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The Grange Insurance Audubon Center exhibits several innovative systems and design approaches. DesignGroup architects introduced untreated cedar siding, custom storefront glazing to prevent bird strikes, exterior shading to achieve passive solar design, flexible classroom spaces, weathering steel signage, and geothermal wells with an integrated heat pump system. Following brownfield remediation, several stormwater management applications were constructed, including a vegetated roof, rain gardens, bioswales, and a pervious pavement parking lot. [Watch Part 2]

In recent years, the U.S. home building industry has undoubtedly seen its troubles. The downturn in the economy has forced many builders to rethink how they approach their market now that it is much smaller. In many cases those builders have chosen to address the increasing demand for green homes. By offering green homes, many builders are now meeting their customers’ needs for energy- and water-efficient homes with a healthier environment and financial benefits. What once was a niche can now be seen as mainstream. According to the United States Green Building Council, their LEED for Homes program has certified 10,000 homes since it started in 2008. This sounds very impressive, but what is a green home, and what are the benefits compared to a traditional home?

Ceramic tile is an ideal choice for walls and floors in any bathroom. It’s durable, impervious to water, and comes in an almost limitless selection of colors and styles. Tiling a custom bathroom with your own hands is a rewarding project for an experienced do-it-yourselfer. Join our host, Jeff Wilson, as he offers guidance on installing wall and floor tile in the second installment of Buildipedia's custom bathroom series.

It’s official: architects are in love with bamboo. A tree-hugging designer’s dream, bamboo is an eco-friendly, versatile, and durable material. More importantly, bamboo is the fastest growing perennial on the planet, making it symbolically a perfect choice for a city like Madrid, with its ever growing population and, subsequently, its enormous need for public housing. Located in the Carabanchel district, a “regeneration area” on the outskirts of Madrid, Carabanchel Social Housing is a state-subsidized, five-story residential project with 100 units, covered with bamboo louvres. (The structure itself is not made of bamboo, but bamboo is very prominent in the primary architectural statement it makes, due to the louvers.) Foreign Office Architects (FOA) credit Farshid Moussavi, Alejandro Zaera Polo, and others at FOA for Carabanchel Social Housing’s innovative design, which merges an environmentally conscious model with the social urbanization needs of the 21st century. One of the largest social housing projects in Europe, it was completed in late 2007.

As the green building movement begins to hit its stride, geothermal systems are quickly gaining prominence as efficient and attractive choices for projects featuring alternative energy. Although fewer subsidies for geothermal systems are available when compared to solar, the initial investment for the installation of a geothermal system can be lower. This makes a geothermal system’s return on investment (ROI) extremely favorable. It is this financial analysis that may lead to the inclusion of geothermal systems in more building projects as its awareness grows.

If your interior doors are severely stuck, rubbing, scratched, have holes, damaged beyond repair, or just don’t fit with your style, installing new prehung doors will sharpen the appearance of any room in your home and provide easy, daily operation. Installing a prehung door after removing an existing door isn't as difficult as you might think. With some patience and a little know-how, installing a prehung interior door is a project any DIY'er can do.

Moisture in a bathroom can lead to peeling finishes, warped doors, and even mold. The purpose of a bathroom exhaust fan is to control moisture and remove airborne odors and pollutants. While maintenance of bathroom exhaust fans is quite often overlooked, a proper maintenance schedule will ensure quiet and efficient operation, increase the fan's lifespan, improve indoor air quality, and keep the unit attractive in appearance.

Preventing water damage inside our bathrooms is just as important as directing water away from our homes. Caulking, as part of routine homeowner maintenance, prevents avoidable damage around the multiple fixtures and different building materials located inside a bathroom. To get started all you need to know are the areas inside a bathroom that need to be regularly maintained, how to remove existing caulking, and how to apply a new bead of caulk.

One of the final steps in completing a custom shower project is selecting and installing the shower fixtures. While the task of selecting a shower fixture from the wide variety of styles can be challenging, installing the fixture is a simple job. With basic plumbing tools and skills, any do-it-yourselfer can install a shower fixture. Join our host, Jeff Wilson, for a tutorial on installing a handheld shower fixture in the continuation of our custom bathroom series.

Installing insulated siding on an older home may be the best way to up its R-value.

My first encounter with insulated siding (or IS as it’s known in the trades) came while visiting the Raritan Inn, a bed-and-breakfast in New Jersey that was remodeled by a pioneer in energy-efficient and innovative "green" construction, Bill Asdal. The Raritan Inn serves as a research center and a showpiece of deep-energy remodeling. In 2003, Asdal, in partnership with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) Research Center, pioneered the first net-zero energy remodeling project in the United States. The structure was clad with insulated siding in an effort to achieve the highest R-values possible within the limits of remodeling an 18th century structure. What I noticed was not the R-value but the aesthetic quality. The siding had a clapboard profile and it lay flat, lacking the usual telling concave cup of most vinyl siding.

September 2011 marked the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Although the design of the World Trade Center (WTC) site once dominated the news, coverage of the most significant construction site in the country has been quiet. Some might assume that progress is slow, which would be logical, given the complexity of the project: a range of stakeholders are involved, including government agencies, private developers, and civic organizations; nine diverse programs must coexist on only 11 acres; and multiple construction schedules must be coordinated at once.

How far can a single building extend its reach to elevate, both aesthetically and economically, a surrounding neighborhood? Zaha Hadid Architects' Edifici Torre Espiral, or "spiraling tower," designed in partnership with Patrik Schumacher, seeks to become a catalyst for the development of the 22@Barcelona district. This waterfront area, which covers 115 city blocks, has been actively transforming itself from a derelict industrial zone into a commercial hub since 2000, when the city government launched its redevelopment.