Shannon Pollard is committed to creating an environmentally sensitive community on the Nashville property his grandfather, Grand Ole Opry star and Country Music Hall of Fame member Eddy Arnold, called home. That’s why one day he found himself supervising the release of 6,000 minnows. The tiny fish will eat algae choking the ponds where his
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In ancient times—30 or so years ago—someone with basic construction knowledge could build a serviceable home. No more. Today, the combination of contemporary building materials and code-mandated construction practices have made homes more complex with less margin for error.
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It’s as much about the experience as the result. Some homeowners have asked: How does a builder know when a project has been a success? Well, there’s good news—the answer to this question is one of the things that defines a great builder. To a pro, every successful project crosses the finish line with three outcomes.
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Architecturally reminiscent of homes built in the late 1800s, the Nashville Symphony Show House evokes a nostalgic, yet timeless feeling. The home has a parapet clad entrance and deep reveal lap siding, making it a perfect example of Southern Contemporary Folk design. Though traditional in appearance, the home is constructed using the most up-to-date and
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Energy efficiency plays a central role in building any new home. Building a “green” home, however, requires energy efficiency and much more. “Green building” means taking a comprehensive approach to energy and resource efficiencies from design through construction and operation of the house. Certain components of a home’s construction contribute greatly to the success of such an
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When we hear the term “green building,” most of us think of energy efficiency and, increasingly, healthy indoor air quality. While those are certainly central components of high-performance housing — especially given our nation’s current energy prices — they are not the only factors that ensure a truly sustainable approach to home building. One of
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Healthy indoor air quality may be the most important aspect of building green. After all, what could be more important to your health than the air you breathe? Achieving healthy indoor air, however, depends on a comprehensive approach to high-performance building. There’s no way, for example, to make an indoor environment comfortable and healthy without
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Improving home energy efficiency and building more sustainable housing is no longer a trend — it’s mainstream. As a professional builder, we feel it’s important to keep up on emerging technologies that may soon help our clients save money, improve comfort and reduce our impact on the environment. In the spirit of learning about these
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It wasn’t that long ago that a window was a window … was a window. Basically, a hole in the wall fitted with a wood-framed pane of glass that allowed a view to the outside and provided a little bit of daylight into a house. Over the past 25 years, windows have changed dramatically. Not
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New homes are built to save energy, and a primary component of that goal is insulation. The definition of insulation, however, is rapidly expanding as homebuyers and energy codes demand even better energy-use performance from new homes. Today, there are far more options than those rolls of fiberglass you see on the shelves of big-box
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After a 40-year hiatus, solar energy is cool again. But for those who remember bulky aluminum frames awkwardly balanced on the roof, the current look, use, performance, and value of today’s solar energy systems has changed dramatically. As a professional builder, we keep a sharp eye on products and systems that are getting the public’s
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Most “green building” conversations emphasize energy efficiency. By contrast, the issue of water — its scarcity, purity, and significance to sustainability — is often overlooked or discounted. That’s because in North America, we take water for granted; not only is it cheap, it is relatively abundant and clean. But while an average bathtub may hold
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Just as the human body has a respiratory system, so a house has specialized equipment to bring fresh air inside, filter it, distribute and ‘exhale’ it. The respiratory equipment in a house is often referred to as “HVAC,” for “heating, ventilating and air conditioning.”
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As a professional builder confronted with “green” claims from a variety of building product manufacturers and some competitors, we are keenly aware of the threat that greenwashing can have on our credibility as a quality contractor. So, in our business, we make every effort to substantiate the claims made by our suppliers regarding reduced water use, recycled content, energy efficiency, and other performance characteristics that relate to creating a “green” building.
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Builders buy their materials from suppliers that offer benefits to them and the homebuyer. Some customers express curiosity about the places different suppliers occupy in the building supply chain. With that in mind, we thought it worth explaining why we buy our materials and products where we do. The basic choice is between the “big
Wireless lighting controls are likely in your future. Here’s why. Mention home lighting trends and what comes to mind is the growth of LEDs. But the incandescent bulb isn’t the only thing about to disappear—the wall switch may be going the same way. That’s because more homeowners are opting for “smart” lighting controls that replace conventional
Top Tier Interior Designers From Across the U.S. Including Barclay, Butera, Vern Yip, Among Others Will Contribute to the Concept House Debuting in October 2019
Understanding the variables that affect the schedule Many clients approach a builder with an idea about how long it should take to finish their new home. Some underestimate the time the project will require, while others expect it to take a lot longer. Every builder loves being able to deliver a quality home on budget
A lot of people don’t understand the sheer complexity of the builder’s job and the systems required to build a house from scratch. Many analogies have been used to describe the professional builder: the conductor of an orchestra, the captain of a ship, even a general executing a military campaign. The point is that the