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| Greenbuilding Archive for December 2001 |
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| 229 messages, last added Tue Nov 26 17:26:14 2002 |
[Date Index][Thread Index]
Re: [GBlist] Mold question and beyond
John,
I agree that a lot of the questioning, although I grant you is well intended
and are questions worth asking and answering, pretty much comes down to the
question of how many angels can fit on the head of a pin. I believe that
the larger question is can 6 billion people ever be sustainable and upon no
scientific basis have answered for myself at least in the negative.
In spite of the nihilism of this view, I do believe that this earth and all
of its creatures, animate and otherwise, are sacred. Consequently I try to
act in a way that honors our and their existence.
It seems to me that when we argue over the cost- benefit analysis of the
preservation of another endangered species, that we are missing the larger
issue about stewardship of this planet. So the LCA of fiberglass vs.
cellulose seems relatively unimportant, to me anyways.
Actually what provoked my response was your comment that engineered wood
products are not designed for durability. Do you have reason to believe
that I-joists, say, are likely to fail in 30 years or so? If there is a
problem, I would appreciate more information.
Thanks,
Bob Jordan
Original Message -----
From: "John Salmen" <terrain@shaw.ca>
To: "David Seth Melchert" <dmelchert@earthlink.net>; "Steven Shepard"
<sbtdesigns@earthlink.net>; <greenbuilding@crest.org>
Sent: Friday, December 28, 2001 10:04 PM
Subject: Re: [GBlist] Mold question and beyond
> thanks Seth for continuing the thread a little more. Perhaps it is a good
> beginning for a new year thread. I can't quite remember how long I've been
> contributing to this list but over the years the consistent base for the
> conversations has been building products, and the technology or building
> science behind them. We have had to relegate the 'problems' to the more
> speculative threads that dwindle quickly.
>
> The GBlist focus on products however is appropriate in perspective as much
> of the last decade has been a development of product within an economy
that
> could afford to build upon all the available technology - and find a
> marketplace (however slim.) In other words it has been a bit of an
> entrepreneurial decade which has been a boon for green building products.
> Some of these products have been inspired by improving IAQ standards or
> energy concerns, some by the increased availability of recycled
components,
> and still more by the diminishing availability of virgin materials,
whether
> wood or water.
>
> In this rush to get products, materials, and even concepts into the
> marketplace I think there has been a bit of loss of perspective or perhaps
> foresight . LCA's are a wonderful theoretical tool but in a more vulgar
> perspective I'm starting to consider simple basic questions like - can we
> afford to replace our Pella or equiv. windows every 15-25 years. Can we
> afford the repainting of an exterior every 5-10 yrs., the compressor on a
> heat pump every 8 or so yrs., the surfacing of a driveway, etc. When you
> look at the mortgage structures on most buildings they generally don't
> suffice to cover the replacement of the wearable components. It is a
> speculative nightmare and not to an 'owners' advantage.
>
> When I look at public or lower income 'housing solutions' the nightmare
> grows worse as I'm looking at designs and material usages that are hard
> pressed to survive a single occupancy much less a generations. Our
> engineered wood products are not designed for long term durability, our
> composite finishing products are very suspect. Our VOC finishing
> alternatives are a chemical soup, and our mechanical contraptions are
simply
> that, often or potentially appropriate but more often not.
>
> I'm not meaning to sound negative, and generally view most developments in
a
> positive sense but am curious how other building professionals have viewed
> the developments of the last decade.
>
> best
> John Salmen
> TERRAIN E.D.S.
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "David Seth Melchert" <dmelchert@earthlink.net>
> To: "Steven Shepard" <sbtdesigns@earthlink.net>; <greenbuilding@crest.org>
> Sent: Friday, December 28, 2001 4:32 PM
> Subject: Re: [GBlist] Mold question
>
>
> > Steve:
> >
> > Indeed there is a message here to consider.
> >
>
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
> This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
> Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
> Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
> ______________________________________________________________________
>
>
______________________________________________________________________
This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
______________________________________________________________________
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