Q: Why IKEA?

A: When we’re not doing custom, we’re designing with IKEA.  We design with IKEA because:

1. Affordable cabinets allow for flexibility with green finishes.
2. Order lead time is usually within 3 weeks. Some custom designs take as long as 16 weeks to delivery.
3. IKEA partners locally with fabricators, & uses FSC and California compliant manufacturing processes.
4. Fast assembly & installation. We can usually assemble & install a complete kitchen cabinet design in 2 days.
5. IKEA partners with Whirlpool to offer energy star appliances at a lower price than mainstream markets.
6. IKEA cabinets use Blum hardware, commonly found in custom cabinet applications. Full drawer extensions and soft closure hardware is standard on all IKEA base cabinets. Custom cabinets will upcharge for those features.
7. IKEA cabinets are California compliant for outgassing and VOC’s. Which is to say they are compliant with E-1 standards used in Germany & are currently  the most stringent worldwide.

Q: What kinds of eco-conscious products do you use?

A: As many, as often as we can. Cabinets, flooring, wallcoverings, paints, tile, energy star appliances. Materials include bamboo, concrete with recycled glass aggregate, zero VOC paints and stains, reclaimed wood, recycled and recyclable glass and metals.

Q: What’s green about cabinets?

A: For custom, we specify green plywood, green mdf, and bamboo where available (or solid wood where requested) on our cabinet boxes and doors, respectively. Green in this case means no-formaldehyde in the glue on those products, and where possible the use of FSC or reclaimed woods, and/or managed rapidly sustainable materials, such as bamboo.

Q: I’m confused about particle board and plywood. Is one better than the other?

A: I’ve conducted my own research within the cabinet fabrication industry as well as in the design industry. The consensus in both groups is that they are equal. Particle Board (sometimes referred to as engineered wood) is the greener product, since it comes from 100% wood waste products, whereas plywood comes from virgin trees. It’s also cheaper, but has the same strength capacity as plywood – especially if it is 65 lb. commercial grade particle board.

Q: What about paint?

A: We specify low or zero VOC primers, paints and stains. VOC’s are often used in paint, carpet backing, plastics, and cosmetics, and contribute significantly to indoor air pollution.

Q: I like the look and feel of a solid surface countertop. Are there other green countertop options?

A: Green comes in varying and complex degrees. For example, a solid surface product like Ice Stone or a similar quartz composite that is fabricated locally would be greener than a piece of granite shipped from South Africa to the US. (Well – it’s debatable, since overseas shipping has a smaller carbon footprint than flying, but anyway.)

There are pluses and minuses to each of them (such as tolerance to heat, stains, scratches, etc), but other countertop options include:

• tile: recycle glass or ceramic – these can play well with a tile backsplash, too.
• wood: reclaimed wood, specifically. There are several wood shops sprouting up that bind together pieces of wood that have been reclaimed from their previous building lives.
• bamboo: bamboo is a rapidly sustainable material – a grass, actually – that can replenish itself in 5 years. It has interesting textures and finishes depending on whether the grain is vertically or horizontally finished.
• concrete: there are some concrete products out there that use recycled material – like glass from bottles – as its aggregate – the chunks that hold the finer ingredients together.
• metal: aluminum or stainless steel can be recycled.

Q: Are there green lighting options, too?

A: There are several LED lighting options available for undercounter and undercabinet lighting, as well as recessed can lights for ceilings. More options come online all the time. They last longer, and unlike the pigtail bulbs, have no mercury to worry about when you’re done with them.

Q: What flooring materials do you usually specify?

A: In addition to residential products, we specify several commercial products in our residential design work. One of the most eco-friendly products out there is a modular carpet tile made by Interface FLOR. Not only is the material itself recycled, but the process of making it is also green. A blueprint of Interface is shared by its CEO, Ray Anderson, in a book he wrote called Mid Course Correction. There are a number of other flooring options, like cork, bamboo, woven vinyl, concrete, rubber and more.

Q: What about cost of building green?

A: Building green does cost more than conventional building in some aspects. Until the conventional is replaced by green practices going streamline (which it is, slowly – look at how many ads mention the word “green”, and that’s not limited to building materials), that will be true.

Still, your return on investment for building green is far higher than traditional materials. For example, let’s say you opt for the triple glazed windows instead of double glazed. They cost more up front, but the long term savings on your energy bills far outweigh going with the cheaper product. There is more on ROI and green building here.