Greenhouse for under $115

Building a small greenhouse can be a cost effective way to extend your growing season.  The challenge has been that most of the kits available online are expensive or the instructions are unclear.  I decided to start from scratch and have documented the process if anyone would like to copy the design. 

In order to accommodate the raised bed that was already in place, it was necessary to customize some of the measurements.  The instructions below are standardized for an 8' x 7' greenhouse, which will reduce the waste from odd size cuts that leave unusable stubs. 

Multi-family Portfolio Approach Strategies

The following strategies can be incorporated in both rental as well as Home Owner Association scenarios.

Consumption Management

• Installing time of day metering equipment to find the peak demand
• Utility companies have acess to the aggregate energy use data for properties
• May have to go to commissions to compel them to give out aggregate energy use data on the units

Procurement management

Selecting Projects

After completing an energy audit you should have a baseline rate of energy usage to which you can compare future use.  In order to have the best results it is important that you have at least one year of past usage and that the property is stabilized.  The next step is identifying projects that will increase efficiencies and lower the environmental impact of a property.  There are various ways to identify projects.  One strategy when dealing with a multiple property portfolio is to bring together a team from different disciplines or departments within a company to brainstorm ideas.  On-site staff can be an invaluable tool in this area because they are able to identify property specific opportunities.  The more individuals involved in the brainstorming process increases the diversity and out of the box ideas.

Multifamily Audits

There are specific challenges posed by multifamily properties due to the fact that it can be difficult to calculate the total energy use of the building. As addressed by panelists David Kuperberg – CEO Cooper Square Realty, David Diestel – VP operations First Service Residential, and Frederick Golner - Energy Resource Management, Portfolio Approach to Energy Performance in Residential Multifamily Communities at Greenbuild 2009,

Energy Auditing: The First Step

Before beginning any improvements or projects designed at increasing efficiencies, it is imperative to have a basis for comparison. An energy audit is the process of assessing current rates of consumption. Whether dealing with energy, water, or any other variable, having a baseline rate of use offers a way to quantify any subsequent changes. By dividing the amount of change from the base rate, by the original base rate, you are able to find the percentage increase or decrease in usage. This information will ultimately help in determining the return on investment of any project.

Green Building Hurdles

The Sustainability and Green movements are gaining popularity to the extent that the terms have almost become cliche. However, despite the amount of press that this new environmentalism has been getting recently, the ideas and practices have yet to break into the mainstream. Nowhere is this more evident than in the real estate industry. There are new building standards, rating systems and an abundance of "green" products to choose from, but green building is suffering from 3 misconceptions that are currently keeping it from being fully accepted by the general public.

There is a general idea that in order for a building to be sustainable or energy-efficient, then it has to have a certain look. Contrary to popular belief, for a building to be green, it does not have to look futuristic. While there are many features that could be added to a building to increase efficiency, such as solar panels, green roofs, rain water harvesting systems etc., it is possible to have a building that blends into the surrounding community without these distinguishing "green" features.