Lego except you fill the center with rebar and concrete.

Jason

nascenta · 08-14-13, 06:47 AM

Hi Jason,
I tried to send a PM but the system won't let me until I send a total of 15 posts. please e-mail me at.....

07-30-13, 01:36 PM	#1
jason Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Edmonton, AB Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	Hello from Edmonton Well, I have been building a house for a couple of years now and have been learning more as I go. While doing some more research, I found this forum. Along the way I figured out that I wanted to build a house that used less energy to run and then decided to try to approach Net Zero if I could. Which has slowed down the progress, but will improve the final product. From sealing to insulation to lighting and heating, I have had to learn it all, and the more I learnt, the more I wanted to learn, which is one of the causes for how long it has taken to build the house. Still putting building, but hoping to be in in the fall. If only I can finish the siding. Anyone got a couple weeks free they would like to lend. Jason

07-30-13, 01:45 PM	#2
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	Welcome to the site Jason. Would you care to share a little about the house, and/or the plans? __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

08-05-13, 10:31 AM	#8
Daox Administrator Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Germantown, WI Posts: 5,525 Thanks: 1,162 Thanked 374 Times in 305 Posts	I would like to see pictures of your wall construction. __________________ Current project - To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. & To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 0 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

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07-30-13, 03:30 PM	#3
jason Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Edmonton, AB Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	Well, I do not really like talking about the house, but you twisted my arm. It has - Insulated Concrete forms construction to the trusses - Two lb spray foam in attic - Triple pane windows throughout as well as a couple solar tubes - HRV system with whole house HEPA filtration - Waste water heat recovery system - High efficiency wood burning fireplace with ducting to other parts of the house - Reduced thermal bridging, air tight construction. - .66 pre drywall Blower door test but found a couple conduits I forgot to seal since. - Energy efficient appliances, low and dual flush toilets - Air chamber in the back entrance (most often used entrance in the house) reduces heat loss (or gain). - 10 radiant heat zones main floor and second floor using Warmboard, basement in slab - 95.2% AFUL efficient Viessmann condensing boiler - non-combustible exterior finish. Stone / Hardie plank/panel - Conduits run for future PV - Option for solar thermal that can tie into our boiler, but ruled it out. Jason

07-30-13, 08:54 PM	#4
randen Uber EcoRenovator Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Strathroy Ontario Canada Posts: 657 Thanks: 9 Thanked 191 Times in 129 Posts	Jayson That is an impressive list of net-zero type items. It sounds as though you are well on the way to realizing your goals. As a fellow Canadian, you and I know full well what cold is. I as well installed conduit for the future solar PV. Now I'm watching the market on solar panels and saving some money to purchase when the time is right. I wouldn't dismiss the solar hot water just yet. I installed close to 300 sq.ft. of flat panel on my home and with the in floor heat (concrete) with full sun I heat the house for 24 hrs. Being in Edmonton you will have more sunny days then here in Ontario. The solar is silent and you can build it yourself. I'm sure all here are very interested to have a virtual tour of your net zero. Please don't leave us hanging. Eh Randy

07-31-13, 12:22 PM	#6
jason Lurking Renovator Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Edmonton, AB Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 1 Post	To be honest, the project did not start out to be near net-zero. Currently the house can not actually achieve it as I have a gas boiler and to some that eliminates it from the running for net-zero. So I would have to switch to an electric boiler or geothermal, but I consider our electricity as dirty as it mostly comes from coal. So that is one reason I went with natural gas. Originally the house was designed with standard 2 by 6 construction, and got out of hand from there. This has caused some problems for reaching our goal, which is a hard target to reach, especially as I do not get any solar gain due to limited windows on the South side. When we started designing the house, we did not take into account the location as we new nothing about building for energy efficiency. The house is in-fill as we lived there since '98 and liked the area. The city further limited the number of windows and placement on the South side due to the neighbouring property. Currently the way the house is designed, it will be rated as 86 on the energuide chart without the renewables. I have a couple more ways to improve the rating, but have held off for now. Just want to finish so we can move in. As to the solar thermal, there are a couple reasons I decided to shy away from it. One being the fact that they can get very complex, very fast when used for space heating. Especially when I am involved. I spent a year designing how I wanted the whole system to tie together with my boiler system, but when it came down to it, I just felt that it was not worth the trouble. The cost of solar thermal does not seem t be dropping as much as PV has in the last could of years and I have limited roof space. Which tends to make me lean towards putting up PV instead. Simpler to install, and you do not run into the problem of having the system provide heat when you do not need it in the summer, and not enough heat when you do in the winter. Did really want to put in a solar thermal system as I love tinkering and was able to lower my costs by building some component myself, but when it came down to it PV had so many advantages over it. Just want to add, that the house will have the possibility of being near net-zero, as I doubt I will ever be able to hit net-zero. I do not want to give any false impressions that it will. I am trying and improving where I can, but I have to be realistic. Any particular parts of the house you would like to see photos of please let me know. I have too many to post. Jason

08-05-13, 10:23 AM	#7
nascenta Lurking Renovator Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Edmonton, AB, Canada Posts: 8 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Hi Jason, I am also in Edmonton and would like to help with the siding. Please e-mail me. I live on the South side. I look forward to meeting someone who also enjoys this forum.

08-14-13, 06:47 AM	#10
nascenta Lurking Renovator Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Edmonton, AB, Canada Posts: 8 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Hi Jason, I tried to send a PM but the system won't let me until I send a total of 15 posts. please e-mail me at.....