The Push House

Now THATS what we call a soaking tub!! Healthy living at its finest!!

2011-04-15T11:30:00.000-07:00

Magnesium Instead of Drywall

2011-03-10T10:22:00.000-08:00

The West Asheville Non-Toxic home uses Magnum Board.

We started finishing our magnum board wall and ceiling panels this week. We are using a magnesium powder+ 200-300 grit sand + water mixture for our finishing material. We use this combination in replace of the typical drywall joint compound.. This is a non toxic, mold proof, water proof and breathable alternative to the accepted standard. The material is a bit more expensive but we feel that the benefits far outweigh the additional cost of the material.

The paint is drying (yes, NON-TOXIC paint)

2011-02-22T09:55:00.000-08:00

Asheville's 1st non-toxic home has been painted fully on the outside, gutters added. Mud on the interior walls, plumbing fixtures to go

New Pics for New Push Home

2011-02-17T12:59:00.000-08:00

West Asheville, Non Toxic house, 1st in Asheville, getting closer...

Push Design's New Push House almost complete

2011-02-15T07:34:00.000-08:00

Slated for completion in early March, 2011, this is Asheville's first completely non-toxic home. This home is located in the heart of West Asheville, specifically built for a woman with acute Multiple-Chemical-Sensitivity.

International Builders Show a huge success for PUSH Design: bringing health-based building to the world

2011-01-14T12:22:00.000-08:00

The era of healthy building has arrived. The overwhelmingly positive response we have received to our methods and materials has advanced the idea of healthy building to the center of the green building industry. Thank you to all of you have supported and believed in us and our mission. It has meant a lot to us. Together, we can change the world.

International Builders Show Jan 2011!!

2011-01-12T12:09:00.000-08:00

There is quite a buzz today at the International Builders Show in Orlando, Florida surrounding PUSH Design, as they bring their revolutionary new strategies and materials to the industry at large. The future is here! Stay tuned for more updates...

Purepanel Walls installed in 3 hours

2010-12-30T12:24:00.000-08:00

Purepanel Walls installed in 3 hours

The images below are of the second installation of Purepanel (100% post consumer recycled paper structural walls) in the US. From the moment the lines were snapped on the floor and our installers were complete, it only took them a total of three hours to install all of the interior walls of the 1200 sq ft W Asheville residence.

Push Design in WNC Magazine

2010-10-04T13:05:00.000-07:00

Thanks WNC Magazine! There is a great new article featuring Push Design in this months WNC Magazine. The article covers our history and philosophy exceptionally well and the photos look great. The article points out the underlying importance in why we do what we do. Innovation is always important to designers and of course we are all focused on creating more sustainable materials and methods of building but nothing can compare to the passion of a father wanting the best life possible for his children. Please take a few moments to read the article by clicking on the title of the article below.

WNC Magazine - Design Leap - A father’s search for healthy building materials brings about an innovative home

Pushing ahead with our toxin free home

2010-10-01T12:13:00.000-07:00

Work on the latest project by Push Design is moving along. Carol Wilson’s home is in the framing stages and we have taken a few photos to keep folks updated on our first toxin free home.

In other news, our new website is live and we couldn't be happier with the design. We want to thank Scullytown for all the hard work. Now, we may be a little bias but it is the coolest website dealing with sustainable building and materials on the web. Visit www.pushahead.com and see for yourself.

Sustainable Building Design in the news

2010-09-27T09:13:00.000-07:00

Here is a great slide show and article from the Huffington Post that promoted benifits of various sustainable building designs that hit the internet last week. We were excited to have the Push House featured in an article promoting the benifits of building with several the materials that Push Design is using to create our enery efficent and toxin free homes. While we're not sure that the materials were listed in any particular order, it was sure nice to see that Hemp Homes were listed at #1.

Here is a direct link.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/21/7-sustainable-building-de_n_715214.html

Extra, extra, read all about it...

2010-09-27T08:30:00.000-07:00

Push Design made the front page of the Asheville Citizen Times this Sunday. It was a great article featuring our lastest project taking place in West Asheville and really touched on our focus and philosophy. Keep the good news coming. Thanks Citizen Times.

photo credit: Asheville Citizen Times. Click for a link to the article.

Push House on Jimmy Fallon

2010-09-23T09:15:00.000-07:00

http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/video/monologue-9-15-10/1249432

Push House photos (thankyou Derek Olson)....amazing

2010-09-15T06:20:00.000-07:00

Hemp homes are cutting edge of green building

2010-09-13T07:36:00.000-07:00

Story posted in USA Today's Green House blog by Wendy Koch.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2010/09/hemp-houses-built-asheville/1

For more information please visit Push Design at www.pushahead.com

HEMP TECH SNEAKS OVER THE BORDER

2010-08-31T10:07:00.000-07:00

Discovery Channel News Online article just posted

http://news.discovery.com/tech/hemp-tech-sneaks-over-the-border.html

Great compliment!!!!

Push Design Hemp House Asheville featured on CNN

2010-08-26T08:11:00.000-07:00

For those of you that saw me (Anthony Brenner) on CNN Headline News this morning I would like to let everyone know that I would welcome the opportunity to answer any questions you may have regarding the story. Please contact me via email with any questions or comments pushdesign.anthony@gmail.com

Asheville's First Non-toxic residence

2010-08-23T05:46:00.000-07:00

Push Design is excited to announce that construction has begun in West Asheville. I will be starting an entirely new blog for all of you to follow. The smaller version of the original Push House will be the first non-toxic house ever built in Asheville. Stay tuned!!!

Be sure to check out the interview from friday on WLOS with Titled Hemp House Complete interview by Karen Wynne with Anthony Brenner, Karon Korp and Ex-mayor Russ Martin, thanks Karen!!!

http://wlos.com/shared/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wlos_vid_2761.shtml

Hemp House in Asheville ( Interview on WLOS with Anthony Brenner)

2010-08-23T05:32:00.000-07:00

Anthony Brenner (Lead design for Push Design) was interviewed last friday by Karen Wynne from local news station WLOS Channel 13 and the link to the story is attached below.

http://wlos.com/shared/newsroom/top_stories/videos/wlos_vid_2761.shtml

More pics

2010-07-08T17:23:00.001-07:00

More pics from today

2010-07-08T17:18:00.000-07:00

They're moved in, finally!!!!

2010-07-08T16:45:00.000-07:00

My apologies for "zero" updates for almost a month but my clients have been moving in and getting situated in their new home. Today was the first day I had been in the home in close to two weeks and it is so nice to see this project finally come to fruition. There are still about 3-4 separate rooms that still have boxes in them so I was unable to shoot them. Once they get completely moved in I am going to have a professional photog come in and take some shots for our new website and marketing collateral.

But for now I have attached the new images that I took today.

Got our CO...singing from the rooftops!!

2010-06-07T17:43:00.001-07:00

Images will follow tomorrow of all the wonderful things that have happened over the last 2 weeks but really nothing that would look any different to anyone on the web. So tune in tomorrow and you will see the magic!

more Purepanel™ furniture images

2010-05-19T18:02:00.000-07:00

Purepanel™ Furniture a truly green furniture solution

2010-05-19T17:45:00.000-07:00

David Humphrey and Mark Akers at Square Peg finished up the furniture early this week and they have exceeded all expectations. We believe we have uncovered the future of furniture, especially furniture made with the environment as a focus. The furniture industry is traditionally considered one of the worst industries for the environment on the planet. Extreme use of wood from non renewable resources, carbon footprint due to the large majority being manufactured on the other side of the earth and most important in my mind, the toxicity of typical furniture because of the use of nasty glues, adhesives and finishing materials. I honestly think we have created the solution.

I have been waiting so long for this day!

2010-05-19T17:37:00.000-07:00

Purepanel™ doors finally getting installed. Those of you that don't know as if I haven't referenced Pure Panel 100x in the blog. Pure Panel is 100% post consumer recycled paper core material that is used in this application as the core of the doors you see here. The doors are 1 1/2" thick and as you can see is extremely light (approx 1/4 the weight of a typical door) and much stronger. They turned out beautiful thanks to Square Peg once again. As far as I know this is the first application of Pure Panel as custom doors in North America. Pretty exciting!!!

Steel rails going in and I couldn't be more excited

2010-05-19T17:26:00.000-07:00

David Earl Tomlinson , owner of Dynamic Metalworks started the install of our steel rail system today. I have thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with David over the last few months. David has an extremely creative mind and is one of those guys that I could literally give him my vision with the spoken word and then let him interpret my vision and in turn he would achieve and exceed any expectations. Very talented guy !

Thankyou David the rails look better than I expected and my expectations were very high.

LOOK at this trim...I'm so happy!

2010-05-19T17:20:00.000-07:00

Once again and again, thankyou Square Peg for the amazingly detail finish work on the window trim. As a few people that have visited the house have said "this is the way that trim is supposed to be installed". This is why they are considered the premier trim and cabinet guys in the area.Wait til you see the doors they installed today, that post is coming up later, you are not gonna believe it.

Just what I was looking for

2010-05-19T17:11:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Bill Sargent and his versatile skills he was able to accomplish the "exact" finish I wanted on the fireplace. The wood burning fireplace is a perfect example of function over form. This is a very high efficiency stove that will heat the entire upper level of the home. We were unable to find a unit that was aesthetically perfect for that space that was not priced unreasonably and that fit the function so we went with Buck Stove (local fireplace retailer). In order to combat the traditional nature of the unit we had to make sure that the surround was clean, simple and bit more modern in nature. I think it works very well and I am pleased with the way it turned out.

Master Bath looks AMAZING!

2010-05-19T16:59:00.000-07:00

We are so close to finishing the tile in the master bath and we would be but the trusty designer didn't do a correct takeoff and came up 2 tiles short.Luckily another one of my clients used the same tile and we have extra so it's not a big deal. So hopefully tomorrow we can be done with the extensive tile work if I can in fact come up with the other two tiles.

In addition to the tile we have "beautiful" wallcovering going in tonight on the vanity wall and I can't wait for everyone to see it. It should be stunning!!Then on friday the black walnut slab counter will be installed along with the vessel sinks.

We did have the main shower valve installed today and looks really sexy!

kitchen/laundry/pantry cabinets look great

2010-05-19T16:48:00.000-07:00

So excited about this design feature

2010-05-11T13:04:00.000-07:00

I tend to Push (pardon the pun) my clients to consider things that might otherwise seem ridiculous but sometimes we can pull it off. In this case, we pulled it off. From the outset of the development of the design of the home I wanted to incorporate a water feature into the landscape and outdoor living spaces of the house. As you all know I always defer to reclaimed or salvage materials first. In this case I have been trying to conceptualize how I could blend the upper space or front entry and the lower outdoor living space under the sitting room together so there was some cohesion. Subsequently we needed 2 large retaining walls just to the right of the front entry bridge to hold back fill from the front of the house. So I had Sargent Construction build a 4ft x 15ft long retaining wall out of leftover ICF blocks from the foundation as one retaining, then for the big one I found out that Southern Concrete here in Asheville uses left over concrete to make very large 3'x6'concrete blocks for various reasons and they are only $35. So I had then deliver 8 blocks and they stacked them on top of one another. The smallest of the 2 walls is about 9ft below the top of the other, so to create some harmony between the two and develop this illusive water feature we took the next step to design a 2 tiered steel feature. I bought 2 reclaimed steel I-beams, turned them on their side and they will act as the pool/waterfall into a larger beam that will be the basin.The longest beam runs under the entry bridge and cantileavers out over the other beam from 8ft above and will dump water into the lower beam that will recycle the water back up top for what I think has turned out to be amazing. I try to pride myself on being creatively resourceful and in this instance I am pleased with my persistence or stubbornness it took to pull this off without driving everyone on the job crazy, most importantly my gracious clients.

Ash Flooring down

2010-05-11T12:56:00.000-07:00

Flooring is complete on the main floor! We had some ash trees milled that we took down from the property and put them down in the sitting room, dining room, kitchen, powder room and office on the main floor and it turned out beautifully.The hardwoods will get finished with Earth Paint wood finish (local Asheville company). The clear we will use is a zero VOC locally harvested water based finish.

Master Bathroom

2010-05-11T12:41:00.000-07:00

I think with out a doubt the master bathroom is going to be my favorite space in the Push House. So much light, so much texture in combination with breathtaking mountain views, it will become a sanctuary for the homeowners. All things Solid once again has impressed us with their tile work (below). They have carried out the vision for the space perfectly, thankyou All Things Solid.

I am currently putting together the finished for the vanity wall as we speak and I am thrilled with what I am putting together. The black walnut slab countertop (below)that Square Peg is doing for us has turned out to be more beautiful than I expected. This counter will have some type of incredible wallcovering as a background. Right now I am attempting to find the "perfect" fabric to hang on the wall but I am at a road block and have been unable to find what I am looking for. My safety net is wallpaper. Luckily there are some incredible new modern wall coverings that are on the market and I have alot to choose form but either way it is a very difficult and time consuming proposition to make sure that it is perfect and I don't settle just to get the job done.

Lime rendering looks so nice

2010-04-01T13:18:00.000-07:00

Visited the site at the end of the day today and was shocked by how much All Things Solid has accomplished today with this beautiful 80 degree weather. Big change from Siberia just at the beginning of the week.

It especially looks great up against the rusted reclaimed steel beams holding up the sitting room and deck that is cantilevered off the house.

Say goodbye to drywall and hello Magnum Board

2010-04-01T13:06:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Magnum Building Products we are able to get away from being forced to use "nasty"drywall. Magnum Board or MGO board for short is a natural replacement to drywall. Magnum board is a mineral based sheet product that is impervious to fire, water, insects, does not feed mold or mildew, is non toxic, non flammable and non combustible.Magnum Board is what is used in conjunction with Purepanel™ to increase the strength and the stability of the paper core. This product can be used as a drywall replacement, a cement board replacement which allows you to tile directly too it. It is also used as an exterior cladding in replace of siding, shingles, plywood, etc because of its weather resistance. One of the many beauties of this product is it's ease of painting. It is already virtually a level 5 drywall finish (smooth of a finish that can possibly be achieved) so all thats need is tape, mud for joints and paint, no primer needed.

Finally a non toxic alternative to drywall!!! It will also reduce your home owners insurance due to to it's inability to burn.

Never underestimate the strength and beauty of recycled paper and it's many uses!!

2010-03-29T18:29:00.000-07:00

First shot you will see is of a panel after an initial clear coat and has had it's ends 45'd and cut down in order to properly join other panels with only glue (no screws or nails). The next shot is of one panel that has been run through the biscuit joiner. This just proves that anything that is built using plywood or mdf as the core can effectively be transitioned into a more eco minded solution.

Secondly,We freaked a few people out today when I proposed we do an in house test of the strength of the PurePanel.We really freaked them out when they witnessed the results. I am a true believer in the product but I was even blown away with what we saw today. Basically what you are going to see is one shot of me standing on a 4' long x 3" wide x 1 1/2" thick piece of purepanel (recycled paper that has 1/4" plywood skinned to either side, there is absolutely no deflection and I weigh 190 lbs. The next image is of me and one of square pegs guys standing on the same piece (roughly 400lbs, 1/8" deflection. The last image is of me standing on a 1" thick piece of purepanel and all it is skinned with is plastibacker (paper backing that goes on prior to laminate 1/16" thick). This is the exact use of materials that we are building the furniture out of except instead of plastibacker we are using a zebrawood veneer. So for any of you that questioned whether PurePanel is going to be strong enough, take a look for yourself. we are estimating that the nightstand we are making will weigh less than 810lbs and easily be able to support any amount of weight that would ever be required. Pretty amazing!!

Below you will see the conceptual design of the furniture we are making. Very minimal design yet very stylish and functional.

All things Solid work their magic!

2010-03-29T18:22:00.000-07:00

I need to be very aware how lucky I am to be surrounded by such good people that are so good at what they do and in this case really good at something that they have never done before, and matter of fact, something that no one else in the US has done and they are flying through it. As you can see from the images attached, they are really making some great progress with the lime rendering (base coat or brown coat) on the Hemcrete walls.

Plywood Ceiling looks amazing!

2010-03-29T17:46:00.000-07:00

I have to first of all thank Andrew Schultz, his father and Lance for making the vision I had for the ceiling come to fruition. Andrew started planning and taking his measurement friday afternoon late and started his install this morning first thing. I wasn't able to get the site until 3pm today to see what had been accomplished today and I was floored when I walked in today.....it was perfect. We are using 1/2" cabinet grade plywood and spacing them 1/4" from each other. In the 1/4" space between each panel Andrew has put in solid wood blocking and painted them black to hide the insulation and roof framing.

Today didn't go by without some type of drama. When our insulation contractor (Home Energy Partners) came by today to inspect work performed last week he started asking questions regarding what we were doing with the plywood. After he found out that we were using 1/2" plywood he began to get concerned that we would not pass inspection due to a flame spread building code. After putting the brakes on Andrew and his crew I proceed to make some calls and then visit the building department with a possible solution (flame retardant paint additive that can be added to a clear coat finish). The inspectors are reviewing the data I gave them and will let me know in the morning whether they will accept it. If they don't accept it, then we have 2 options, 1) remove the plywood and paint the icynene insulation with a flame retardant, 2) add an additional layer of plywood to exceed the 5/*" requirement. Either way it is an expensive proposition an I take full responsibility for this mistake. Fortunately I can use this as a learning experience and continue my education on the job.

On a positive note, look how great it looks.

Purepanel™ Furniture a truly green furniture solution

2010-03-26T17:28:00.000-07:00

I can't even tell you how excited I am about what myself and David Humphrey from Square Peg Construction are working on. For most of you that keep up with my postings you are familiar with Purepanel™. Purepanel™has been my absolute obsession (besides my 3 girls of course) the previous 10 months. For those of you that are not familiar with the product, here ya' go. Pure Panel is 100% post consumer recycled paper structural panels used to make structural walls, non structural walls, doors, cabinets, countertops, and now as you will see below beautiful furniture. David and I have been collaborating for 2-3 months on designs, construction, veneers and other materials in order to come up with extremely lightweight beautiful and incredibly strong furniture and I think we have nailed it. David and one of his craftsman Mark Akers have started veneering some of the paper core with stunning zebrawood veneer. We are going to be making 2 different nightstands, a headboard and a dining table.I have attached the side panels of the zebrawood nightstand and some shots of the sycamore top and rails of the dining table. Seeing this all come together is so exciting for us because we are the first in the US and even more exciting to have a truly "green" furniture solution for an industry that has a reputation as one of the worst contributors to our environment. Check it out, can't wait for everyone to see the finished product.

Finally!!!!

2010-03-26T17:15:00.000-07:00

Just 2 days ago we started finishing the Hemcrete with the hydraulic lime rendering. and it is "going on like butter". Very clever statement from Doc Summers from All things solid ,talented local craftsman handling the rendering work for us. After prepping the windows,doors soffit transition and bottom of the wall with mud stop and drip edge(very similar to traditional stucco) they proceeded with applying the 5/8" base coat (brown coat) of the german hydraulic lime rendering. Once this layer goes on and is floated out to get a flat level base then it needs to dry 1 day per millimeter until it sufficiently dried then they go back with a 1 mil finish coat. This finish coat will have an integral color mixed in so that the exterior walls will not need to be painted.

Doc and Tommy have done a wonderful job on this first wall of the Martin/Korp cantilevered deck.

Master Bath looks great!

2010-03-23T13:47:00.000-07:00

The rough plumbing for the master bath is complete and it so exciting to see it come together. This is point of the project that is so exciting to me. You have these visions in your head for months and months of how the space is supposed to look and feel and once you get the tub and the valves in place you can really get a clear picture of what it will look like at the end of the project. So what you are looking at is a picture of the shower and one of the tub. The bathroom design centers around a 5 x 6 open shower that shares the space with the tub, no walls, all open. So essentially while in the shower or soaking in the tub you can look out to the north and east mountains and at 3550 ft elevation, the views are spectacular. The other image is of the wall where the vanity and sinks will be. The vanity will consist of a 8 foot floating slab of reclaimed black walnut with 2 uber modern vessel sinks and Hudson Reed wall mounted vessel fillers.

The final 2 images are of the standing pebbles that will be on the wall where the shower valves and head are and this wall will be 5ft wide by 11 feet tall. The pebbles will be black, not natural like the attached image. This will certainly make a statement.The other image is of the tile we will be using for the floor and for the walls surrounding the tub and shower. On the wall where the sinks and slab will be we are currently searching for the perfect fabric that will work well with the tile, slab and pebbles. We will hang the fabric on the walls as if it were wallpaper. I love to hang fabric on walls, not only are there 1000's of choices to get the perfect fit but it also adds a bit of needed texture to any given space that really looks amazing if it is well executed.

The stairs are in!

2010-02-24T18:55:00.000-08:00

Once again Square Peg performed beautifully. I gave them a very minimalist design but it turned out to be a fairly challenging proposition. Just because something is minimal and or simple in concept doesn't always mean that it is easy to create. Square Peg interpreted my vision perfectly and the stairs look great. We used engineered LVL material for the treads and the stringers and then they had steel brackets and braces manufactured to add additional support. Once the steel railing is installed and the stained concrete floor is completed on the lower level I think it will all work perfectly together. Minimal as it may seem, it should be quite beautiful.

Roofing and fascia almost done, looks great

2010-02-24T18:22:00.000-08:00

All Aspects Construction has flown through the install of the TPO membrane roof and metal fascia. They have worked diligently through the extreme weather and have completed the roof.It has been very impressive seeing them shovel the snow and ice in order to finish their job on schedule no matter the conditions. Thankyou to Matt and the team at All Aspects Construction.

Thankyou Square Peg!!!

2010-02-24T12:36:00.000-08:00

I would like to thank all of the guys at Square Peg Construction for the "beautiful" job they did on the 100+ yr old Indian antique front entry door. The talented craftsman took the door from a "pretty" but non-functional door to a spectacular architectural focus of the front of the home. Thanks again!

We feel very honored!!

2010-02-10T11:00:00.000-08:00

I recieved an email last night from Robin Curtis. Robin is the spearhead of the Purepanel division for EA International (purepanel:100% post consumer recycled paper structural ad non-structural walls) who supplied the core for the interior walls on the Push House. His letter is attached below. Lets just say that I am thoroughly honored and proud of this gesture.

Dear Anthony,

Bernard Vichet and I have shared much of the progress being made with Purepanel, including your project in Asheville. Bernard is very passionate about the environment. His commitment over the years has won him many awards in many countries. To cut a long story short Bernard wants to recognize your commitment by placing your efforts within his next book. You can down load one of Bernard's books from his business web site www.destalingenieria.com Bernard has a second addition hot off the press which contains a number of pages on Purepanel. The book is called 8 Actions To Save The Planet. I will send you one or bring you one when you one when I return to the US is early March. You will see the format within the book follows the project through the stages of completion. It is not just a mention of the project it is a record for people to refer to as true green building practices. Your efforts deserve this type of record or paternity as Bernard likes to call it.

How does Hemp hold up in the weather?

2010-02-10T10:21:00.000-08:00

I think it is fairly obvious and quite convincing by looking at the pictures below to anyone that doubted or questioned whether the hemp walls would hold up in the extreme weather prior to being finished with a lime stucco. I have obviously been a strong proponent and believer in the product but I had never seen the product in the elements. Now that I have witnessed the hemp walls be exposed to rain, snow, ice and severe wind for the last 45 days I'm not sure if I have ever see anything quite like it. It has continued to become harder over this time period and there has been no sign whatsoever of any kind of failure. There are not too many places that you could install this product that it would ever be exposed to the types of extreme weather this house has been through. So in my mind and everyone else that has seen the product is amazed at it's strength and resilience.

The blow images are of the driveway leading to the house, the bank directly beside the house than a shot of the west side of the house covered in 1" of solid ice.

Inclement weather has really set us back!!

2010-02-08T08:25:00.000-08:00

I don't recall there ever being a winter like we have had in the last 45 days. It has been non'stop snow or ice at the site. For those of you that are not familiar with the site, it sits at 3550 ft elevation, north side of the hill and has constant wind. This combination creates an extremely difficult scenario for building.

It looks like this week should be OK, although we have the potential for some ice tonight but the remainder of the week looks just fine. If this forecast holds up we should be able to get our membrane roof and metal fascia started as well as our HVAC, electrical and plumbing rough in. We are also throwing around the idea of creating a covered entry into the home at the front door. This structure would consist of a flat roof (actually a pitch of 1" in 12') 12' long and 5 feet wide and a floating bridge with metal handrail on the right due too about a 10 foot drop on the right side of the bridge. I have attached the proposed design and would appreciate any feedback.

Another new product..Gigacrete!

2010-01-20T07:11:00.001-08:00

The images you will find below are of the guys (Sargent Construction)installing a new technology for finishing ICF, block, concrete and many other uses.

The only reason I even found this product was because I very dissapointed in the industries selection general for healthy alternatives for foundations and below grade materials that had good thermal properties. Really the only options out there are poured walls, block walls and ICF (insulated concrete forms). Everyone should know by now that I am very reluctant to use any chemically based materials unless there are no other alternatives. ICF construction was the only logical choice for this home because of the high elevations, extreme temperature fluctuations and wind. So once we decide to use ICF (build block) I was on the mission to find a product I could apply to the foam to create a sheel or a barrier just in case there is any outgassing of any kind...no matter how minimal. This led me to Gigacrete. Gigacrete is a spray on, roll on, trowel on product that hardens to 5000 PSI and has incredible fire ratings and water resistance .Gigacreteis designed to be environmentally responsible. It emits zero pollutants, and uses less water than similar products currently on the market. Gigacrete contains 35% recycled content (by volume); all gigacreteproducts exceed USEPA and California indoor air quality and VOC standards.If you would like more info regarding the product, you can visit http://www.gigacrete.com/ and look for the ICF plastermax base coat.

Images of the new panels set yesterday

2010-01-20T07:04:00.001-08:00

The panels that were set yesterday are the walls for one of the master closets. As you can see in the final shot, there is no header over the door opening that enters the closet, this should provide nice natural light to enter from either the master bath or master bedroom side.

Panels starting to go in very smoothly!

2010-01-20T06:56:00.000-08:00

It took our guys a day to figure out the system but they have the haqng of it and we are hopeful they will be set by the end of the week. Organization of all 74 panels has been the biggest challenge because of our tight spaces within to work. The stairwell created a bit of a challenge because of the sheer size of the panels it was very difficult to manuever them into place while trying to float them over aq 4 foot hole in the floor. But, from this point forward they should be able to fly through the remaining panels.
The one point we need to all remember is that these panels are being set by two guys and it will end up taking them 5 working days to complete all the interior walls on 2 floors. Now try to imagine the length of time it would have taken the same two guys to traditionally frame all the walls and then to drywall them as well. This system just validated it's worth. This doesnt even take into account the environmental and health benefits of the product either. I beleive this is the new phase and next level of "true" green building.

"True" Green building history made yesterday!!!

2010-01-19T06:49:00.000-08:00

Yet another groundbreaking material installed on the Push House. Purepanel™ install began yesterday afternoon. Purepanel™ is 100% post consumer recycled paper structural and non structural walls. The 2 1/8" wall thickness consists of the recycled paper core material then a inner and outer skin of Magnum® Board which is a natural replacement to drywall. The concept is, which you will see in the photos is that you stand the panels up, attach 4" timberlock screws into the roof structure at each corner and then the same into the floor system. At the end of each panel is a 1" groove from top to bottom that we insert a 1" strip of hardwood to act as the tongue for the next panel. These strips are glued into place and the next panel will be slid into place right next to it glued to the tongue on the other panel and then screwed to the floor and roof as well and then this processs is repeated throughout. The only this that needs to be done from this point is for the seams to taped and skim coated just like you would do with drywall, and the finally painted. The electrical channels are already built into the walls. There is a cavity from top to bottom for the electricial to fish wires in and then simply cut out where his boxes are.

This is the very first residential install of this product in North America and thanks to the help of Atlanta Sunbelt (manufacturers of the complete panel) and Purepanel™ a division of EA International along with Magnum Building Products we were able to take true green building to the next level.

Images follow

Shots from yesterday

2010-01-19T06:44:00.001-08:00

The house is really starting to come together and it looks FANTASTIC!!

2010-01-19T06:40:00.000-08:00

Finally, mother nature comes through with great weather!

2010-01-19T06:34:00.000-08:00

Since mid december we have been in a winter wonderland here on the top of the world here in Asheville. We have not been able to accomplish very much due to the heavy snow, below freezing temperatures and poor road conditions to the site.
But finally we have nice weather and we have been able to get a tremendous amount done in just a few days. We have been able to set all the windows, install the soffit and fascia material, put down the IPE decking on the 2 decks, frame the plumbing walls on the main floor and stucco the crawl space.

It's amazing what a roof will do!!

2009-12-01T17:24:00.001-08:00

Great shots from wednesday!!

2009-11-26T17:13:00.000-08:00

Thankyou WLOS and Karen Wynne

2009-11-26T16:44:00.000-08:00

WLOS Channel 13 did a fantastic job covering the Push House. Thanks again!!!

Click on the following link to watch the story.

http://www.wlos.com/shared/newsroom/top_stories/wlos_vid_1323.shtml

Media exposure continues

2009-11-24T17:32:00.000-08:00

WLOS Channel 13 came by today and did an interview with us regarding the house and it will be airing at 5 or 5:30 on thanksgiving night. Please tune in!! You will be able to view the interview on their website later that evening if you miss it live on www.wlos.com under 'top stories'.

We also heard from a major National cable channel that has expressed some interest in a story as well. Once we have finalized the plans on a piece I will let everyone know who, what and where....but either way SO EXCITING!!

2009-11-22T11:08:00.000-08:00

Interior wall complete, once all of the walls have dried appropriately (approx 10 days), we will then be able to apply our lime rendering or plaster type finish to the interior and exterior walls. The interior wall finish will look very similar to a smooth finish of drywall or plaster, but with integral color so it does not need to be painted.

Nice shot of the 14ft tall, front elevation of the house with the window buckings (2x12) which we will attach our windows too once they get installed

Had to represent a bit!

We are so close to getting the front of the house complete, we had to leave the top few inches exposed due to having to get in and install our double hurricane clips to the top plate because of the home being in a 130 mph wind zone and the fact that we have a 6ft over hang on the front roof line. Without the proper engineering and tie downs , this roof would be a kite!!Now that those are complete we will be able to finish to the top plate and remove all of the forms.

Great exposure!

2009-11-22T11:04:00.000-08:00

Thankyou Asheville Citizen Times and John Boyle , he did a great piece on our project this morning and we are all very pleased. Please go to the following link to learn more about hemcrete. http://www.citizen-times.com/article/20091122/NEWS01/311220032

Great day!

2009-11-20T12:12:00.001-08:00

We got a tremendous amount accomplished at the house today. We got the entire back wall of the house done up about 4 ft and we started pulling the forms off of the front part of the house. Now that we have some forms off of the exterior and interior walls it is becoming very exciting. It all finally seems real after such a long process to get to this point.

We are starting to see some great interest from locals and people in the building industry. We had 2 different builders, an architect, and developer stop by the site to learn more about Hemcrete and to follow the progress.

Check out an article that is being run by the Asheville Citizen Times on Sunday (business section). This is going to be great for exposure of the product and all parties involved. I will upload new photos tonight.

Quick and overdue thanks!!!

2009-11-18T19:02:00.000-08:00

Push Designs would like to personally thank Dave Madera and Greg Flavell from Hemp Technologies for making this project at all possible. From my perspective as the lead designer/project manager and in one charge of the budget for the client I have to say that I have yet to work with a supplier that has been as forthright, honest and fully committed to their product as Dave and Greg are. I look forward to this being the first of "many" projects we work on together in the near future. Thanks again guys!

End of our 3rd working day

2009-11-18T18:53:00.000-08:00

Due to crummy weather we have been unable to work consistently the last 5 days but tuesday night we finished "in the dark"on a very positive note. As you can see we have accomplished a great deal in just the last 2 days. We have been able to fill the entire front wall up 14', all the walls of the laundry/mud room (on far left of front elevation shot) and about 15' of the first 2ft of forms on the west side of the house. we lost today due to rain and high winds but are hopeful the weather will cooperate tomorrow and we can get a good deal accomplished.

Thanks Bill!!!

2009-11-18T18:42:00.000-08:00

We are very lucky to have Bill Sargent and his talented team (Steve, Bill and Jeremy)on our team. Not only have we learned a great deal from his 20+ years of experience in the building industry but he was able to show us ways to work at much more efficient pace. These wooden forms you see in this image were built by Bill and his team in order to be able to "speed up the process" and keep two steps ahead, which we have found to be priceless.

Example of electrical rough in

2009-11-18T18:19:00.000-08:00

This image is of the rough in electrical done by our electrician prior to the hemcrete install. The conduit is run and attached to the framing as it would traditionally although the only difference would be that the electrical boxes need to be set to the "exact" depth of the walls so that when we remove the forms the face of the boxes are exposed so the plate is flush with the wall.

Forms removed from first row

2009-11-18T18:16:00.000-08:00

Now that the forms have been removed, we will screw down another 2x12 window bucking to the exposed 2x4 so we have a framework to install our windows too.

First 2ft of forms filled

2009-11-18T18:01:00.000-08:00

David is putting his finishing touches on our first 2 feet of Hemcrete. In order to achieve the optimal performance of this product it is essential that it is installed properly. Obviously the the most important element is the perfect slurry of the hemp shiv, lime mortar and water. The next step is to dump or shovel in approx. 1 ft of the mix into the forms and smooth out like you are spreading cheese onto a pizza. After you have dumped in and smoothed out a foot then the next step is to tamp down the edges of the forms and around the framing to get a nice compaction. This compaction insures that when we remove the forms we have a flat wall with no holes or voids and around the framing it is crucial to get the hemcrete tight around the wood so you keep from any thermal breaks. Now that this step is complete, we will add another row of forms and then repeat.

Thank you volunteer's

2009-11-18T17:53:00.000-08:00

This is a shot of one of our many volunteer's working tirelessly. Joe is measuring out the exact mixture of lime to dump into our mixer with the our hemp shiv and water to get to the perfect slurry.

FINALLY!!!!!

2009-11-13T14:34:00.000-08:00

The weather finally cooperated and we began setting forms and installing Hemcrete. Thanks to many many volunteers from across the country that assisted us and will continue to offer their time and effort into our project. These are the folks that fight the fight everyday to build awareness to the incredibly positive impact Hemp could have on our lives and our country. So thankyou again, you know who you are.

The following picture is of ALL that were involved on this monumental day for healthy and green building in the US.

Sun shines it's wondrous light on our bags of Hemp

2009-11-09T19:25:00.000-08:00

Hemcrete corporate execs from London in town for installation training.They are here for the big day tomorrow (depending on weather)

2009-11-09T19:17:00.000-08:00

Framing almost done today and steel beams were set

2009-11-09T19:08:00.000-08:00

Front elevation

2009-11-08T08:34:00.000-08:00

Guys are almost done framing the south wall or front elevation of the house.

First ever Hemp house in the U.S

2009-11-08T07:06:00.000-08:00

Push Designs (Architectural/Interior design firm based in Asheville) is thrilled to announce that we will begin the installation of Hemcrete in Asheville, NC. The core of Push Designs building principles revolve around a healthy living environment. We attempt to design and build a chemical free, non toxic home for our clients.

This will be the first install of this ground breaking healthy/green building material in the United States. Hemcrete is a building material made from Hemp shiv and lime to create a thermal envelope around the home. Push designs allure to Hemcrete was air quality. Because of the presence of lime in this mixture in continually takes in carbon from the interior of the home in order to get back to it's rock form. Please visit hemtecusa.com to learn more about the product.We are using Hemcrete as our main living level exterior walls. The walls get framed traditionally with 2 x4 studs, 24" on center, then our partners at Hemcrete and their certified installers will set forms in 2 foot lifts (recycled plastic) around the perimeter of the home. Once the first 2-4 feet have cured overnight, then we can proceed with the next 2-4 feet and so forth. This home for Russ Martin (former mayor of Asheville and his wife Karen Korp) has 10 foot walls on the rear elevation of the home pitching upward to 14 foot walls at the front elevation.

Monday November 9th our team will begin setting our forms around the perimeter of the home. Tuesday midday we are hoping to begin mixing our slurry of hemp and lime and start hand shoveling Hemcrete into our forms. We are estimating that we should be able to get the first 2 feet done on tuesday and complete the entire main floor in 5-6 working days. Once this is complete, then we need to wait approx. 10-14 days (depending on weather) for the Hemcrete to cure and then we can begin applying the lime rendering (stucco) onto the exterior and interior of these walls.

Hemcrete alleviates the need for drywall on the interior of these walls, insulation, 30-40% less lumber, painting on interior or exterior (integral color in lime wash for lime rendering), siding/sheathing,etc)

Please follow our progress throughout the next week on this blog as well as pushdesigns.net.