Sustainable Design
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August 2020A New Way to Go Green
At LDa, we are constantly searching for more ways to incorporate more sustainable practices into the homes that we design. Whether it’s sourcing reclaimed wood for kitchen countertops or designing a green roof for a home, we try to implement small or large scale sustainable ideas for a greener outcome. -
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November 2009
INSULATION Part 3: Notes from the Field
Over the past year, we have been working on a project seeking a LEED for Homes certification. Our Building Systems Consultant has been a great addition to the team. The process has been extremely informative. We found an insulation system that we feel gives us the most bang for our buck. This system may not be the best for every project as goals and quantities play a big roll in the cost. Our results are listed below: - New walls are receiving damp applied cellulose -
June 2009
What the heck is a California Corner?
Three stud corners, also known as California corners, are an easy way to reduce the lumber used in a building project. The picture below is of a type of three stud corner currently under construction in one of our projects (in a Boston suburb). -
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April 2009Green home or leaky artifact?
Is the charming old house really the enemy of 21st century energy efficiency? The answer is, of course, no – but it depends on what you mean by charm and energy efficiency. A house with inherent charm – built, say, before the 1950’s – is an excellent candidate to save and update. We just completed an addition/renovation to a 1915 Victorian that amazingly passed its blower door test and received a HERS index of 58 – astonishing, but it turns out that our continuous air/thermal barrier strategy really worked!
