TreeHugger Tours the WIRED Home... and Hears Vinod Khosla Speak
by Jeremy Elton Jacquot, Los Angeles on 11. 7.07
Even set amidst the backdrop of a multitude of multi-million dollar mansions, the WIRED Home - nestled in posh Brentwood - is hard to miss. The 2-story, 19-room, 4057 sq. ft. home finally opened its doors to the public this Monday, and we were on hand to be amongst the first to visit it.
It did not disappoint. Every aspect, from its ultramodern/chic aesthetic to its amazing views, was spot-on; the house features an exhaustive list of eco-friendly fixtures and technologies - including a photovoltaic system, energy/water-efficient appliances and a healthy dose of reclaimed materials. Steve Glenn, founder and CEO of LivingHomes (the company that built the house for WIRED), Ray Kappe, the house's architect, and Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures (and a LivingHomes investor), were on hand to give tours to the assembled media and cast of LA power-brokers.
Vinod Khosla, whom we've reported on before for his heavy involvement with clean tech, gave the evening's most inspired talk - focusing mostly on his company's plans to wage dual "wars" on coal and oil by funding new ventures in biofuel technology, green materials and efficiency designs. He also touched on a few other topics of note - including what he perceived to be the main problem with environmental groups.
Describing them as "having the right intent but doing the wrong thing," he criticized their narrow focus on technologies such as hybrid vehicles - citing the Toyota Prius - that don't do enough to truly combat climate change. Given the choice, he said, he would rather take the extra $5000 it takes to purchase a Prius instead of a conventional vehicle and invest it in other more efficient emissions-reducing technologies.
Answering a question from the audience, Khosla said that the short-term solution he foresaw for transportation in the next 20 years was a worldwide shift to flex-fuel vehicles powered by a variety of second-generation (i.e. non-food crop) biofuels - especially for rapidly developing countries like India and China. Anything more elaborate, he explained, would not be feasible given the high costs.
When we asked him about the progress companies like LS9 and Amyris - which are using genetically engineered bacteria to produce biofuels - were making (both of which he has also invested in), he smiled, only noting that the technologies were "much closer than we think".
Those of you in the LA area who are keen to check out the house in person will have 10 days to purchase a ticket and take one of several public tours. And, if you're so inclined, you can even look into purchasing the WIRED Home through real estate firm deasy/penner&partners.
See also: ::Wired LivingHome Tickets on Sale Oct. 8, ::Wired Home Installation Live on Webcam, ::Wired Home by Livinghomes
I'm not sure I understand how a 4000 sq ft, 19 room house appears to be ok with TH, no matter how green or groovy it is.
large homes, if well made can be just as green as a small one. there are a lot of things to consider. the type of person who purchases and lives in this home will probably be the type who will entertain a lot, both for business and pleasure. a tiny, ultra-green home, no matter how beautiful would not be functional for that type of life. and if it's not functional, it's not green, no matter how eco-friendly.
Even though I feel the house is to big for a single family home I think this house makes a good showcase of technology and methods that can trickle down to more modest size living spaces.
arge homes, if well made can be just as green as a small one. there are a lot of things to consider. the type of person who purchases and lives in this home will probably be the type who will entertain a lot, both for business and pleasure. a tiny, ultra-green home, no matter how beautiful would not be functional for that type of life. and if it's not functional, it's not green, no matter how eco-friendly
The problem with this argument is that it assumes people are buying homes that have size commensurate with how they are and will be used. It's pretty much a variation of the "this is a green SUV and I need it," even though clearly a very small number of people need its size, power, and functions on a regular basis.
I think home should be just that, home. Entertainers can buy a small sensible home, then rent restaurants and clubs for their parties: places built for such occasions. This makes more efficient use of both the home and the entertaining space.
"he (Vinod) would rather take the extra $5000 it takes to purchase a Prius instead of a conventional vehicle and invest it in other more efficient emissions-reducing technologies."
Is Vinod right? There isn't a non-hybrid Prius but a non-hybrid Honda Civic puts out 6.3 tons of greenhouse gasses/year. A hybrid Civic emits 4.4 or about 2 tons less. So that's an improvement of 2 tons/year for $5000 one time investment. Average life of the car is what, 12 years? That's 24 tons for $5000 or $208/ton. Are there cheaper tons of CO2 to buy?
The greenhouse gas figures are from http://www.fueleconomy.gov/
I really don't think that large homes kill the planet. If it uses ground loop AC and solar/wind power, then the operating footprint will be small. Careful selections of building materials could make for a small construction footprint as well.
Heck, I want to create a palatial underground home once I can afford to do so. The design I'm working on is greener than green, but it will be about 5000-8000 sq ft when I'm done with it. The space I displace has no bearing on my shade of green.
It's still wrong. A family of 4 used to live in a 1600sq.ft. house. Today we are at mid. 2000sqft. I live very comfortably with my 3 other family members in 1800sq.ft.
The same amount of recycled materials you use to build an 8000sqft green mcmansion; could be used to build 4 standard 2000sqft green homes (you know what I mean). So it's still a waste. And by the way, you could sell the other 3 homes at affordable prices.
And like someone else wrote; if you entertain a lot, rent a restaurant or the clubhouse. In fact, you are a big shot entertainer so force them to go green in order to get your business.
"he (Vinod) would rather take the extra $5000 it takes to purchase a Prius instead of a conventional vehicle and invest it in other more efficient emissions-reducing technologies."
Is Vinod right? There isn't a non-hybrid Prius but a non-hybrid Honda Civic puts out 6.3 tons of greenhouse gasses/year. A hybrid Civic emits 4.4 or about 2 tons less. So that's an improvement of 2 tons/year for $5000 one time investment. Average life of the car is what, 12 years? That's 24 tons for $5000 or $208/ton. Are there cheaper tons of CO2 to buy? Is there a better way to do the math?
The greenhouse gas figures are from http://www.fueleconomy.gov/
@Jon
Carbon offsets from TerraPass cost about $1,000 for an average vehicle's lifetime. By comparison, the Civic Hybrid, without factoring in its tax credit, saves money over every trim level of its non-hybrid counterparts, except for the bare-bones DX. At current gasoline prices, the purchase price minus the lifetime gasoline savings are $300 more than the price of a DX.
Over its lifetime, the hybrid will save 42,000 pounds of CO2 relative to the non-hybrid. That translates into about $14/ton of CO2 saved, compared to the TerraPass price of $10/ton.
Of course, the Hybrid is more comparable to the better trim levels, so not one actually saves money over the long term (sending $6,500 less to the oil and gas interests of the world) and the 42 tons of CO2 saved get thrown in for free.
For further comparison, a green (carbon-free) electricity premium is about $0.01/kWh now, which translates into about $15/ton to offset carbon.
The nice thing about the hybrid and green electricity is that one knows for certain that the carbon is being offset.
Hiii !
I wonder if such extensive use of wood makes this a green home. After all every tree you cut is NOT being replaced b y a natural one but by a Genetically modified monster or in many cases not replaced at all.
I don't understand the light panel. Is this built into the home as controls? It kind of looks like a TV screen or monitor. Can we get more information on that?