John Lautner’s work largely focused on the relationships between the users, space, and nature.  As John Lautner once said, “Shelter is the most basic human need”. Bold geometry and an exciting use of concrete and glass are prominent in many Lautner buildings.  His work also featured progressive engineering.

The Chemosphere house, an octagon atop a thirty foot high concrete column, was designed for a lot so steep it was considered unbuildable.  The home has become iconic, serving as inspiration and scenery in numerous television and films.

Lautner’s design for Googie’s Coffee Shop inspired the commercial Googie style, characterized by exuberant signage aimed at car traffic.

Sources: johnlautner.org, artknowledgenews.com, apartmenttherapy.com

	“Newport Beach ‘Green’ Home to Be Built in 1 Day”
	“Prefab LivingHome Rises in Newport Beach; Poised to Become Orange County’s First LEED Platinum-Certified Home”
	“Prefab ‘Green’ House Hoisted into Place in Newport” by Pat Brennan.
	“Prefab housing goes green in Newport Beach” by Nancy Rivera Brooks.
	“LivingHomes Delivers KieranTimberlake Prefab in Orange County” by Evelyn Lee.

To see all recent news about LivingHomes, visit our press page.

Watch video of the installation day on our media gallery.

To learn more about the KTLH1.5, click here.

The KTLH1.5 reaches its final home in Newport Beach, CA this November. Be in the front row at the construction site. We will set up webcams to capture the installation of the modules, and stream them live. On November 5, click here anytime after 7:00 AM PST to watch the fun!  Read on…

Rodney Walker was a designer and builder who built about 100 modern homes, mostly in Southern California.

Walker pioneered the creation of private spaces within an open floor plan, refining a key element of modern architecture. His homes are characterized by transparency, floating roof planes, and what were, at the time, innovative materials such as steel, plywood, and fiberglass panels.  Walker also served as builder and designer on most of his homes, to ensure that they were built according to his vision.

Walker preached the need to build high quality houses at a low cost.  He worked avidly to eliminate waste.  In these values, Walker shared the mantra of LivingHomes and the prefab movement.

In the late 1940s, Walker built three houses as part of Arts & Architecture Magazine’s Case Study House Program, Case Study Homes #16, #17A, and #18.  All three were built with a modular wood construction system, clearly defined private and public areas, and integrated indoor and outdoor spaces.

Sources: http://www.housing.com/categories/rodney-walker.html, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_Walker_(architect)

Photo by Tim Street Porter

Photo by Julius Shulman

Photo by Julius Shulman

photo credit: JoshuaDavisPhotography.COM

The LADWP offers a “Save Water—Save a Buck” rebate program to encourage water conservation efforts.  You can receive rebates for high efficiency plumbing fixtures, landscaping equipment, HVAC equipment, and more.  The LADWP also offers free water-saving aerators that can reduce your water usage to 1-1.5 gpm in your bathroom and kitchen faucets.

Los Angeles is suffering through one of the driest years on record, and 80% of LA’s water is imported.  Due to the ongoing drought, the LADWP has instituted more extreme water conservation, and wasteful water use is now prohibited.  Please water your lawns before 9AM or after 4PM, and only on Mondays and Thursdays.  And if you do not find water offered to you at a restaurant, just ask.  They’ll be happy to give you a glass.

LivingHomes has its own philosophy for reducing water and energy, as part of our larger “Six Zeros of Sustainability”.  All LivingHomes include low-flow and Energy Star appliances and they come graywater-ready allowing you to reclaim water from your sinks, baths, dishwasher, and washing machine for irrigation.  In addition, we work with you to integrate native landscaping (drought-tolerant for areas where that’s an issue) and cisterns that capture your rainwater.

photo credit: Jeff Kubina

The LADWP is also focusing on energy efficiency.  The “New Construction Program” promotes sustainable, energy efficient buildings through incentives based on performance or prescriptive measures.  Rebates are available for qualifying Energy Star products, refrigerators, air conditioners, windows, and washers under the biggest rebate program ever in Los Angeles.  The city also offers free compact flourescent lightbulbs (CFLs) and refrigerator recycling.

LADWP will also assess and install energy efficient lighting equipment in local small businesses.  The “Commercial Lighting Efficiency Offer” (CLEO) provides rebates to non-residential customers for a wide variety of lighting improvements.  Rebates are also available for efficient chillers, refrigeration, and other measures that exceed Title 24 and standard practice.  The “Trees Program” even provides 15 shade trees to businesses that complete an on-line workshop.  To learn which programs you qualify for, visit the LADWP.

A LivingHome also aims for Zero Energy through the installation of energy-efficient heating, lighting, appliances, windows, and insulation and a photovoltaic system that produces energy from sunlight.

Don’t live in LA?  Many of these programs are not unique to Los Angeles.  Check out the websites of your local government and utility providers to see what programs are available to you.

When: Wednesday, October 21, 2009, 7:00AM-9:00AM

Where: The Regency Club, West Los Angeles

Register for the event.

]]> http://blog.livinghomes.net/2009/10/it-aint-easy-being-green-the-acgla-cleantech-panel.html/feed 0 http://blog.livinghomes.net/2009/08/emergency-gray-water-usage-adopted-in-california.html http://blog.livinghomes.net/2009/08/emergency-gray-water-usage-adopted-in-california.html#comments Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:54:44 +0000 Emma http://blog.livinghomes.net/?p=736 Great news!

As an emergency drought measure, California has adopted gray water usage! Starting on August 4, 2009, code changes allow for simpler, more inexpensive gray water systems in residences.  Clothes washer and one single-fixture systems no longer require local building permits for use in single-family and two-family dwellings.

Gray water is washwater left over from dishwashing, showers, sinks, and laundry that can be repurposed for landscape irrigation.  A three bedroom home typically generates 160 gallons of gray water per day.  That’s 58,400 gallons each year!  With the newly approved systems, a family could divert about 22,000 gallons of water each year just by diverting gray water from their laundry.  Using gray water for irrigation lowers fresh water use, limits strain on septic tanks and sewage systems, reclaims wasted nutrients, encourages plant growth, and more.  Gray water recycling is also very safe.

In the first LivingHome in Santa Monica, CA, ground-level landscaping is watered with gray water from the showers, tubs, bathroom sinks, and clothes washer, via a subterranean irrigation system.  The system was the first of its kind to be permitted in Los Angeles County.  Hopefully, with these changes, they will become a lot more common!

Want the down and dirty?  Read the press release and the current CA Gray Water Code.