Emergency response with sustainable homes

The ice storm problems in December 2013 for Quebec and Ontario have emphasized the value of sustainable housing.  Relying on our government or corporations to bail us out clearly isn't a good solution in an emergency.  The people who survived the floods in Alberta and Hurricane Katrina would also agree; help was there too little and too late.  If it did come, it became a source of frustration for many, as the town of High River can attest; can you say unlawful search and seizures?   Besides, is it reasonable or fair to put that much responsibility on the government or utilities in the first place?  I don't know, and that's a whole other topic.   But why even debate. The argument, no matter how compelling, isn't likely to change the truth.  We are WAY too dependent on others for comfort and safety.

Part of the solution is sustainable housing.

Unfortunately, a lot of people look at net zero homes (all the different kinds of them, not just Earthships) as something associated with, "liberal tree huggers".   Especially in the province of Alberta where our economy is practically sustained by the gas and oil industry.   Guilt by association; people aren't even interested in the subject of sustainable homes.  They think if you want one, you are just weird or a tree hugger.  Such people probably don't consider the practicality or the cost savings or anything else.

So let me widen the vision a bit.  Sustainable housing isn't all about David Suzuki and his gang. You do NOT have to be hippie or homesteader or any other label to find practicality in these houses.  Not that there is anything wrong with these types, but the stigma closes people's minds to the reality of our situation.  Forget global climate change for a second.  Think about just plain old survival.

We rely on many different systems and take them for granted.  Not that we are stupid, we know we take them for granted, but we don't feel that we have any other choice.  Or that our options for sustainable homes are limited and consequently mean giving up the things we enjoy.   Maybe this was true 20 years ago, but it's a complete fallacy now.  The world of sustainable housing has come a long way from bucket compost toilets and flakey solar power.   You don't even have to have a "weird" looking house or make it out of recycled materials.  The technology has progressed leaps and bounds and if your pocket book is endless, so are your choices.

As such, most of the excuses people use to demonize sustainable homes are pretty much moot.  If not foolish, when you look at the people in Quebec and Ontario.

Sustainable homes are generally built to be much more efficient and self sufficient than the traditional home.  Not only do they make use of better insulation and less consumption, but they can have their own power sources, their own heating and cooling, their own water sources and sometimes their own sewage sources.   That doesn't mean that we will all suddenly abandon traditional utilities.  What it does mean is that our reliance on them isn't to the point where we worry about our lives or the condition of our home should disaster strike.

Here are some of the systems that can help us reduce our reliance on others:

1. Electricity
Solar, wind and water power doesn't necessarily imply that you won't use the power company, unless you really want to go "off the grid".

At least it's an option.  But for most people, being tied into the grid will be sufficient.  What this means is that the power company will buy the electricity that you produce and sell you the electricity that you use.  This usually results in no or a very low electricity bill; you will probably produce as much as you use. But the advantage here is that if disaster strikes, you have your own power source.  Especially if you take advantage of battery back up systems and other alternatives. It also reduces the strain on our power plants, who continually complain about infrastructure growth and also contribute to a significant amount of pollution.   Win-win for everyone.

2. Water
Water catchment systems and cisterns are a great way to reduce the demands on our water utilities, rivers and streams.  They aren't exclusive to gardens either.  These systems can easily be hooked up to your home and purified to provide you with clean drinking and bathing water.

They also ensure that in an emergency, you will have your own supply to get you through as much as a week or longer.  Can you imagine the scene at the grocery stores if the city water was stopped for some reason?  Yikes.  Plus, using rain water means you save money on your water bill in the long run. Win-win for everyone.

3. Sewage
Even if you have water, you still need waste disposal. So losing the use of your sewage system is another bad situation that could have some pretty nasty consequences.  Sure we know that it's not possible to have our own septic systems in the city, but if every home had at least one compost toilet, it wouldn't be such a dire situation.   Compost toilets have come along way from a bucket and sawdust (ew!!!)  Even if some people still opt for those old fashioned options (EWWW!) it's not reasonable to expect everyone to be ok with that.  So enter in the brand new compost toilet:
These are modern devices that lack everything offensive that you would think came with a compost toilet.  Most are vented directly outdoors and some even have a central system and use water. They do take a small bit of maintenance, but the result is fresh soil for use in your flower garden, a lower water and waste bill, and the ability to have a backup system in an emergency. It also reduces the strain on our waste treatment plants and results in less...crap...in our streams and rivers.  Win-win for everyone.

4. Heating and Cooling
While these systems are more difficult or expensive features to add on to an existing home, they are still important.  From a small wood burning stove/fireplace to geothermal setups, there are plenty of options depending on how deep your pockets are.  They can either be used as the main source or as a backup.  Not to mention that if all new homes were designed with much more efficient insulation, heating and cooling, it would make us more able to handle emergencies.

Options for heating and cooling are:

Passive: these take advantage of the sun and wind to heat and cool our homes.  These can be either as a supplement or are an independent system.   Yes they do work at -40, though it is wise to have a backup system, and you will definitely need good insulation.    Unfortunately, this requires the house to be specially designed, therefore, implementing it into an existing home will not be possible.  In some cases, due to city planning, they may not even be possible in new homes, but if you can, you should.  It saves a LOT of money and makes you way less reliant on utilities. Oh and its good for the environment too.  Win-win for everyone.


Geothermal: this is a fairly new technology that makes use of the temperature in the earth to heat and cool a home through underground pipes circulating water.  It still requires electricity, but combined with solar/wind/water, you have a pretty fail proof system.  They can also be big enough to heat/cool many dwellings at once, which offsets the huge price tag.


Wood, Gas and Pellet Stoves - these are all pretty good options as backup, though the latter two may require electricity to start or run a fan.  But in combination with solar/water/wind power, this shouldn't pose a problem.  If it does, then a wood stove or fireplace would be the only alternative.

Unfortunately, both the Canadian and US government are currently trying to outlaw wood burning stoves under the guise that they are "bad for the environment".  The punishment will result in fines and even jail time.  This is a disturbing proposition in a country were it gets to -50 and we clearly lose electricity for weeks on end (as Ontario discovered).  For people who don't have alternative power sources, this is not good, since both a gas and pellet stove may not work without power. Therefore, a bit of smoke in our sky is not acceptable reasoning, especially considering that modern stoves are much cleaner burning than they used to be:

"The average truck on the road today spews 22 grams of smog-forming pollution and nearly one gram of soot every mile."  See:http://www.ucsusa.org/transportation/brf_bigdiesel.html
That is about 60 g/h of particulate matter at highway speed. My EPA certified wood stove emits an average of 3 g/h of particulate matter per hour of operation.   1

 Older stoves emit as much as 30 g/h, making them still better than the average truck. 2

Besides, if we all started building sustainable homes, the good this would do for the environment would certainly offset the occasional backup use of a wood stove in homes that needed it.

I hope I made it clear that sustainable homes are a great answer for some of the problems we face and not just environmental ones.  I've only just scratched the surface on what these dwellings can do, but the main point is that they can release us from being overly dependent on others, which is evidently a problem with our society.

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1. Gulland, John.
A non-commercial service in support of responsible home heating with wood - Q&A About Wood Burning & The Environment

In-text: (Gulland)

Bibliography: Gulland, John. "A non-commercial service in support of responsible home heating with wood - Q&A About Wood Burning & The Environment." Woodheat.org, 2013. Web. 29 Dec 2013. <http://woodheat.org/qa-environment.html>.

2. Unknown.

Jotul North America and North American Dealers Cut Wood Stove Emissions by 87% With Changeout Program

In-text: (Jotul North America and North American Dealers Cut Wood Stove Emissions by 87% With Changeout Program)

Bibliography: Unknown. "Jotul North America and North American Dealers Cut Wood Stove Emissions by 87% With Changeout Program." Marketwire, 2013. Web. 29 Dec 2013. <http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/jotul-north-america-north-american-dealers-cut-wood-stove-emissions-87-with-changeout-1855755.htm>.

Cleaning in an Earthship

Living in an Earthship will require a bit of change and effort; not that this is a bad thing.

An example of this is the cleaning routine.  Because all of the systems are interconnected, being careless about household chemicals and detergents will ultimately be detrimental to the house; harsh chemicals will kill the greywater plants and possibly contaminate the food coming from them. It will also contaminate the septic tank and the leech field - ultimately poisoning the property.  Not cool. On the other hand, even if you aren't living in an Earthship, when you find out how dangerous some of these chemicals are and how unethical the manufacturers have become, you may want to switch anyway.

I have started to switch to more natural solutions before I move in, so I can get used to it.   By the time I am ready to move in, changing habits will be minimal. 

Here are some of the things I have done:

Laundry  - I recently switched to soap nuts. There are many brands to choose from, and if you purchase from the right vendor, they aren't more expensive than traditional soap.   Certainly this isn't the only environmentally friendly laundry soap, but it's definitely one of the better ones.

All purpose cleaners - it's really easy to make your own cleaners out of inexpensive materials. Vinegar, borax, hydrogen peroxide, 60% alcohol, essential oils, baking soda, Castile soap.  They are truly effective; for example,vinegar will kill most bacteria.  Some say that it leaves the good bacteria.  For really evil bugs, you can use hydrogen peroxide or alcohol instead. These cleaners are much safer than bleach and ammonia and won't damage the septic system, black or grey.  

Combining natural cleaners with essential oils can boost their effectiveness.  Many essential oils have anti bacterial, anti fungal and antiviral properties.  Germs have a harder time becoming resistant to essential oils because there are so many varieties.  Plus it makes your cleaners smell nicer. (I admit, vinegar has a repugnant smell)

Cleaning Wipes - it's pretty easy to make your own cleaning wipes whether they are for your counters, your hands or the unmentionables.  There are plenty of recipes online; most just make use of combining vinegar or alcohol, heavy duty paper towels and re-using old containers. You can also make toilet wipes in a similar fashion using Castile soaps and oils, but I would NOT recommend flushing ANY of the above into the system.   They aren't good for any toilet system, and they do not biodegrade like manufacturers claim.  Just ask my city!

Personal stuff- soaps, lotions, conditioners - they all end up in the grey water system.  Other items that women use may end up in the blackwater system and pose clogging problems.  Switching is becoming easier.  There are many alternatives for natural/organic cleaners, lotions and shampoos and feminine products, or you can make some of them.  Considering some of the dangerous chemicals and procedures that go into making personal items, you may want to switch regardless of what type of house you live in.