Basements & Slab-On-Grade

All basements are prone to flooding, which is why we don't really like basements much. So, if it's your turn to look with dismay at your unplanned basement pool and wonder what to do next to fix things, read this guide and we will try our best to help. Flooded basement? That really sucks... Basement flooding can be…

Most finished basements are moldy or will develop mold in the future because they are usually built poorly. Learn what to look for when home shopping. Basements, downstairs in more ways than one For those wishing to become homeowners, one of the decisions you'll face when buying a new property is whether or not to…

Frost heaving of home foundations, basements, decks & garden walls in cold climates can cause issues - especially in clay soils that hold water - Ecohome built to prevent frost heave recently, here's what we did. Frost protected foundations - essential in cold climates Protecting homes and buildings in cold climates…

Gabion cage walls can add thermal mass to homes without adding significantly to the carbon footprint of a home like concrete can. Gabion walls are retaining walls built by stacking stone in a gabion cage or gabion basket that can serve many purposes but are most often used to create tiered or leveled ground in…

Basements flood, full stop. As a hole in the ground similar to a swimming pool, once all is done to stop water getting in, we then need to remove any water with a sump pump, a sump pump battery backup & maybe a sump pump alarm to stop basements flooding. Spring flooding of basements is very common and most times can…

Producing cement for concrete results in high levels of CO2 output and is the third ranking cause of man-made CO2 in the world after transport & energy generation. Low-Carbon Concrete is needed for Building Green Homes. Low-carbon concrete - green cement at last? One of the most essential and commonly-used building…

One of the first decisions when building a home is what type of foundations to sit your home on - cold-climates, termites, problem expansive clay soils, insulation & vapor & radon barriers all need to be considered. What is the difference between a slab on grade & a crawl space? A slab on grade, or ‘frost protected…

Basement mold and mildew can easily be avoided with better designed walls. Common building practices trap moisture in wall assemblies preventing them from drying. That musty, moldy basement smell that we have come to accept as unavoidable, is actually quite avoidable. The solution is really quite simple - stop…

Crawlspaces are becoming rare for new home construction in USA & Canada. If you've got a crawls space with damp, mold, odor & cold issues, here's how to insulate it properly to fix it permanently & have a more comfortable home. Crawlspace insulation - be careful to get it right A crawlspace comes with all the…

How to build on sites with expansive soils, high water tables and poor bearing capacity, and to build a frost protected shallow foundation easily in cold climates. A frost protected shallow foundation (FPSF) is an interesting and well-proven alternative to deeper, more-costly foundations in cold regions with…

The importance and the benefits of creating buildings and landscapes that retain and manage rainwater on site. Stormwater - why it's important to choose permeable surfaces for paths & driveways As cities expand into the green space around them, naturally permeable landscapes are replaced with buildings, roads and…

Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Partanna's Carbon-Negative, Storm-Resistant "Tree-like" Home Offers Self-Sufficiency for a Changing World. Imagine a home that embraces nature's wisdom, not just mirroring its beauty but also actively healing the environment it inhabits. This isn't a futuristic fantasy; it's the…

Bill S287 was signed on Jan 30th and signals State sanctioned incentives for the decarbonization of the concrete industry - including the supply, delivery and use of lower carbon concrete. In a breakthrough for reducing the carbon footprint of North American construction, Bill S287 was signed on the 30th of January…

Using naturally occurring microalgae, Prometheus Materials and a team of scientists and engineers at the University of Colorado Boulder have developed a carbon zero alternative to carbon intensive portland cement based concrete... suitable for ready mix. In a recent press release, Prometheus Materials, a zero-carbon…

The National Association of Home Builders just completed a study of home foundation trends for 2020 in the US, and the results were both surprising and encouraging! Slab on grade foundations are a clear winner. It's slab on grade foundations for the win! The NAHB study showed that 65% of new single-family home…