Member Profile

The Toitu Earth-Sheltered House - Comfortable, Energy Efficient & Unique

Green Builder Matt Hoots of Sawhorse, Inc . will be working on the Toitu House, an earth-sheltered home that really could last several hundred years, as in 500. Some claim an earthen home can even last 1000 years in theory, but we will have to wait to find out.  The name Toitu is a Maori word which is included in a proverb that reminds us to be good stewards of the earth, as ownership is temporary the land remains long ...

Heat Pumps 101 - Comfort, Health, Savings, Energy Efficiency, and Lower Emissions

If you’re even thinking about energy efficiency, or if you’ve been considering HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning system) improvements or building renovations of any kind, you’ve likely heard many mentions in recent communications and news about heat pumps. What are heat pumps, and why are they suddenly everywhere? The short answer is that heat pumps can do the same work as fossil fuel powered equipment when it ...

Windows and Energy Efficiency - Factors for Making Better Choices

Green Builder Matt Hoots of Sawhorse, Inc . and Mike Barcik, a Technical Principal at Southface, recently teamed up for a helpful conversation about windows and energy efficiency .  The two review quite a few key concepts that everyone should know, and many of us likely don’t.       Among other topics, Mike and Matt help bust some myths about window replacement.  New, m...

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Introduction and Update

What is the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)? Signed into law on August 16, 2022, The Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, represents the largest US legislative investment in energy efficiency and clean energy, and stands as a significant climate bill in many respects, including that the IRA uses “carrots” to incentivize investment over “sticks” like fees and punishment.  Though it’s not apparent ...

Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) - Tools & Resources

This list is an evolving effort to share helpful Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA-related information we have found to date.  Please feel welcome to share your favorite tools, platforms, organizations, and additional federal and other energy efficiency and clean energy resources!  It's an understatement to say the IRA is big and complicated.  We'll learn from each other and make more progress together, so that everyo...

The Perfect Wall, Explained - and Demonstrated

According to Green Builder Matt Hoots  of Sawhorse, Inc. , "The Perfect Wall”  is an advanced way of insulating, air sealing, and keeping air and water vapor out of buildings in a logical manner.  This efficient description supports the idea that green building is really just smart building. If we're logical and aim for best practices and conditions with great products, while minimizing material and resou...

The #1920sMakeoverATL Showhouse Project: A Deep Energy Whole House Retrofit and Green Building Virtual Reality Experience

Welcome to the #1920sMakeoverATL Project! See the Virtual Tour Below, or Click to Visit  the full-view version ! Green Builder Matt Hoots of Sawhorse, Inc.  and his team and Project Partners will be be gutting a charming 1920s Ansley Park Atlanta home down to the studs and then rebuilding it back with a goal to make this the most energy-efficient house in this zip code! As the ...

Building Electrification: Why It Matters to Your Wallet, Health, Comfort, and the Environment

What is Building Electrification? Building electrification might sound complicated, but the concept is actually both simple and critically important.  Electrification means using electricity to power buildings instead of fossil fuels, which are primarily used in structures to power heating, cooling, water heating, and cooking.  Electric vehicle charging capacity has also become a part of building electrification consideration...

Electric Lawn and Garden Equipment - A Revolution in the Making

Have you woken up or tried to work to the sound of a noisy leaf blower?  Have you gotten caught in the gas fumes behind gas powered lawn and other maintenance equipment?  Lawn maintenance and outdoor power equipment such as mowers, leaf blowers, edgers, trimmers, and chain saws are clearly pesty, unhealthy, and cause negative environmental and climate impacts.  Fortunately, a better option already exists.  Due in large par...

The 2035 Report – A Blueprint for How the US (and others) Can Transition to a Clean Energy Economy, Starting NOW

2050 has long been the year cited by which carbon emissions must be reduced by zero, which was already a step more aggressive than the stretch Paris Agreement goal of limited global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050.  Now, the authors of the 2035 report and others are increasingly arguing that the new goal for net zero must be 2035 (or even 2030) to prevent the worst effects of climate change from taking place.  Why th...