The Greened House Effect

It may be an overused comparison, but major home renovation actually is a bit like child-birth, insofar as you really don’t remember the pain after the fact.  Until Sherri pulled out some old photos, I’d forgotten about our big Halloween party from many years ago.  The old pictures showed us preparing food on plywood countertops, bare light fixtures dangling from the ceiling, and the walls behind us stripped to the exterior sheathing – no plaster or insulation left after the big demolition of our kitchen in advance of a major overhaul.  At that point we also had two very young daughters, too, which compounded the issues of living in a construction zone.  Yet, there we were, throwing a big party in the mess.  The most surprising thing about those old pics?  We were actually smiling in the middle of the mayhem.

Our Deep Energy Retrofit was a little different, since we were sticking to the exterior of the house, but our nervousness about the impending winter weather constantly prodded us on.  Nobody wants to get caught half-dressed when the gales of November come early.  So it was with great relief that our sixth week started with Travis and Rem getting to work on the rear dormer roofing.  Since we’d raised the pitch of the rear roof up to a shallow, 1:12 pitch, we would not be able to use shingles back there.  We’d need a membrane roof to make sure it started and stayed water tight. 

Above: Rem preps for the WeatherBond Weld-Free TPO installation . . .

Below: WeatherBond Weld-Free TPO roll on the ground . . .

Normally this would be a black rubber roof, but we wanted something more durable, since we would be installing our solar panels there.  We didn’t want the roof failing before the solar panels had to be replaced in 30 years or so (our PV system is warranted for 20 years, but will likely last longer before out put falls dramatically).

Above: Travis rolls out the WeatherBond Weld-Free TPO

Below: Rem works (and lives) on the edge . . .

We decided to go with a more robust roofing, so we chose WeatherBond Weld-Free TPO.  This roofing is multi-layered – it’s black underneath but white on top, and sandwiches in a mesh reinforcement, making it much thicker than traditional rubber roofing.  This type of membrane roofing usually requires a commercial installer with a roof welder to seal the seams, but WeatherBond Weld-Free TPO doesn’t require a welder, using a system of seam- and edge-tapes with adhesives and sealants instead.  This meant that any residential roofer who followed the directions properly could install the roofing without any special, expensive tools.

Above: Travis seals the seams with tape . . .

Below: . . . and white seam-sealant.

Travis and Rem cleaned the surface and laid out the WeatherBond system.  They remarked often at how easy the WeatherBond Weld-Free TPO was to work with, compared with standard black rubber roofing.  It didn’t wrinkle or bunch up, and didn’t shrink the way black rubber roofing can in time.  The resulting surface was very sturdy and puncture resistant, which would be important as the solar installers started their work.

We also liked the white surface for our installation.  This would help to keep the roof surface cool in summer months, when high heat can reduce the efficiency of solar panels.  Keeping the surface cooler meant that the panels wouldn’t heat up as much, and the panels would continue to produce more power.

Above: Patrick installs drip edge on front roof . . .

Patrick and Matt kept at it on the front roof, installing the EcoStar tiles up there.  We were glad to see all of the roofing go up, and we felt like the worst of our water woes were over. 

By Friday, Stalwart Construction moved on to installing our Pro Via Windows in the addition.  Installing windows is tricky, and needs to be done correctly to make sure water stays out, generally speaking.  Should water get in, however, it needs to be able to drain away, so close attention is needed to make sure all of the pieces of membrane-tape overlap correctly and that caulk is used in the right places.

Above: Jeff waits for a window . . . note the FoamItGreen spray-foam insulation in the new wall cavities. This 2 1/2" of foam will be backed up by R-13 fiberglass batt for an R-30, air-sealed wall.

Below: Installing a window in the addition . . .

The Stalwart Construction crew was meticulous, following the rules to a T.  They were able to install all of the addition windows that one day, and even installed the kitchen window on the main house.  These high-quality Pro Via windows were a key ingredient in our recipe for Deep Energy Efficiency.  Since we were building out the exterior walls by about 4”, we were able to replace the old windows with “new construction” windows instead of replacement windows, giving us full control over sealing our building envelope where the windows meet the house.

Above: Jeff & Rem apply the membrane tape to the kitchen window sill . . .

Below: The kitchen window opening . . . note the bats hanging from the ceiling, marking another Halloween where we experience the joys of home renovation.

We were happy to see the window installation – just another step toward being “dried-in” before winter started.  On Monday, I knew that Conrad would be coming from Pro Via to install the new front entry door and the doors on the addition.  As the week ended, I was reminded of how close we were to our yearly Halloween party, a tradition that has held on since the year we remodeled the kitchen.  I realized that our guests would once again be able to experience a Wilson remodeling project up-close, and I was looking forward to telling everyone about the process of our Deep Energy Retrofit.

Check out our videos at www.youtube.com/greenedhouseeffect.com or here on our site in HD!