Pretty Good House

About the name….

 In southern Maine, there’s a small group of building professionals that get together monthly to discuss building science.  It sounds boring, I know, but truly it isn’t. Food is brought in, beer is consumed, a blackboard is present and a topic is brought up for discussion.  (topics like, high performance windows, venting cathedral ceilings, moisture migration in wall assemblies, slab on grade details, etc.) Since we are all peers, and colleagues (with egos, attitude, and a good sense of humor) the conversation is usually lively, informal and frankly all over the place.  There’s usually a moderator to keep everyone reined in and on topic. Every once in a while I have the pleasure of being that moderator, but that is only when builder, Dan Kolbert can’t attend. Dan while on a rant once, expressed frustration with the status quo, and even more frustration with the various rating systems that had him jumping through many hoops to prove that his work was in fact “green” and energy efficient.  As many can attest, these systems can be very costly in time and money, and in the case of many green projects, they aren’t doing anything to advance the project. Rather they are simply certifying them. So Dan simply stated, “I just want to build a pretty good house.”

- Chris Briley