SYNRGYdesign

Many people like to believe that being GREEN costs them more money.  Yes there was a time when recycled products, environmentally friendly materials where a little more expensive as an initial cost but the benefits where seen in the life cycle cost of the product or material.  That can still be true for certain things.  But for many things now, being GREEN isn’t expensive anymore or just for eccentric people who grew up in the 70’s.  Being GREEN can actually save you money.  Here are a few tips on how choosing environmentally friendly materials can save you money.

1. Reusable Water Bottle - buy a big jug of water or better yet use a filter system on your tap water and just fill up a reusable water bottle.  You won’t be spending extra money on individualized water bottles and you’ll save the landfills.

2. New Larger washer and dryer - many of the newer washer and dryers are also larger.  The front loading washer and dryers are a lot bigger then some of the older ones, more energy efficient.  They can handle larger loads which means less time doing laundry for you and more money saved on electricity and water from not having to do more loads.

3. Reuse old birthday and christmas cards by turning them into homemade postcards.  It will save you money and allow you to keep in touch with friends and family member you haven’t talked to in a while.

4. Use Refillable Soap Bottles.  Not only are they foam soaps fun for kids - if you buy a soap bottle of a favorite character they like, it will make them more likely to wash their hands and reduce the chances of them getting sick.  The less they are sick, the less time you have to bring them to the doctors, and the happier everyone will be.

These are just a few tips.  If you did a Google search, you’ll find a lot more tips from people.  Many people have found a great way to find new use of old products.  Using environmentally friendly products and materials not only will help the environment but it will help everyone live just a little bit happier.

As a potential home buyer in a buyers market, I always wonder why it has to be such a process.  I’ve only bought 2 other homes in the past 8 years so I don’t have as much experience.  Our first home purchase was pretty easy.  I really don’t remember it being such a process.  We put in an offer right before our wedding.  Escrow started just days before our wedding and with us leaving for our honeymoon.  We scrambled to do the home inspection before we left.  I remember we cam back and signed the papers and somehow, somewhere, we got the keys to the house.  Our first house was a fixer.  It used to be a rental and it still had everything original from when it first was built.  Ironically it was the same age as Jon.  I don’t remember even turning on the utilities.  I remember the first night we had the keys, we went to the house to change the locks and take a look at it.  I remember almost getting locked in the garage but that’s about it.  The whole process of buying the house seemed relatively simple.

Fast forward 8 years and 2 kids later, the process isn’t quite so simple.  Just looking at houses now is very different.  We have 2 kids to think about.  8 years ago we weren’t thinking about school district or lot size.  We just wanted to get a house so we could be out on our own.  There was something about being married and having a house that seemed to fit together.  Now I’ve spent months researching schools and school districts.  I’ve tried to figure out the school boundaries and looked through dozens of forums to try to find out which school is good and which neighborhoods feed into those schools.  Something I didn’t do 8 years ago.

A year ago, we bought a house with my parents, in a really nice neighborhood and good schools.  After having spent probably 6 months of looking at houses on the internet and in different cities, it was nice to finally settle down.  Of course I should have known better.  Things happened, people changed, needless to say, we had to move again after 7 months.  I was back to looking at schools, neighborhoods, and packing up.  I was starting to get the hang of the packing, but the actual moving part wasn’t easy.  So we decided to find a place near work so that we wouldn’t be too far from the kids when they’re at school.  The housing markets in our favor and since we didn’t want to rush into anything, we decided to rent.

Since we are temporarily renting a house now to get a feel for the area, I’ve sort of had a dry run when it comes to setting up utilities and such.  It’s not always the easiest thing to do as one might think.  Also, since we had to move to the rental, I’ve had a taste of what it’s like to move with 2 kids.  Definitely not easy but can be accomplished with some help.  But all of that is just the prep work for the whole house buying saga.  We’ve been looking now for 6 months and the whole process hasn’t even started.  We’ve barely gotten our foot in the doors.  So I guess that’s where the house buying saga continues…

Now that we are in the buying process of real estate; I always wonder what it is that other people look at in a house, what are they looking for and what are their opinions when they walk thru a house.  I’ve never sold a house.  I helped my parents sell their house last year and tried to “fix” it up so that it was presentable.  It was always a fixer but something that was still move-in ready.  The appliance where 15 years old, there was hard wood floors, but the walls probably needed new paint.  It was priced right for the time and the area.  There where a lot of things that could have been “fixed” or upgraded to make the price hight but they also wanted to sell right away and didn’t want to put the effort into upgrading things.  The people who bought it where able to just move right in.

So when we go look at houses now, we kind of classify things as - fixer but need work right away, fixer but move in ready, work to be done as we live there, and total turn key - nothing needs to be done at all.  Now I think most people want the latter, a total turn key that they don’t need to do a thing too.  Sometimes I think I want that too.  But in reality, what we like are the fixers.  I know what we see when we look at a house, but I always wonder what other people see.

As the housing market slows down and there becomes an inventory for buyers too choose from.  It’s evident that buyers are taking there time and really looking at homes more closely.  Also, there are a lot of short sales and foreclosure/bank owned homes on the market.   Now more then ever, there are homes that fall in the fixer categories.  As buyers look at these fixers, the question for many as they walk thru is “is it even worth it to fix this house up?”.  Now as an architect, we don’t look at some of the typical things most home buyers look at when walking thru a house the first time.  From talking to many people, it seems that presentation, finishes, size and layout are the biggest things.  If you watch a lot of HGTV, you know that presentation and staging are what hook a lot of buyers.  

But we don’t look at those things when we walk a house.  We look at the size, the layout, the roof, the walls, the neighborhood, and most importantly the “potential” the house has.  We don’t really have must have list like most people.  There are certain things we require - minimum 3 bedrooms, good layout, as big a lot as possible, good school district and most importantly PRICE.  We don’t really look at the floor finish or the paint.  If the kitchen is out of date, so much the better.  All those things can be changed.  The thing we look at, besides the price, are things you really can’t change.  You can’t change the lot size.  Land isn’t  going to get cheaper.  You can’t change the school district.  You could probably add on another bedroom if you needed it but you would have to have the lot size to do it.  You can’t change the layout of the house that much unless you want to totally knock it down.  Price is negotiable now a days, more so then ever, but you can’t negotiate a million dollar home down to $500K.  Carpet, paint, appliances, even the doors and windows can all be changed.  You can do them right away or gradually.

The first house we bought was a fixer.  It was move in condition but everything was still original to the house.  It took us 8 years but we did eventually change most of the things in the house.  The only thing left to do to it would be the windows and the guest bathroom - and even that would probably only require a new tub.  As a home buyer in todays market, you shouldn’t feel turned off by some of these foreclosures that seem like “a lot of work.”  The potential of a house is what is often over looked by many.  If you can see the potential, there may be a lot more homes on your list then you think.

Most home owners probably aren’t familiar with LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).  LEED is under the umbrella of the U.S Green Building Council, which is a non-profit organization committed to expanding sustainable building practices.  LEED is a certification program  and a nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.  As an architect, I’ve known about LEED since the beginning.  To be LEED accredited is big now.  Everyone wants to have their buildings be LEED certified.  But it hasn’t really hit main stream residential projects yet.  There are a few custom homes that are LEED certified.  As the push for more sustainable design and construction becomes a standard instead of a wish list, LEED will more toward the forefront and become more main stream.  As an architect, I like that.  I want everyone to build to LEED standard.  I want all buildings to be high performance green buildings.  But I have to wonder, what will happen once everything is LEED?  To be a Silver or Gold LEED certified building was a great accomplishment.  Everyone in the construction and building industry looked in awe at the buildings that were LEED certified in the beginning because it was such a great accomplishment.  Now the question is, can your house be LEED certified?  The answer is YES.  There is a LEED rating system for homes.  It is to promote the design and construction of high performance green homes.  Green homes are very big selling points in real estate now which is a plus in this down market.  But unfortunately it’s only for new construction.  If you are building a new house, LEED certification is the way to go at the very least to use as a check list of things you should look into during the design process.  If you are remodeling, you can’t get LEED certification for your remodeling project, but it’s still a good idea to use that check list as a guide of things you could do to the house to help make it more “green”.  I would encourage all home owners to look into the LEED rating system and see how you can make you house more of a high performance green home .

About 2 weeks ago we were complaining because we we’re having halloween in 80 degree weather.  Now it’s getting colder and I’m sure a lot of people are thinking about how to gear up for winter.  As you start pulling out your winter clothes and start making your skiing plans, one thing to think about is gearing up your house for winter as well.  You might think that you don’t have to get your house ready for the cold but by doing a few little things to get ready for those cold winter months you could be saving yourself some time and money in the long run.  Here are a few thing to look at that will hopefully become routine as the years go by.

1. Change out your furnace filter.  We change this out every year around this time.  It’s something that a lot of people forget to do.  If your filter is dirty and old because you haven’t replaced it in a while, think about all the heat your loosing because the filter is dirty.  Not only that, think about the dust your breathing in because your furnace cant’ get clean air!

2. Clean your duct work.  You might not need to do this every year, but if you haven’t done it in a while, you really should get it cleaned.  You will be amazed about the amount of dust and dirt that can get trapped there and then you furnace is essentially blowing it out every time it turns on.  Not a good thing to be breathing especially if you have little kids.

3. Change the battery on your smoke detectors.  Of course you probably are saying the smoke detector will tell you if the battery is dead but it’s always a good idea to check it and replace it every year.  If you smoke detector is over 10 years old you should really replace it. They aren’t that expensive when you consider what could happen if you don’t have a working one.

4. Check doors and windows for leaks.  Leaks in doors and windows can drive up your heating bill.  If you have a leak, caulk it.  If it’s really bad, replace the window or door.  If you can’t afford to do that, find a way to seal it.  We use those draft stops on my daughters window because it was just so cold all the time and we couldn’t afford to replace the window.  If all else fails, install curtains.  They help to keep the cold air out.

5. Close vents and doors in rooms that won’t be occupied during the night.  If you have a guest room or an office that you aren’t going to be in during the night when it’s the coldest, close the vent in there and the door so the heater won’t be kicking on trying to heat a room that no one is in.  Save all the heat for the bedrooms where people are sleeping.

Hope these tips help a few people.  They can save you some money during those cold winter months and they also help keep your house in good shape so that you can enjoy it for the years to come.

As new construction seems to be slowing down due to the economy, remodeling has slowed also but not as much.  Most people are looking to remodeling as an option since selling a house now a days isn’t the best thing to do if you can still afford to stay in your home.  As people look to remodeling, some questions of being able to “go green” come to mind.  Many people may think that remodeling limits how and where you can implement “green” ideas.  But as an architect, I think remodeling is a great way to implement “green” ideas that weren’t originally done when the house was designed.  Now not many “tract” homes lend itself to being able to do some things that would have been great if they were done when the house was built.  One problem many people encounter is the fact that there house doesn’t have insulation in the walls.  If you have an older home, you probably have a house that doesn’t have insulation in the walls.  Now unless you plan on tearing out the dry wall in all your rooms, you don’t have much choice but to leave it alone.  Many people have added insulation to their attic space which helps.  One could add rigid insulation to the outside and re-stucco the house, thereby adding insulation and thickness to the house.  But this would require you changing your windows at the same time as well.  Now if you are only planning to do a “small” remodel - maybe not add any square footage to your house but just want to update it, here’s a few things you might want to look into.

1. Flooring - bamboo flooring has gotten really big the last few year.  It is renewable because of it’s fast growth and it’s very hardy.  We used it in our old house and loved it.  Another alternative to look into is cork flooring.  One thing I really like is being able to re-use other things for a new purpose.  Many people are now looking into re-using old railroad ties that are being converted into hardwood flooring. I think anything that will keep a material out of the landfill and given a new life is worth it.

2. Appliances - many people want to change out their appliances because they’ve gotten old.  The good thing about that is that many of the new appliances are more energy efficient.  If you spend a little time you will discover that even just meeting the new energy efficient codes is not enough.  Some manufacturers go even a step further.  You can get rebates for some of your appliances.  Southern California Edison will even pay you $50 to get your old working refrigerator out of your house.  

3. Landscaping - zero landscaping has gotten some notice lately especially here in Southern California.  I think the more appropriate term should be native landscaping.  Southern California is a desert by nature.  The landscaping of the housing around here should be that of a desert.  It would save on watering costs, electricity, and on man power.  Imagine how much time you could save if you didn’t have to mow the lawn every other weekend?  Planting native plants to your area will not only help the local environment, but it will also bring back some of the natural beauty of the landscape that has been lost from imported planting.

These are just a few things to start looking into when you start thinking about remodeling.  Of course there are many other things you can do even in a “small” remodeling job that will help you “go green”.

I’ve been asked by a few people how they can start “going Green”.  I believe they ask me because they know I’m an architect and think that I may have some insight into “going Green”.  I wish I could tell them something new and exciting that would change their world and make “going Green” a lot easier so that everyone can do it.  There are some simple steps that everyone can do that will help and just so you know, I do follow them.  For starters, here’s my list of some simple things to do to start “going Green”.

1.  Use a refillable water bottle.  I don’t buy the individual water bottles.  I buy the 2.5 gallon bottles and fill up a re-usable bottle when ever I go out.  If I’m at home, I use the same glass for the entire day and just keep refilling it with water.

2. Recycle all your paper and cardboard.  I’ve found that you can recycle quite a bit of paper and boxes if you just make a conscious effort before you throw everything in the trash to see if it’s a good thing to recycle or not.  We shred all the import papers, but every piece of paper or cardboard or plastic that we can recycle we do.  We have a recycle box that we use to help separate the things.  I’ve gotten to the point where our recycle bin is filled more then our regular trash bin.

3. Turn the heater down when during those cold winter days (keep in mind I live in Southern California also).  I’m the last person to say don’t turn the heater on.  I don’t like to be cold.  But if you turn it down during the day and just put on a sweater and open the blinds and let the sun in.

4. Turn off the AC off.  Now I haven’t lived in a house with an AC since my parents place until just recently.  So I haven’t had to deal with the temptation of turning on the AC when the hot summer months push the temperature to over 100 degrees.  But I have found that even though I can turn the AC on now, I don’t.  I have gotten used to and enjoy the fresh air that comes when you open a few windows.  Now not every house or building is designed with cross ventilation in mind.  And I for one do not like sleeping in very hot weather.  But I have found that opening a few windows especially at night and letting the cool air in and closing the windows during the peak hours of hot temperature during the day does help and makes it comfortable most of the time.

5. Don’t run your major appliances - dishwasher, washer, dryer - during peak hours (10 am to 3 pm).  Being in California and the threat of possible rolling blackouts to conserve energy has mad many people aware of peak hours over here.  Living in an older house, with an electrical panel not sized for today’s electrical requirements, I’ve learned to not overload my usage too much.  I don’t do laundry or the dishwasher during those peak hours.  I don’t run the AC before I try opening the windows and using some well placed fans to provide a cross ventilation breeze going.

I will post more tips later but these are an easy way to start the Green process.  If everyone did a few of these steps every day, we would make a big difference.  They aren’t new or inventive techniques and I’m sure many of you already do quite a few of them yourself.

One thing Jon and I have always agreed upon is real estate.  We don’t always agree on things and we both have strong opinions about many things but real estate is one of the few things we have always been on the same page.  We’ve always felt that once we bought a house or a piece of real estate we would always hold on to it as much as possible.  When we bought our first house in Cypress over 8 years ago, we really didn’t know what we were getting into.  We had just gotten out of college, just gotten married and just bought a house — all within a year for me.  We basically did everything you shouldn’t do at the same time, AT THE SAME TIME.  But it was very exciting for us and a big transition.  We we’re grown up.  We had a house, a job, and we were married.  Time past, we had a kid, then another one.  Then we really started thinking about buying a new home again.  We wanted to find a place that was in a good school district and that had a big lot.  When our kids where born, the housing market was sky rocketing.  We couldn’t afford to even think about buying another house, as much as we would have like to.  Now 2 years later, we’re actually looking for a new house.  

So what changed?   The housing market dropped.  And now it’s buyer’s market.  The proverbial “bubble” popped for the sellers and now it’s on the buyer’s side.  But we can’t help but wonder, what is this “bubble” that everyone keeps talking about?  We know prices are going down, but so is the economy.  We keep looking for those good deals, but can’t seem to find them.  So where is this “bubble”?  What is the “bubble”?  Is there only a “bubble” for sellers?  Is there a “bubble” for buyers?  

Unfortunately, it’s not going down in the areas we want to buy a house.  Does that mean there is still a “bubble” for sellers over there?  If so, when is it going to pop?  I keep hearing that we should wait until 2009, 2010 and that will be the bottom.  How do you know you hit the bottom?  Only when you start to go up can you see the bottom.  So I guess we’re not at the bottom yet since it’s still going down.  But you can’t predict the bottom until you’ve passed it.  So what are we doing?  We’re waiting and watching and looking for the house that fits us and our budget.  I’m sure we’ll find something.  It’s finding the patients that can be trying sometimes.

So how did SYNRGY design start?  How did we come up with the name SYNRGY?  Those are things we’re asked all the time.  So how DID it start?

in the beginning….

It started about 10 maybe 11 years ago while Jon and I were still in school.  Jon was going to graduate and I still had a year left.  The internet was just starting to take off.  It wasn’t a virtual world back then.  Not everyone had email.  No one even really used the term “google” yet.  We were connecting to the internet via a dial up modem thru my Power MAC at a whopping 9.6 kbps or some obscenely low rate.  We both had just spent a lot of time and money on an education we weren’t even sure what we we’re going to do with yet.  We we’re taught so many new things in school - software, techniques, tools, etc.  We didn’t have a plan.  We didn’t know what we were going to do?  We hadn’t even really discussed what we’d do after school ended.  We were too wrapped up in our projects and staying up late trying to finish them.  We had no clue what we were even going to do in the summer after Jon graduated.

I’m not really sure how we got on the subject or what made us get a domain name other then it sounded really cool to do at the time.  What 24 year old college student wouldn’t want their own domain name.  We kicked around a few names, things we thought we’re funny or interesting or ones that some big company should have we thought we’d get and then wait for them to offer us a ton of money to buy that domain name from us.  I told you we were young and very much sleep deprived.  Then we started talking about what it meant to work in architecture, how it’s a blending of many different disciplines merging together to create a cohesive design and the word SYNERGY kept coming up.  Well, SYNERGY.com was already taken.  So we took the “E” out thinking it looked cooler and more architecture-y and found that synrgy.net was available.  So SYNRGY design was born and it has evolved from many different things to what it is today, which will probably change again in 10 years but for now this is it.  SYNRGY design is here.

As an architect, I have seen the growth of “Going Green.”  It’s now mainstream.  Everyone wants it.  Everyone knows something about it.  It’s the new IN thing.  But I have to ask - what took you all so long?  As a kid growing up in Southern California, I was exposed to a lot of things.  I remember people talking back then about the environment and conserving water.  I remember the big thing was the hole in the  ozone layer.  But I guess the thinking just stopped for most people at the hole in the ozone layer.  Because nothing else was really done about all the other things we need to do to save the environment. 

Then I went to Architecture School.  I was fortunate enough to be in a program that was in School of Environmental Design.  I learned a lot there.  But a lot of what I learned wasn’t new, cutting edge stuff.  It was stuff that has been around since the beginning - when humans figured out they needed some sort of shelter from the environment.  Concepts like natural lighting, cross ventilation, use of natural materials - have all been around for centuries.  So what happened?  Where did we loose those concepts to can lights, air conditioning, and synthetic materials?  How did we loose our way? And more importantly, how can we find our way back?