Ecofutures Newsletter: July 2010
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What features should I consider when selecting a site for my dream home?
Innovative sun space used to heat water & home in Longmont, Colorado
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News
Cash for Caulkers – The Definitive Guide To The Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010
The run-down on The Home Star Energy Retrofit Act of 2010 (a.k.a. “Cash for Caulkers”)
Ecofutures’ new website showcased by web design community
Our website re-design took literally months to perfect, and it appears our hard work is paying off. We recently learned that the critics of all critics – web designers and developers – are showcasing our new website on… Read more
Solar Harvest hits the New York Times
The legendary New York Times brought Solar Harvest to the world stage in an article titled “The Showhouse That Sustainability Built” on March 26, 2008. Click the title to view the article.
What happens when a Solar Harvest article is translated to Chinese
Recently we learned that an article featuring our flagship zero energy home, Solar Harvest, had hit a Chinese paper. It’s a nearly direct translation of the New York Times feature article, and the translation back to English… Read more
Ecofutures Newsletter: April 2010
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Can I build a zero energy home for $100 per square foot?
A new home built for $100 per square foot (PSF) is a difficult task these days, but that’s not to say it’s not doable! We’ve outlined a few design/build models that can help you achieve this goal, including a… Read more
Boulder Rotary pens catchy tune for Ecofutures
In September 2009 Eric Doub was invited to speak at a luncheon for the Boulder Rotary Club about Ecofutures pioneering work in creating a more sustainable community. The luncheon was wonderful and the audience… Read more
Ecofutures receives Honorable Mention on GreenDot 2008 competition
Ecofutures was awarded an honorable mention for the international Green Dot Awards. Of over 500 entries from all over the world, only 25 received awards. Ours came in the competition’s “Design + Build” category for our… Read more
Ecofutures Newsletter: February 2010
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“Retrofit for Zero Net Energy,” Solar Today, January 2010
Read the great new Solar Today article, “Retrofit for Zero Net Energy,” about 1247 Scrub Oak, a deep energy retrofit we completed in 2008, that made an energy-inefficient and outdated 1970′s ranch-style home typical of South Boulder into a… Read more
Energy Independence for 7 Percent More?
HGTV Pro’s January 2010 newsletter features Solar Harvest, Ecofutures flagship zero net energy home, as a model for building methods that will “future-proof” your home from rising energy costs for just 7-8% more in construction costs. The article shows… Read more
Ecofutures wins E-Star’s New Millennium Builder of the Year Award
Presented during the 2006 E-Star Summit, Ecofutures was awarded the New Millennium Builder of the Year Award for our commitment to innovations in energy efficiency and to building ENERGY STAR-rated homes. With founder and CEO, Eric Doub, trained as an… Read more
Advice on heat storage options for temperate climates
By Eric Doub, Ecofutures Founder & CEO
We recently got an inquiry from an Ecofutures fan in Maine about the topic of solar heat sinks. We’ve received many similar inquiries through the years, so I thought I’d write a post… Read more
Discovery Science Channel turns spotlight on Ecofutures latest zero net energy home in Broomfield
A film crew from the Discovery Science Channel seeking out “the high technology of building green” visited two Ecofutures homes today to interview our staff for the show, Eco Tech (now canceled). The episode aired during the… Read more
Ecofutures first Boulder builder to build 100% ENERGY STAR-qualified homes
2007 marked Ecofutures first year honoring our 2006 pledge to build 100% of all new homes as Energy Star-qualified homes; homes that are designed and built to meet strict guidelines for energy efficiency set by the U.S. EPA. We are… Read more
Ecofutures Co-Founds EfficiencyFirst.org
Efficiency First represents America’s Home Performance Workforce, ranging from energy auditors and raters to contractors who are the front line of our climate battle, embodied in green-collar jobs from weatherization to HVAC. By organizing these groups nationally, Efficiency First has… Read more
Solar Harvest on HGTV’s “Red, Hot and Green” Series
Solar Harvest, the City of Boulder’s first zero net energy home was featured on HGTV’s “Red, Hot and Green” Series on remodeling with green and healthy materials.
Ecofutures interviewed on Living Dialogues with Duncan Campbell
On June 21, 2009, Ecofutures founder Eric Doub spoke with Duncan Campbell about “Homes for the New Energy Economy” on the show Living Dialogues, a show featuring pioneers in new paradigm thinking in a broad variety of fields. Each show provides… Read more
Zero energy houses move mainstream, but not off the grid
View original Denver Post article, “Houses move off grid, into mainstream,” here.
By Eric Doub, Ecofutures Founder & CEO
Facts should matter, but even the headline was wrong: With all but a few exceptions,… Read more
Evergreen zero net energy home achieves HERS (-3) score
In a February 26, 2009 email sent to Ecofutures, Adam Stenftenagel of Sustainably Built remarked: ”Congrats on this project! It’s the first negative HERS score certificate I’ve produced!” Which got us to wonder: Could this be one of the… Read more
Eric Doub featured in Kitchen + Bath Business magazine
Writers at Kitchen + Bath Business magazine took notice of Ecofutures’ strong focus on green and zero net energy construction and chose to highlight the motivation driving this decision in a profile piece on
Can BIG be green?
By Eric Doub, Founder & CEO
“Can BIG be green?” is a question that we are continually asking ourselves. Here are some of our thoughts, prompted by an emailed concern by a web visitor:
If you claim to… Read more
Ecofutures Newsletter: February 2009
A Message from Eric Doub
Here we are very early into the new year and already we are brimming with news to share!
Beyond “Choir Practice” – Presenting to the Evergreen Rotary Club in January 2009 launched what… Read more
Does BuildSmart cost more? We think not.
In a late-January 2009 town meeting, county officials met with builders, homeowners, prospective buyers and members of the community to dicuss several points of criticism to Boulder County’s new BuildSmart program. BuildSmart is a precedent-setting building code that… Read more
Ecofutures recognized for performance in Builder’s Challenge
Ecofutures was honored in Las Vegas this weekend for our outstanding performance in the Department of Energy’s Builder’s Challenge. The Builder’s Challenge calls on builders to construct homes that meet a 70 or better on the EnergySmart Home Scale (E-Scale).… Read more
Appraisals of zero net energy homes
By Eric Doub, Founder & CEO
I was recently asked by a writer for GreenBuild Magazine whether green-built, high performance homes have encountered any difficulty when being appraised under conventional appraisal standards. Here is an excerpt from my… Read more
Solar Harvest press goes international
Even though we here at Ecofutures headquarters can’t read this article, we are thrilled to see the Solar Harvest story published in another language. We were found through an internet search by Yan Lu, editor of Shanghai’s Bund Newspaper.… Read more
Solar Harvest represents future of clean power
Eric Doub was interviewed for a Greenwire article that went to press recently discussing projections for distributed residential and commercial power generation stations – also known as the buildings we live in! As more houses like… Read more
Just for fun: Yodeling in a big tank
Mike Moore, owner of a new zero net energy home under construction in Evergreen, CO yodels inside a 2,000-gallon salvaged stainless steel tank that will soon serve as the home’s “thermal battery”. This tank will store heat… Read more
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