UPDATED 6-25-09.

The goal of the PlayHaven Green Building Project is the creation of:

1. An existing residence renovation that incorporates many high efficiency, improved indoor air quality and sustainable material features. Plus the addition of renewable energy production and a successful, self-sufficient organic farm.
   
   
2. New construction of a complex that:
   • Is energy efficient, and meets ENERGY STAR and LEED® for Homes qualifications,
   • Uses renewable energy systems,
   • Combines new technology with recycled and reclaimed products,
   • Is designed to meet the needs of the homeowners, and,
   • Promotes a sustainable lifestyle.

The PHGB Project website is available so that any interested party can:

• Follow the progress of improvements and construction,
• Get information about the energy efficiency and green building techniques used,
• Find information about the products used, and
• Learn to incorporate these features into their next project.

Welcome to the PlayHaven Green Building Project website!

My name is Bobbi Walker (the Owner/Designer of Intuitive Design). I have spent the last 17+ years dreaming of the day when I would be able to build an earth-friendly home. When I first started researching the possibility, there was very little available to give me hope that it could ever be accomplished... unless I was willing to do it all myself.

Over the years, hope turned into optimism and optimism has turned into joy. Now, there are:

• architects who design sustainable, net-zero energy houses,
• builders who use energy efficient construction techniques,
• contractors who have networks to build sustainably,
• energy raters who make sure it is energy efficient and works the way it should,
• financial institutions who understand that this is more than a "niche" market,
• renewable energy products that are more affordable to the average homeowner,
• products made from reclaimed and recycled materials,
• and lots and lots of information on the internet (assuming you know what the questions are).

The PlayHaven Green Building Project is the culmination of those dreams. In addition to being our home, it will be so very much more than that!

It has always been my intention to make this a showcase of products and techniques that the average homeowner could show to their contractor or builder and say "see, that's what I want in my house."

And even better yet, an example that contractors and builders can show to their clients of what kind of energy efficiency and sustainable features can be incorporated into their projects.

And even further still, a place where many options and ways of doing things can be used in a single location to show what choices there are and comparisons can be made.

This all being said, the PlayHaven Green Building Project will be available (by appointment) for physical tours; both during construction and ever after. AND, this website will provide virtual tours for anyone interested in what we're doing but who are unable to make the trip to the Kansas City MO (U.S.A.) area.

July 1, 2009

We received the check from State Farm on Saturday, June 27 to replace the roof on the house. And, we were surprised to find that it was made out to us AND our mortgage company... I suppose we shouldn't have been surprised, but since we haven't had this big of a claim before, we didn't know that the mortgage company would be involved.

For any of you who haven't been through this money game, here's the deal. Since the mortgage company owns the house with us, all the owners are listed on the check for large amounts of money... I imagine there is a standard threshold, but don't know what that is. So, the mortgage company takes the check (we sign the back) and deposits it into the Escrow Account of our loan. Then they issue a check for part of that amount (in this case it was $10,000) made out to us AND the roofing contractor. We then sign the back of that check and include a personal check (since the $10,000 doesn't quite cover the 50% due initially at the signing of the contract) and send it off to Kansas City Roofing Services LLC. (Who, by the way, knows all about this game.) Now, once the new roof is on the house, we have to contact not only the insurance company but also the mortgage company so that they can all come out to see the house and do an inspection to be sure that we DID have the roof replaced with equal (or greater) quality to what was there. Once they have confirmed that all is well, the mortgage company will provide the balance of insurance companies check to us (we aren't sure if they will make it out to us and the roofing company or just us -- I'll let you know). The insurance company will also be cutting another check for the balance that was withheld until we proved that we did, in fact, replace the roof (because we have 'Replacement' insurance). SO, its a very good thing that we have the funds necessary to cover what needs to be paid for before those final checks come to us.

We signed the contract on June 29, 2009 with Kansas City Roofing Services LLC to replace the dark green metal roof on the house with the TPO 'cool' roof. It will take 2 to 4 weeks to get the materials in and schedule the installation. GAF Materials Corporation is the supplier of the TPO product (www.gaf.com). When you visit their website, you'll notice that the TPO product doesn't show up as a choice for residential roofing yet... it is THAT new to the residential market. Just type "TPO" into the Search field to find a bunch of information including this PDF.

GAF is overseeing the installation by Kansas City Roofing Services LLC because its different than their normal commercial installation on low and no-slope roofs. Residential buildings generally have quite a bit more slope to their roofs and that will require some adjustment. GAF is also going to be getting aerial pictures in addition to ground-level photos of the house so they can use it for their marketing. We're also hoping to get some good video of the installation to share with everyone.

I've contacted the 4 TV News stations in the Kansas City area and invited them to cover the installation. So far, one of them has said they are definitely interested and I'm waiting to hear back from the others. I've also contacted West Central Electric Coop (our electricity supplier) and they are definitely interested in seeing the project and getting in on the media coverage. State Farm Insurance has been contacted as well as the Kansas City Chapter of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) and Hathmore Technologies, LLC (the energy rating company that did our energy audit). The intention is to have as many as we can get of the people/businesses connected with this project available to be interviewed by the media.

Ok, that should do it for now... updates should be coming along fairly often during the next couple of months!