About

This web site was created to encourage other people to build in a more environmentally friendly way, and so is my contribution to the planet.  The tutorial is an adaptation of a powerpoint presentation developed by Thor Petersen and me.  Although I gathered information from many sources, I'm particularly indebted to the many people who have shared their knowledge at the Northwest Ecobuilding Guild, and in particular, Jon Alexander for his construction knowledge.

For a list of people & companies involved in building our house, click here.

For an overview of what's on this site, click here.

Awards & Media

April 18,2007 King-TV, 5pm news

April 21, 2006  Cable news network, 6am news

April 9,2006 Seattle Times, Pacific Northwest Magazine, "A Model of Efficiency"

April, 2005 : Business and Industry Resource Venture, Best Award for innovation in conservation

April, 2005: The Sustainable Industries Journal Northwest, "Home Green Home"

March, 2005:  we won the best built-green house (for new construction) given by the City of Seattle.

Aug, 2004: We were the first house in King County to be certified as a five-star built-green home.

July, 2004: Evergreen monthly  "Green Team: The Human Side of Remodeling", Heather Nordell.

Biographies
Bob Scheulen is a native of New Jersey who discovered mountains and moved to Seattle in 1981.  Interested in the environment since high school, Bob belongs to a variety of environmental groups and land preservation group as well as the Northwest Ecobuilding Guild, of which he is the past president.  In past lives, Bob got a BS from Stevens Institute of Technology, and worked as systems programmer (compilers, utilities and operating systems) for over twenty years.  In addition to creating "green" homes, Bob is part owner of Silver Platters, a local CD & DVD store, oil paints in the realist style, and spends a lot of time enjoying nature.
Kim Wells is a third generation Californian who grew up partly in Wyoming.  Always an entrepreneur, Kim started her first business at age 22, after a brief career as a paralegal.  In past lives, Kim owned a health club, was a fitness and heath fanatic, and ran a personal training business out of studio in Redmond, Washington.  In addition to participating in the sensible house project, Kim is writing a historical fiction novel, doing a little political activism and learning all about ecological restoration.
Our other projects:
Silver Platters (www.silverplatters.com) is a "chain" of three stores in the Seattle dedicated to selling a wide variety of music to a wide variety of people.  In addition to being a music lovers paradise, our company is dedicated to fair business practices, being an active member of the community and the idea of a living wage.
The "kimbob" wilderness (we're still looking for a name), our rural retreat, is 650 acres of relatively undisturbed oak woodland and savannah in San Luis Obispo County, California.  Our intention for the "kimbob" is for the long term preservation of Oaks and native grasses, assuming that when the time comes, we can find a group who wants to keep it.  Currently, we have eliminated cattle grazing and we are learning about the ecosystem while keeping a vague watch on our native grass population (mostly needlegrass - Stipa) and live oak regeneration. Management issues include a large quantity of invasive weeds (primarily thistle), although compared to other areas in California, we are relatively weed free; as well as fire and grazing issues.  Someday this too may have its own website.