What are super-insulated homes? Super-insulated homes were invented and built in response to the energy crisis in the 1970’s & 80's. Gas was in short supply and prices were high. There were long lines at gas stations and access was limited to manage the lines. ​Scientists researched increasing insulation thicknesses in homes to reduce the need for limited fossil fuels. Wall insulation thicknesses were increased from the 3 1/2” in typical 2x4 wood frame construction to 12” to 18” thick. Attic insulation thicknesses were also increased. The homes were well sealed with a vapor retarder. Imag ..read more

Existing homes can be brought up to or near the same energy efficiency performance as high-performing new homes. How do we do this?  For starters, the amount of insulation that will fit in a typical residential wall is more suitable for mild climates, like northern California. In Minnesota, using this amount of wall insulation is like standing outside in January in a windbreaker. You are going to have to burn a lot of calories to stay warm and you aren't likely to be comfortable. This is why our energy bills are so high. We need more insulation to be comfortable, stay healthy and expend ..read more

I met some kindred spirits on the Save Soil Walkathon at Lake Bde Maka Ska on Saturday, June 18. We walked around the lake on a gorgeous day and shared our experiences with friendly, generous people. Young and old walked to save an important part of our legacy for our children and children’s children. Being a big fan of food and fresh air, it is important to me that we protect our soil and help it flourish as it once did and can again ..read more

Decrease your cooling bills. Don’t cool your house with your refrigerator. And stop cooling the outside air with your house! The sun sends us more solar energy to create our beautiful warm summers. Besides melting the snow and ice, it warms the ground, water and air. Since heat energy always moves from higher concentrations to lower, a house that is now cooler than the outside air is one place for the heat energy to go. Outdoor heat heat moves through our roof, walls, windows and doors inside, trying to cool the outside by warming our house. So in the summer time, our houses are actually try ..read more

"Living soil is vital to life". "52% of agricultural soils are already degraded." We can ill afford to allow our ability to grow food on land. There is a Save Soil Walkathon this weekend starting on the south shore of Lake Bee Make Ska Park at 10am. I hope to see you there. I am hopeful we can save our soil, our oceans, lakes and rivers. More common sense reasons to decrease our carbon footprint. https://www.consciousplanet.org/walkathon "By 2045, it is expected we will be producing 40% less food than what we are producing right now, and our population will be 9.3 billion people. This is not ..read more

All of our clients are unique. All with individual and family needs. With varied life-styles, from homebodies, family gatherers, entertainers, or needing to flex between them. From individuals, couples starting a family, families outgrowing their homes, empty nesters downsizing, couples preparing to welcome an aging parent or people preparing to age-in-place at all ages. From commuting workers to families expanding home office and study spaces. We love designing homes to fit the individual needs of clients. To do this, we ask important questions and listen to your answers. We take notes and d ..read more

Beginning to live outside more is a sign of spring and summer in Minnesota. Shedding our coats, the warm sun and breezes feel great on our face and newly exposed arms and legs. The fresh, almost balmy, moist air soothes our lungs, now used to wintry cold dry air. Many of us also enjoy being outside in the winter, when the air is fresh, crisp and clean. It wakens us and makes our minds sharper. We love fresh air. We open up our houses with the warmer weather to bring the fresh air in.   Passive Houses provide us fresh air year round, 24/7/365. Fresh outdoor air is brought into our homes ..read more

Skyview Farm. Atop a hill, all the rooms overlook beautiful rural valleys with sky all around. The owners have settled in. The home is beautifully furnished and is functioning as the owner's envisioned. The living, kitchen and dining flow together, bathed in sunlight. The floor plan simplifies their life, supporting working from home, running their gardens, cooking and eating, entertaining family and sharing their home. The green house is developing as a year round food producer as they experiment with different growing lights through the winter. The root cellar / storm shelter ..read more

Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 10am on Zoom Visit the Cedar CoHousing website, events page, to register for free: https://www.cedarcohousing.llc Image from Cedar Cohousing website. Living cooperatively with your environment is sustainability. Cohousing is living cooperatively with your neighbors. In cohousing, you own your own complete living unit and share common facilities like community sized kitchen, living, dining, craft / hobby, laundry areas and possibly child-care. Outdoors you could have your own private gardens and share community sized gardens, play and parking areas. Sustainable ..read more

This is a great story about living with the land. Taking what the world gives and working with it, not against it. What energy and creativity this gentlemen has. Being with a place until you know what you want to grow out of it. Great form and structural intuition. A mix of the first generation of passive design, using the sun to heat the earth and water for storage, and active solar to generate electricity. Adding the second generation of Passive House, you can build like this or take some items from it, in a less mild climate like Minnesota. My dad was a maker. We had a farm, planted trees ..read more