Kohler Drive Remodel

We're mid-stream on a large addition/remodel of an early 1960's ranch-style house in South Boulder. Rocky Thompson, of Gaia Video, has been filming the progress, and has put together a clip of our progress so far. The image above is of the finished product.

2340 Kohler Drive update from Rocky Thompson on Vimeo.

We're adding a new garage with master suite above, enlarging the great room, which will house the kitchen, dining and living room, as well as a pantry. The large west facing windows allow for a stunning view of the Flatirons, which was missing from the original house, while large south facing windows will warm the space in winter. This remodel includes an insulation package that will make the home more efficient than most "code-built" homes today. The exterior will be enhanced with stucco, and a grand entryway to welcome guests.

Boulders new house size restrictions

It has been an interesting time to be remodeling in Boulder County. Last year, the City of Boulder's "Pop's and Scrapes" ordinance dominated local headlines. The ordinance seeks to limit the size of houses, and their impact on neighborhoods. The debate of personal property rights vs. maintaining the character of a neighborhood was settled when the Boulder City Council passed the ordinance in the fall of 2009. The new rules go in to effect on January 4th, 2010.

So what does this mean to you?

While the ordinance is complex, in a nutshell, it limits the size of home you are allowed to build. The city of Boulder has put out a worksheet on this HERE.

The bottom line is that if you love where you live, but need more space, it is going to take a greater level of creativity to remodel your house into a space that works for your family. Simply adding square footage may be limited in your situation, so we will need to work with the space you have. Designing "multi-use spaces", great rooms that serve multiple functions, and incorporating built-ins, and other creative uses of space will become the norm. Dusel Custom Builders welcomes this challenge, as building smaller is inherently green; getting to know families and building for their specific needs is the favorite part of Clay's job.

Recent Projects

We've recently finished some projects that we're very proud of. The first one was a remodel of a one bedroom condo in Downtown Denver. The owners wanted an open, loft-like feel. With a floating vanity, Euro-style kitchen, and custom built bed with removable trundle underneath, we maximized space and style every step of the way. This project was designed by Eric Morris, architect, the homeowner and Dusel Custom Builders.






In Boulder, we just finished a remodel on 4th street, in the Newlands neighborhood. The homeowners both work form home, and they wanted a space in the former garage that could be used by both of them separately, or as one large space. Custom Built pocket doors, over 6 feet wide, fit the bill perfectly.

In the Kitchen, we re configured the space, and installed Bamboo cabinets with soapstone counter tops. The centerpiece of the kitchen is the island, with the floating maple bar top. Special thanks to project manager Mark Perry, for finding a way to fit 6 drawers, a stove with vent hood, and custom Led Lighting, all in a space built out of steel, tile, stone and bamboo. You don't see this every day.

The bathroom has a steam shower with white stone pebble floor, a Ceaserstone step to enter, and "stadium seating" The vanity is topped with custom Concrete sinks by Fiddlehead Designs.
This project was a partnership with Andy Johnson of DAJ Design.

Boulder Climate Smart Program

Take advantage of Boulder County’s new Climate Smart Program

Boulder County residents in November 2008 passed amendment 1A which provides property owners with loans for renewable energy and/or energy efficiency improvements.

The Climate Smart loans will be tied to the property, and will be paid back through the county assessor’s office (like property taxes). The loans stay with the house if you choose to sell.

This program, combined with available tax credits, makes right now a great time to invest in renewable and or energy efficiency improvements for your home.

Dusel Custom Builders is offering to install energy efficiency upgrades to local homeowners. Available upgrades include but are not limited to:

• Increasing home insulation
• Air sealing homes to plug up leaks
• Adding whole house fans for cooling
• Replacing old, leaky windows with new, energy efficient ones
• Replacing doors
• Upgrading old furnaces, air conditioners, swamp coolers and water heaters
• Adding sun tunnels for natural day lighting

To be eligible for the Climate Smart loan, homeowners must:

· Attend a workshop (March 9-28). Click here for a list of available workshops and to register http://www.conservationcenter.org/e_climatesmart.php?form_id=23

· Submit loan applications (April 1-April 10).

· Obtain project bid(s) to submit with the loan application. The bids will provide the basis for the loan amounts that the applicant will receive if approved for a loan.

· Loan acceptance priority given to homeowners who have done a home energy audit.

Contact Clay at Dusel Custom Builders at 303-523-6631, clay@duselbuilders.com, or http://www.duselbuilders.com/

General information is available at the Boulder County web site: http://www.bouldercounty.org/bocc/climatesmartloanprogram/

This is a great opportunity to go green and save money!

Shades of Green

What makes a project "green"? Is a small, renovated loft in downtown Denver, with bamboo floors and low V.O.C. paint green? How about a 6000 square foot, net zero energy home in rural Boulder County?

These questions have come to light a lot lately. Companies are green washing their products with a fervour unlike anything I've ever seen. Flat screen TVs are coming in Bamboo packaging. We are told SUV's that get over 20MPG are a great way to combat climate change. What does Green mean anymore?

Green Building comes with trade-offs. Each person can have their own opinion on what is green to them. I see four categories of Green Building.

• Energy Efficiency Does the house use energy wisely?
  
• Resource Efficiency Are you using high recycled content or renewable, sustainable material?
  
• Indoor Air Quality Is your home going to be toxic as a result of your remodel?
  
• Durability and Functionality Ugly, dysfunctional homes end up in the landfill.
  

Each aspect of a building, every product you choose, has trade-offs between these four categories. My favorite example of this is bamboo flooring. Bamboo is a great resource. Fast-growing and durable, many species of bamboo can be harvested multiple times a year. Compare that to an Oak or other hardwood tree, that has to grow 30 to 50 years between harvests. So under the category of resource efficiency, its a great choice, but there is another side of the story. Most bamboo flooring is made in China, and shipped to North America. There is a lot of embodied energy in transporting the material. Also, the Bamboo may contain a lot of adhesives that may be high in urea formaldehyde, and a finish high in V.O.C's.

There are many new codes that seek to rate buildings for their "green-ness" the most well known and comprehensive of these is the US Green Building Council's LEED program. Here in Boulder, we have the County's Build Smart program, and the City of Boulder's Green Points Program. The county commissioners have made reducing greenhouse gas emissions a high legislative priority, and that is reflected in the code. Homes are required to meet progressively tougher HERS ratings based on the size of the house. HERS (Home Energy Rating System) is an energy efficiency system, and does not consider the toxicity of materials, nor does it consider the embodied energy in the materials installed in the home.

So what does this all mean to you and your project. Each person has their opinions, and things they value. I always used to put energy efficiency above everything else, but lately my opinions have shifted. My daughter went through a bout of Asthma, which has made me closely consider the indoor air-quality aspect of materials we choose to install. I have also come to realize the importance of good design as essential to green buildings, as building that are functional and flexible are more likely to stand the test of time.

I think the answer is simple. For each aspect of a project, each product you select, think about it's impacts on your health, the earth, and the long-term function of your home. If you consider all four points I discussed above, you will come up with the right decision. Some decisions are a no-brainer. "Do you want toxic adhesives or non-toxic adhesives?" Others require more thought "Stucco vs. composite siding?"

Building Green is about making wise, informed decisions. Each part of a modern home has many different materials that have different effects on the Earth. Carefully considering all aspects of each material will help us all build better homes.

This blog entry will serve as the first in a series examining the different choices we make as we build a modern home. Stay tuned...........

Typical Load Bearing Chimney Removal Job

"its your typical load bearing chimney removal job"

That was our joke through this whole job. We said every time we were presented with a challenge that we had never seen before. which seemed to happen about every 10 minutes for the first few days of this job.

It started simply enough, a phone call from a guy who "had a chimney that they wanted removed". There are old chimneys all over Boulder, parts of original heating systems that are now obsolete. We remove them all the time. "The hardest part," I said, "was patching the roof and floor."

Upon looking at chimney, I immediately realized that this chimney, in the center of the main part of the house, was holding up the ridge beam, and therefore the roof. This was going to be more complicated than I originally figured. "we're going to need to consult an engineer, and come up with a way to support the roof when this is gone," I said.

We came up with a creative solution, to support the ridge beam with a pair of micro-lam rafters, with steel collar ties to prevent them from bowing out. The house was originally built around 1900, and the walls were about 2 feet thick, solid stone. This provided a great bearing surface for the rafters.


While we were working on supporting the roof, we began custom building the kitchen cabinets. Custom built was the only option in this tight kitchen, with its out of plumb stone walls and odd angles. In keeping with our philosophy of using all low and zero V.O.C. material, we constructed the boxes out of wheat board, and the face frames, doors and drawers out of solid maple.

We insulated the open areas, and wrapped the roof support structure in drywall. Then we brought in our hardwood floor crew to patch the floor, and re-finish the floors with water-based finish. As this wrapped up, we were able to install our new cabinets. We brought in a paint crew to stain the lower cabinets a cool blue that the homeowners loved. Concrete Counter tops, Stainless Steel Appliances, mosaic glass tiles, and sleek lighting finished the project off. We made this home a beautiful blend of open, sleek contemporary and old world stone.

The Truss system is now an interesting architectural piece in the great room.

You never know when a simple"we need a chimney removed"
will turn in to one of the most interesting projects we ever did.

South Boulder Kitchen Remodel

Another Completed Kitchen!!

We just finished a great kitchen remodel in South Boulder. We removed a few walls, added an island, and switched the position of the door and window for an open, flowing kitchen.

Check out our photos, they are in before and after order!!