Our Little Green House

OTP makes the News, again

2008-08-11T19:57:00.002-04:00

Oak Terrace Preserve was featured in the Charleston Post & Courier this past Saturday. We were interviewed about two months ago for the article and it's nice to see it in print. We got a good laugh at our "construction backgrounds," all in all it's a good article. Any press may be good press but good press is better.

Click here to read the full article.

CFLs - Plain English on those fancy new light bulbs

2008-07-15T16:44:00.003-04:00

A lot of people ask me about Compact Florescent Lightbulbs (CFLs). I have to admit we haven't gone 100% CFL, but as our bulbs die, we will likely be moving that way. It's a great way to save money and reduce your carbon footprint.

I know a lot of you are asking questions about how you safely recycle CFLs since they have a minute amount of Mercury in them but Home Depot recently announced that they will accept CFLs for recycling.

Further, use of regular bulbs actually contributes more mercury to the atmosphere (where it does the most harm). The EPA has a good fact sheet on CFLs and Mercury.

Enjoy the Video

Sign of the Times

2008-07-15T14:45:00.002-04:00

The Neighborhood now has a new and official sign. You can see a part of the lovely landscaping they've done near the entrance as well. Predominantly native plants, all of the plants in these landscaped areas are drought tolerant and low maintenance.

I'll post some new pictures of the landscaped areas when I get a chance. The plants in here include Joepye weed, Black-eyed Susan, Gaillardia, Stokes Aster, Sweetgrass, Panicum northwind, Magnolia and Live Oak.

We're excited to see all these plants come in. I'm sure by next year, they will mostly be well established and ready for a hearty season.

Noisette and Oak Terrace Preserve Featured in Cottage Living Magazine

2008-07-02T17:48:00.000-04:00

The July/August edition of Cottage Living magazine features Noisette and Oak Terrace Preserve. The article is short and sweet and highlights 9 other communities around the country collectively named as their Top Ten Cottage Communities for 2008.

Check out the Cottage Living Article Here

Also see the Charleston Post & Courier Article here.

GoGreenCharleston gives us a nod

2008-06-18T23:19:00.003-04:00

While reading through my GoogleReader of favorite blogs tonight, I saw something familiar, our blog. Chad over at GoGreenCharleston.org posted a nice kudos for our efforts to spread the word about opportunities to build green. I'm glad to see others feel our efforts may be making a difference.

Click here to see Chad's nod to our blog.

If you're interested in ways you can renovate or build green, here are a few links.

Alley work begins this week

2008-06-16T07:04:00.003-04:00

Survey work for alley completed Friday.

The crews will be starting permeable paver alley work behind our house this week. On Friday they came out to survey and on Wednesday, they are supposed to start the digging work which will push us to park on the street until the construction is completed in about 60 days.

For an idea of what it will look like when it's done, take a look at my post from last week.

Flower Box Update

2008-06-11T16:49:00.002-04:00

A number of you have been asking for updates on the flower boxes we put on the porch back at the beginning of April. Well here are a couple photos.

Window boxes are exploding.

A feel for the front yard.

The street is pretty much filled in.

New Alleys

2008-06-11T16:41:00.006-04:00

We got a note today from the HOA that they had completed the first alleys with permeable pavers and will be starting on ours this week. Here's a pdf link to the note (Elias asked if I could post it to the blog).

The new alleys that are completed look excellent and although the 60 days for completion will be no fun (nor will the extra construction noise that we were starting to get used to missing). Regardless of the noise and inconvenience, seeing how nice the alley will look makes it worth it.

Green Drinks Event at Mixson this Wednesday

2008-06-10T17:04:00.002-04:00

Charleston's Green Drinks is having a block party event tomorrow night at I'on's new Mixson neighborhood. Live Jazz, food, and Beer from Park Circle's own local Coast Brewing Company will all be on hand. Mixson is literally just down the street from our neighborhood and we're all looking forward to seeing it thrive. With their mix of commercial and residential areas, Mixson will bring some excitement to our corner of Park Circle (think about that for a minute).

For more info on this week's event check out the GoGreenCharleston website.

OTP Featured in "Coastal Heritage"

2008-05-30T12:32:00.003-04:00

Oak Terrace Preserve (OTP) is part of the feature article in the Spring 2008 issue of "Coastal Heritage" produced by the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium. The article highlights stormwater issues and focuses on the unique efforts going on to improve water quality by slowing stormwater.

Download a PDF of the newsletter here.

The section specific to OTP is on pages 11 and 12 but checkout the graphics on pages 8 and 9. Elias Deeb at the Noisette Co. let me know that the bidding process to complete the bioswales is underway now and work on the bioswales will likely begin in 2 months. The rather deep ditches that are in place now will be much shallower in the future and be planted with species that enjoy getting wet and require minimal maintenance. They'll be small pocket habitats.

Enjoy the article.

Rise of the Small Homes

2008-05-26T07:45:00.002-04:00

On May 7th, CNN Money ran an article on the "Incredible Shrinking House." In the country where super-sizing has been a norm on everything from burgers to cars to houses, it's refreshing to see signs that the pendulum may be swinging.

Of course we like the trend and frankly sometimes feel like our ~1500 square foot home is still a little large for us. Of course smaller homes mean smaller electric bills and gas bills and a much smaller impact on the environment.

Oak Terrace Preserve and Noisette Featured in SC Public Television

2008-05-12T20:18:00.000-04:00

This past Earth Day, South Carolina's Public Television Station (ETV) featured our neighborhood as part of their weekly show, "The Big Picture." I missed the show at the time of airing but thanks to the internet, we can catch the show online.

During the show they have a few spots with voice overs while video runs past homes in the neighborhood. Our house is in there with all the others. The section of the show specifically on Oak Terrace Preserve and the Noisette projects is only the first 8 minutes of the show.

Here's a link to the show.

Time Flys

2008-04-06T19:47:00.004-04:00

Well folks, it's been a month since we moved in and it's been busy. We're finally starting to feel settled enough to post some pictures.

New mailboxes went in about mid way through March.

The pets have settled in, of course, and we ordered some FLOR for our area rugs. If you haven't seen this product, it's excellent. It can cost a bit more but we have already been able to reconfigure what we purchased several times as we get a sense for how we might use it best. Runner? Large areas rug? Two small area rugs? So many choices!

The neighbor's house is coming along rapidly! It sounds like they are closing the end of the month.

And finally, we've started to add our own little touches.

Kitchen - Ready to move in

2008-02-27T18:40:00.002-05:00

So I couldn't resist an extra post to the blog today. Here's the kitchen, waiting to be used. We're pleased with the final result and the energy star appliances. The under-cabinet lighting and the Staron countertops were our two "splurges" for the house. I'm looking forward to getting used to a new kitchen.

Bioswales at work!

2008-02-27T17:37:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we had a front of heavy rain move through Charleston. These were really heavy sheets of rain. In many communities, all of that rain water would be redirected into the storm water runoff systems in a short period of time. All of that storm water treatment would have meant more expense to the taxpayers and less fresh water being absorbed where it fell. In Oak Terrace Preserve, that water is actually captured by a series of systems that helps make sure that fresh rain gets returned to the water table without a trip to the water treatment plant.

One of the mitigation methods being used in Oak Terrace Preserve is the construction of bioswales. Bioswales are landscape elements designed to remove silt and pollution from surface runoff water. They also allow water to settle and filter into the water table over a longer period of time than would normally happen using traditional storm water runoff systems.

So here is a photo of a bioswale in action. About 24 hours after heavy rains, the water in this bioswale have lowered considerably. in another 24 hours, this water will be gone. The water doesn't hang around long enough to be a mosquito nest, but it does allow the ground to absorb the water slowly. In the coming months, these bioswales will be seeded with plants that enjoy being moist but can survive in dry conditions. The plants will fill in to be an attractive landscaping feature while the bioswale helps the environment and our tax dollars. Less storm water treatment means less expense for the taxpayers.

Home Stretch ...

2008-02-25T21:00:00.005-05:00

Ok, so Home Stretch is a bad pun but I couldn't resist.

Here's a shot of the house with the neighbor's house started next door. Just days ago that was just a cement slab and now they're moving quickly towards getting a roof on. Before we know it, we'll have neighbors. The folks in the two houses behind us and to the right (you can see they're both bluish colors) moved in last weekend.

Along with carpet installers, the appliance guys were there today.

You Tube: Metamorphosis - Art Event in North Charleston Old Village

2008-02-19T21:31:00.001-05:00

An art event was recently held in the Old Village section of North Charleston. This is the downtown area close to our neighborhood. Enjoy the video courtesy of the fine folks at Mixson Avenue.

Wood floors look great

2008-02-17T21:11:00.000-05:00

This post is a little out of date but I wanted to share the picture from the 17th of February. Here are the engineered hardwood floors we put in. We were very excited about having bamboo flooring from the obvious resource renewability of bamboo. Unfortunately talking to other folks who have had higher grade bamboo installed, they were very disappointed in the durability of the material. For those of us who are extra picky about scratches in our flooring, this engineered hardwood was an excellent choice. From a green perspective, no material is perfect but the way this flooring is made still allows for an additional sanding and refinishing in the (hopefully) far flung future of the home and uses minimal material today. Further, these materials were produced in North America and didn't hitch a transpacific ocean ride to get to Charleston.

Regardless, the floors look great.

Power

2008-02-05T21:31:00.000-05:00

On Tuesday I went by the house to find the power company had come to install the meter and connect the power. The lights are all shining brightly and I really appreciate the look of the under cabinet lights in the kitchen. When the kitchen cleans up a bit, I'll post a picture.

Kitchen with the Counters

2008-02-04T08:32:00.000-05:00

I don't think I've sent an updated picture of the kitchen since the countertops were installed. The blue you see is just a plastic film over the surface to keep it from getting scratched while all the other chaos goes on around it. These countertops look really rice and are a neutral color. They are a solid surface material called Staron. We're very pleased with the final product.

Hot Water

2008-01-25T18:44:00.000-05:00

So our visit on Friday turned up a brand new hot water heater . Those of you unfamiliar with tank-less hot water heaters may think we got swindled but that little box (about 3ft by 2ft) is the hot water heater. It heats the water on demand so there's no need to heat water just in case you need it. You only heat what you use. Tankless systems save an average of 25-40% off of your utility bill. Better yet, these little beauties are manufactured right here in Charleston by Eccotemp so we're helping the local economy and saving on the "not-so-green" costs of shipping products around the world.

Plumber's Handiwork

2008-01-24T19:06:00.000-05:00

Well folks, another day another new addition in the house. The Plumber was at the house on Thursday morning and went right to work on installing the fixtures. When I was there on Wednesday at lunch time, the counter tops in the bathrooms weren't in. All of the separate contractors are in and out finishing up their work.

The contractors are doing a really professional job and Verdi, the builder, is patient with all of our perfectionist tendencies. We have a walk through meeting on Friday afternoon so who knows, there may even be more to see by then.

The Tileman

2008-01-22T09:44:00.000-05:00

As Sara and I were leaving Oak Terrace Preserve on Sunday, we noticed a couple trucks behind our place that hadn't been there long before. They were the tile men apparently as the bathroom tile is in. This picture is from the downstairs half-bath.

The electricians were there as well Sunday or Monday as all the lights are installed and it looks like the counter tops are going in soon.

I've been quiet but the builders haven't

2008-01-18T09:03:00.000-05:00

The painters put up the first coat of interior paint. We went with a simple tan color for the walls. Sara and I were by the house making measurements for area rugs and blinds. The tile guy will be at the house this week to do the bathroom floors and the plumber and electrician will likely be in this week as well. There's just about 6 weeks until we move in and it's coming along really fast.

Drywall & Cabinets

2007-12-23T10:50:00.000-05:00

We were away for a bit there but house progress was still being made. Drywall and a primer coat are up and the cabinet folks have been busy in the kitchen. We stopped by briefly on our way to the airport to snap these pictures.

Looking into the Living room from the kitchen/dining area.

Cabinets going up in the Kitchen.