by mightyhouse | Feb, 2019 | Tips + Inspiration
Got Green’s Young Leaders in the Green Movement steering committee won a resolution in 2015 to create 100 living wage green internships for low income young workers of color in Seattle. Since then, they have expanded to nonprofit and private environmental employers through the inception of the Green Pathways Fellowship Program.
The Green Pathways Fellowship Program was created through a partnership between Got Green and Rainier Valley Corps to provide opportunities in the green sector for low-income young adults in living wage entry-level positions in the environmental justice movement. With the City Council Approval of the 2019-2020 Seattle City Budget, Green Pathways Fellowship will be receiving $100,000 in 2019 and $164,000 in 2020.
If you are a community-based organization and may be interested in hosting a fellow, please visit this page. Or if you know someone who would be a great fit for this program, please recommend an applicant here.
by mightyhouse | Dec, 2018 | Events - Workshops, Tips + Inspiration
Join us for the best home remodeling show of the year on January 18, 19, and 20, 2019 at the Washington State Convention Center! The NW Remodeling Expo brings together hundreds of local and regional home improvement companies for one weekend only. It’s the perfect way to jumpstart your remodeling project — come chat with us face-to-face! We’ll be hosting two companies (Mighty House + Mighty Energy Solutions) at one great booth! Just download our free passes to print or save on your phone. See you there!
DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE TICKET(S)
Friday January 18 | 12:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Saturday January 19 | 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Sunday January 20 | 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Washington State Convention Center – Halls 4EF
800 Convention Place, Seattle, WA 98101
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Plus, there will be a ton of great seminars! Here are some we’re most excited about:
How to Incorporate Sustainability into Your Next Remodel, with Sandy Campbell – Entero Design LLC
12pm Saturday – Left Stage – Come learn from NCIDQ certified and LEED accredited Interior Designer, Sandy Campbell, about how to incorporate sustainable design practices and materials into your next remodel to improve the health of your home and reduce your impact on the environment.
Designing Backyard Cottages, with Sheri Newbold & Doug Elfline – Live-Work-Play & Mighty House
3pm Saturday – Stage Right – Thinking of creating a backyard cottage? Check out this class on the why, what, where and how of building a DADU (detached accessory dwelling unit) taught by Sheri Newbold of live-work-play Architecture and Doug Elfline of Mighty House Construction.
Salvage Simplified: How to Incorporate Salvage, with Mary Anne Carter – Second Use Building Materials
4pm Saturday- Stage Right – Architectural salvage is more than a buzzword: it is a practical opportunity for any remodeling project. Join Mary Anne Carter of Second Use Building Materials to discover how you can incorporate reuse into your next project, from deconstruction to decoration!
Big Heat for a Small Footprint, with Laura Elfline – Mighty House Construction & Mighty Energy Solutions
12pm Sunday – Stage Left – A discussion of innovative and efficient heating solutions for small and multi-use spaces that tread lightly on the planet, this seminar will look at backyard cottages, ADUs, additions, and whole homes.
Register for these seminars and more here.
by mightyhouse | Nov, 2018 | Green Building, Tips + Inspiration
The Whittier Heights tiny house village consists fo 15 colorful tiny homes that house women who have experienced homelessness.
“Located on city-owned land, it is one of nine tiny-house villages in Seattle that serve as emergency shelters for the city’s homeless population. It is operated by the Low Income Housing Institute, which develops and operates housing for low-income and homeless people in Washington state. Each house costs about $2,500 to build, and the labor is mostly provided by volunteers.”
This particular village was also built by a team dozens of women in the trades from across the state, who came together as the
Women4Women project. Creator of this project, Alice Lockridge, hoped to make a space for tradeswomen to come together and make a difference while also finding camaraderie and a break from their male-dominated workplaces. Read the
full article from YES! Magazine here.
by mightyhouse | Aug, 2018 | Green Building, Tips + Inspiration
This Green Lake Tudor home was in desperate need of some updates. The kitchen and two bathrooms were severely lacking in function and style – making it hard for Steve to live happily in these heavy uses spaces. Team Mighty House to the rescue!
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Canyon Creek’s Katana line of cabinetry and Ceasarstone countertops provide an entirely refreshed look for the kitchen, while also maintaining its classic aesthetic. The cabinets are locally manufactured, and both companies provide products with zero VOCs (volatile organic compounds).
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Cutting the shower wall down to half-height and adding a glass enclosure, gave the upstairs bathroom a huge boost in natural lighting. Colorful tile accents and a bright blue marmoleum floor, gave the space a new feel while also maintaining some of the original room’s pop of color. Marmoleum is a natural linoleum, that is durable, resistant to bacteria, and free of toxic byproducts. Plus, this custom tile work was done in house by our resident Mighty House tile expert!
Another important element of maintaining the classic Tudor charm, was working with what we already had. Updating, reusing, and salvaging existing elements is also a great way to cut down on waste and extend the life of those items and save them from the landfill. In the first floor bathroom, we left the tub and checkered floor in place and found updated finishes to match. The vanity countertop material is also salvaged PaperStone, a material made from compressed recycled paper.
What kind of updates does your house need? Let us know and check out more images in our Flikr gallery.
by mightyhouse | Jun, 2018 | Living, Tips + Inspiration
As summer heat sets in, here are some simple, but effective ways to save money on your cooling costs now and heating costs during the winter:
- Keep blinds and curtains closed to keep heat from the sun out during the summer
- Leave the thermostat alone or install a programmable one, to avoid frequent temperature changes
- Keep conditioned air inside – don’t run your kitchen and bathroom fans too often
- Make sure your home is airtight – seal leaks in drafty doors or windows and add insulation where needed
- Use nature’s energy to heat your home during the winter by opening blinds and curtains to let sun in during the day
- Keep your HVAC system clean – change filters, and keep leaves and debris away from outdoor units
- Replace or update your system if it is over ten years old – invest in Energy Star appliances
Read the original list, from Angie’s List here.
by mightyhouse | May, 2018 | Green Building, Tips + Inspiration
Infrared radiant heat systems provide versatile warmth that is both cozy and efficient. Powered by electricity, radiant heaters directly warm humans and objects without noisy fans, bad smells, or dry air and dust blowing around your house. Imagine the immediate all-encompassing warmth that feels like stepping into the sun, when you walk into your bedroom. Radiant heating systems are flexible and can be customized for any room layout. They complement any décor by mounting on the ceiling or upper wall and become almost invisible. Below are the best solutions for heating our buildings and homes more sustainably with radiant heat:
1) Hybrid System with Ductless Heat Pump
A ductless mini-split heat pump (DHP) is a great energy-saving solution for heating larger open spaces like an open concept great room. A single unit installed high on the wall can output 12,000 BTUs and save you more than 50% on your energy bills. However, DHPs struggle to spread heat down hallways and around corners. Unless you leave the doors open all the time, DHP’s can’t effectively heat bedrooms or bathrooms. Installing a second or third DHP head means running extra piping which quickly becomes messy and costly. This is where infrared radiant heat comes to the rescue! Instead of additional DHP heads, electric radiant heaters can be installed in rooms that the DHP fails to reach. As a supplemental system, radiant heaters will provide enhanced comfort, and zone control, while complementing the unbeatable efficiency of a ductless heat pump. Radiant heat also offers much faster heating response times than a DHP (approximately 5-10 mins) because it is warming humans and objects directly.
2) Zone Control for the Whole House
Infrared radiant heat can effectively and efficiently heat your entire home, with 1-2 units per room. By placing a thermostat in each room, you can heat only the rooms you are using. With an average 30% energy savings over cadet or baseboard heaters1 , infrared radiant heat warms objects and surfaces in a room directly. This means everything in your space will be an even temperature and furniture will become part of the thermal mass that will continue to provide soft warmth. Thus, occupants feel warmer faster and stay warm longer, lower air temperatures, adding even more energy savings. Additionally, with no need to dry the air out to an uncomfortable heat with noisy fans, ductwork, or moving parts, radiant heaters provide superior indoor air quality for your family.
3) Avoid Extending the Furnace for an Addition
When planning an addition to your home, the question often arises of whether to extend an existing furnace system. Adding ductwork can be quite costly, involve a complicated install, and may end up being less comfortable and efficient due to heat loss from the extra ductwork. Any time you want to heat any part of the system, the entire furnace has to fire up. You also run the risk of overworking your furnace or finding out that you need to install an entirely new one. Zoned infrared radiant heat is a great alternative to a furnace extension. There is no need to install more duct work and radiant heaters are as simple to install as a ceiling light. Affordable, comfortable and efficient heat makes radiant the ideal alternative to locations that an existing furnace can’t reach. Unlike vents and ductwork, radiant heaters are completely silent, require zero maintenance, and have the longest expected lifetime of any other products on the heating market. Talk about a great long-term investment! For more information, visit mightyenergy.net
