Upstate Forever Office

When the upstairs air conditioning unit in our current main office stopped working for a few days last month, we were all reminded how vital a heating, ventilation and cooling (HVAC) system is for employee productivity.  But when all systems are working properly, HVAC accounts for a whopping 53% of energy use in a typical office building (source: http://www.esource.com/BEA/hosted/PDF/CEA_offices.pdf).  So in choosing an HVAC system for our new office, we sought to maximize both comfort and energy efficiency.

  Our consulting engineers, the Sims Group, designed a system consisting of two split-system Carrier heat pumps, one on each level of our two-story building.  But that’s not all–each of the two systems is then divided into multiple zones.  The first level has six zones and the second level has three.  The temperature can be set separately in each of the nine zones, avoiding the problem typical in many offices where some folks are sweating and some are shivering.  This also saves a great deal of energy, as unoccupied rooms do not get overheated or overcooled, while large groups gathered for meetings will stay comfortable.

    The efficiency of an HVAC system is measured by its SEER (seasonal energy efficiency ratio) rating.  This rating is based on the number of BTUs used for cooling during the hot months divided by the total electric energy input in watt-hours during the same season.  (source: http://energystar.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/energystar.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=3041) The result is a simplified process for consumers, who can compare apples to apples when choosing among HVAC systems by looking at the SEER ratings.  In addition, the SEER rating system enables governments to pass legislation requiring minimum levels of energy efficiency that are not too cumbersome to implement.  For example, as of January 2006, all air conditioners in the US must have a minimum SEER rating of 13.

  To qualify as an Energy Star product, an HVAC system must have a SEER rating of at least 14, but we wanted to maximize energy conservation in the renovated Upstate Forever office.  Our new system boasts high SEER ratings: the manufacturer rated then at 19, assuming ideal conditions, while the Sims Group calculated SEER ratings for the two units as 18.3 and 16.8, based on actual conditions.  A system with a SEER rating of 18 is 38% more efficient than a standard system with a SEER rating of 13.

The high energy-efficiency of our new HVAC system is due primarily to three factors: (1) the large surface area of the condenser coil (in the part of the unit located outdoors); (2) the rotary motion of the compressor (indoors), rather than the standard reciprocating (piston-like) motion; and (3) the variable-speed fan motors in our air-handling units, rather than conventional constant speed ones.  According to Scott Poole of the Sims Group, “the air handler can match the air flow of the system to the requirements of the zones.  In a typical zoned system without variable speed fans, the extra air is bypassed from the supply ductwork to the return ductwork and the fan does work that is unnecessary for meeting the demand of the building.”  We’re looking forward to being cool, comfortable, and energy-efficient in our new space!    

Many experts agree that if you could do “just one thing” to make your home or office more energy efficient, it would be insulation.  Heat has a very annoying natural characteristic—it likes to move in the direction of cooler air.  Insulation impedes this movement—it helps keep heat inside a building in the winter and outside during the summer.  Since one half to 70 per cent of the energy used in a building is for heating and cooling, insulation is a highly effective way to reduce both utility bills and greenhouse gas emissions.

So for our project, the question was never whether we would insulate, but what kind of insulation we would use.  Fortunately, there are now several eco-friendly insulation products on the market.  One of these—BioBased—was used at Upstate House.  Other options include recycled denim (blue jean scraps), cellulose (recycled newspapers), wool, and hemp.   A new product called Greensulate, which is made from mushroom fibers, rice hulls, and recycled paper, is now being tested and could be on the market in a couple of years.

Excellent summaries of green insulation products are available at:

www.greenhomeguide.com/index.php/knowhow/entry/974/c236 

www.inhabitat.com/2006/08/10/lets-talk-about-insulation-baby/ 

For our insulation, we decided to use Icynene, a spray foam and air barrier system that has a wide range of benefits:

Ø      It contains no ozone-depleting substances

Ø      It does not off-gas over time

Ø      It creates a continuous air barrier in the walls, ceilings and floors, thus minimizing condensation, moisture build-up and growth of mold and mildew

Ø      It does not shrink, settle or sag

Ø      It maintains its performance over time with no loss of R-value

Ø      It reduces energy bills by 30 to 50%

For more information, see www.icynene.com.

Icynene insulation surrounding a skylight window on the second floor.

In addressing the issue of the roof for our new office, the first challenge was the existing one—or more accurately, ones.  We were stunned to discover that the previous owners had installed a mind-boggling seven roofs on the building!  No one ever bothered to remove any of the previous roofs—they just put new ones on top.  The end result: seven heavy layers that we had to remove.         

The first two roofs were made of wood and were recycled.  The next five roofs were asphalt shingles that were too deteriorated to reuse or recycle – sadly, we had no choice but to dispose of the material in the landfill.      

Once this ordeal was behind us, we eagerly anticipated the installation of our new roof: Life Pine Shake and Shingles manufactured by Cox Industries, a company located in Orangeburg, South Carolina.  The wood for the roof is harvested from sustainably managed forests in South Carolina and Georgia and is treated with copper azole, a water-based and non-toxic preservative that prevents mildew, insect damage and general decay.  Plus, it is beautiful and comes with a 50 year warranty.  For more information, see http://www.lifepine.com/ or email Billy Taylor at btaylor@coxwood.com.   

Cox Industries gave us a generous discount on the price.  We are proud and honored to have this great South Carolina company as one of our sponsors.

Workers installing the new roof.  Note the silver mounts already in place for the solar panels.

Our New Roof! 

Getting to the starting line for our renovation work was a challenge.  Not only did we have to deal with the asbestos, but we faced three more big problems — termites, rot, and fire, as the photos below dramatically reveal:

Damage from an old fire (probably before World War II) that we didn’t know about until the asbestos abatement was completed.

 Deteriorated bands

Rotted joists

Termite damage (worse than we thought!)

Every item from the building is being reused and recycled if at all possible.

One of the two original chimneys on the house that were no longer functional.  The chimneys were dismantled, and all of the intact bricks are being used either for the building’s foundation or for outdoor walkways.  The broken bricks are being recycled.  

All metal and concrete pieces were reused or recycled.

In the back of our property there was an old out-building that was probably used long ago as a garage or storage shed.  We were going to demolish the building and recycle the wood, but Tom Titcomb, one of our builders, had a better idea.  He wanted to use it at his property for a new chicken coop.  We said, Go for it Tom!  So he dismantled the building board by board, carried it to his farm, and reconstructed it.  It is now the home for some very happy chickens!

The pieces of our out-building on the way to Tom’s farm.

Our out-building, now reconstructed as a chicken coop!

The City of Greenville established the Design and Preservation Commission (DPC) to review and approve construction and renovation in the city’s historic districts, including the Pettigru Historic District, where our new office is located.

Although the DPC has been in operation for over nine years, our project would be its first opportunity to consider the use of green features in a historic disctrict.  To help the DPC prepare for our proposal, our architect, Scott Johnston, briefed the Commission in late September 2007 on an initiative by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) and the National Trust for Historic Preservation to establish specific guidelines on the issues.  Here is the link to some of the information he provided from the Greening of Historic Properties National Summit: White Paper.

Our proposal was heard by the DPC on October 4, 2007.  Despite Scott’s excellent briefing the month before, we knew it would not be easy.  Upstate Forever Executive Director Brad Wyche gave the Commisison an overview of the nature and purpose of the project, and Scott followed with a summary of the specifics.  As we anticipated, the DPC’s concerns were the solar panels on the roof and the removal of the chimneys (to provide more sunlight for the panels).  Several of the Commisisoners had serious concerns about the impact of this work on the historic character of the house and the precedent that approving the work could set for future projects.  Other Commissioners were enthusiastic about the project.  The debate lasted for more than half an hour, and finally a vote was taken.

It could not have been closer: 5 in favor, 4 opposed.  So we have approval to proceed!  When the project is completed, we hope those four Commissioners who voted no will come see for themselves how well green features fit within a historic district.

Our office was originally constructed as a residence in 1913. At that time and until the late 1970s, the common practice in the building industry was to use products and materials that contained asbestos. The substance was widely used because of its exceptional fire retardant qualities, but there was little understanding of its potential to cause serious harm to human health and the environment.

As these risks became better known and as lawsuits erupted around the country, stringent controls on the use of asbestos in new products and materials were eventually adopted.

But how do you handle asbestos in buildings and products that were made decades ago and are still in use, like our office building?

Regulatory programs have been established to address this challenge. We are, of course, complying with all of these regulations in our project. First, we ran tests to determine the extent and amount of asbestos in, on and under the building. Not surprisingly, these tests revealed that the insulation in the basements and the plaster in the interior walls contained asbestos.

The regulations establish a hard and fast rule. If the product contains 1 percent or more of asbestos, an extensive set of requirements applies. Basically, the building must be sealed off, and only a licensed asbestos contractor is allowed to go inside and remove the materials. The contractor’s employees must wear special clothing and use respiratory equipment. If the product contains less than 1 percent of asbestos, these regulations do not apply.

The tests at our building came back at 2 percent. Our contractor advised us to test the materials again, using a more precise method. The result: 1.2 percent.  Because the results exceeded 1 percent, even though by only two-tenths of one percent, we had no choice but to follow each and every one of the abatement regulations. According to our contractor, the additional cost of such compliance was a whopping $34,000! Ouch!

Upstate Forever Executive Director Brad Wyche was recently describing this ordeal to one of our members, a local developer. The developer, who supported our Capital Campaign, was sorry to hear about our difficulties but also took some pleasure in the fact that we had experienced first hand the fiscal impacts of regulation. “Now you feel our pain,” he told Brad, with a big smile.

We have assembled an outstanding team of experienced professionals to work on the project.

• Johnston Design Group- architect
• Southerland Construction Inc. - builder
• Simms Group - mechanical, electrical, plumbing
• Fuller Engineering - structural
• Earth Design, Inc. - landscaping
• Earth Artist Studios
• Glenco Insulation - insulation provider and installer
• Sunstore Solar - solar panel provider and installer
• Sterling Video - video and dosumentation
• KLG Jones, LLC - building commissioning

As a nonprofit organization, Upstate Forever depends on charitable contributions to do its work.  We knew we could not possibly pull off a project of this magnitude without a lot of support.

In the fall of 2005, we launched our first ever Capital Campaign with two basic goals: (1) to acquire and renovate our office and (2) to stregnthen and expand our Land Trust Program.

 The campaign was a great success as we met and surpassed our goals.  Over 170 people and organizations contributed and are recognized in our Spring 2008 newsletter, the Upstate Advocate. 

We want to give special recognition to the Jolley Foundation and the Hollingsworth Foundation, two local foundations which made substantial gifts specifically for the renovation project.  This project would not be happening without you — thank you!