Building Green

It’s not what you think, and it’s more than you’d ever imagine.

You hear the world “environmental” in regard to building practices, and it conjures up images of your neighbor’s 1972 split-entry with the huge, blue solar panels on the front. Or maybe the people who lived few miles out of town in the “dome home.” You remember it, just not so fondly.

Today, “green” has become the new black—it’s fashionable to be environmentally-politically correct. We talk about r-values, thermal units and vapor barriers as though we know what they really mean. But how much do they really affect us, and what does that mean for our homes, our environment, and well, let’s face it, our pocketbooks?

Randy Larson can tell you. In fact, he can show you, physically, what sound environmental building practices and materials can do for a home.

“You have to look at the entire building environment, as well as the relationship between all of the elements within that environment,” said Larson, who’s building and remodeling company, Meteek & Co., is founded on the principles of efficiency and longevity. “You can’t just buy a high- efficiency boiler or triple-glazed windows and call it good enough—you have to look at how they work in harmony in the home.”

What do water heaters and windows have to do with each other? Everything. Both can help heat the home (passive solar gain in the case of the windows). Both can dramatically affect the quality of life within that home. Both can cost thousands and thousands of dollars to replace.

“Many of today’s high-efficiency boilers have a lifespan of about five to ten years, and once windows get moisture in them, they don’t last much longer,” added Larson. “That’s just not good enough—not for the planet, and not for the homes I build.”

Larson puts his money where his hammer is, and he has literally searched the globe to find the best, longest-lasting, most energy-efficient building materials and practices. His efforts have lead him to a number of products and procedures few others in this country have even heard of, let alone use:

  • Shallow Foundation Technology – Water is the enemy, so don’t dig a hole into which it can collect.
  • Pultruded Windows – When the window frame expands and contracts at the same rate as the glass, you don’t get moisture.
  • Condensing Boilers – Ultra-high efficiency, ultra-clean burning and a 25-year lifespan says it all.
  • Forgiving Wall Systems – Advanced hydroscopic materials keep water out and warmth in.
  • New Solar Systems – A smaller, more efficient package means thousands in energy savings.

“A Meteek home is built to last at least five generations,” added Larson. “To do that, it needs to be environmentally and economically sound. It also needs to be beautiful and functional for the families who’ll live there. That’s what we build.”

Meteek’s environmental building practices allow the owner of this 2,500 square-foot downtown loft to heat the space for around $500 per year.