A recent survey commissioned by the experts at ServiceMagic Inc. reveals that consumers are finally understanding and reaping the benefits of energy efficiency.

Over the past year, the following eco-friendly features have been installed in homes all over the country:

• Solar installations – up 52%
• Heating – up 34%
• Air conditioning – up 14%
• Window coverings – up 17%

But what’s behind the demand for these energy saving features? ServiceMagic uncovered that consumers want to:

• Save money on energy bills – 35%
• Protect the environment – 25%
• Improve home comfort – 23%

Other motives behind consumers’ energy efficient investments are the tax benefits that come with certain features such as solar panels, as well as the rapid return on investment they’ll earn.

For more information about our eco-friendly building solutions in Breckinridge, CO, call Trilogy Builds at 970-453-2230.

Information from Qualified Remodeler

Image from House Floor Plans Idea

Rustic! You might think of this word as an adjective to describe Colorado mountain homes, but did you know it’s also the name of an American architectural style of the early twentieth century? It’s a style similar to one of its fashionable predecessors, the Shingle Style.

Rustic Style architecture is characterized by the following exterior design features: over-hanging, steeply sloped roofs mirroring surrounding mountain features, and easily shedding snow; stone foundations, shingle roofing materials; and log, wood plank and shingle wall materials.

Interior and floor plan features include an informality of design and spatial arrangement, large stone fire places with stone slab fireplace mantels, and big rocking chair porches. The Rustic Style building is sited naturally to fit into the landscape in an informal and functionally efficient manner.

A few of the best examples of the style are located in US state and national parks:

Multnomah Falls Lodge (1925, A. E. Doyle, Troutdale, Oregon) is a beautiful example of this asymmetrical, steep flowing roof, wood and stone architectural style.

Timberline Lodge (1937, US Forest Service Architects, Oregon) with its stone foundation and steep roof lines, is a classic Rustic Style building of the period. Buffalo and bear head carvings decorate the exposed eave ends.

A contemporary Colorado mountain home example that is suggestive of the early American Rustic Architectural Style was designed by Trilogy Partners. Known locally as ‘Calecho’, the architects describe the Calecho design style as follows, “All elements combine to form a symphony that embraces mountain history and modern mountain living.”

If you are fond of the Rustic Architectural Style and planning to building a custom home, please contact Trilogy Partners of Breckenridge, Colorado at 970-453-2230 for information about their custom home design-build process.

Photo Sources:  Trilogy Partners and Wikipedia

Tuesday, July 12, The New York Times reported on the new law which supports green energy. The energy law was enacted. It was then repealed by Republicans. Because of a vote of 233 to 193, the repeal was recently defeated. Since Democrats are the minority in the House, the defeat of the repeal shows that people desire green reform.

The two stages of the new light bulb standards have exceptions for specialty lights, candelabra lamps, three-way bulbs, and black lights. Although the new light bulbs cost more than current light bulbs, the energy savings should lower energy bills and offset the price of the new bulbs. The yearly savings could total $50.

Stage 1:

Jan 1 – 2014

25 to 30 percent more efficient

Stage 2:

2015-2020

60 percent more efficient

Learn about Trilogy Partners green designs and advanced building technologies.

Image courtesy of fficial U.S. Navy Imagery via Flickr

What images come to mind when you think of Colorado mountain homes? Are you visualizing pictures of attractive timber frame homes, stonework, natural and local materials, lots of windows, passive solar technology and homes blended naturally in to the surroundings?

Add expert financial management, sustainability and energy efficient home building to that list of images, and you will be describing the design-build philosophy of Trilogy Partners, award winning custom home builders located in Breckenridge, Colorado.

With years of experience in building custom Colorado mountain homes, Trilogy successfully manages the entire project including oversight of the design process, permitting, construction documentation, contractor coordination, and financial accounting.

Winners of the Summit County 2007 Builder of the Year Award, Trilogy Partners employs an integrated and seamless design-build process that serves the best interest of the client.  Committed to excellence in design and craftsmanship, Trilogy Partners are experienced custom home builders who micro manage all of the details, from the conceptual design phase right through to the completion of your beautiful Colorado mountain home.

Take, for example, the Trilogy Partners’ ‘Buffalo Terrace home.  Designed as a retirement home for the owners, Trilogy combined beauty, energy efficient technology, and green materials to produce a stunning illustration of the best in Colorado mountain homes, tastefully designed inside and out.  Utilizing timber frame design and meticulous attention to detail, ‘Buffalo Terrace’ proved to be a notable success.

Trilogy Partners specializes in energy efficient home building, and cutting edge sustainable architecture.  It’s more than just a design philosophy; Trilogy works to set an example of social and environmental responsibility by using new technologies and maintaining the highest eco-friendly standards.  For the best in custom home builders of Colorado mountain homes, contact Trilogy Partners.

Photo credit: Trilogy Partners

At Trilogy Partners we understand the importance of the exterior of your home blending into its natural surroundings. That is why we use timber framing and a lot of stone work so that the house can complement the backdrop on the Rocky Mountains.

Take for example our Steamboat House that we built for South Park’s Trey Parker. We built and designed this home located on a hilltop overlooking Steamboat Springs. We mixed American West design along with a traditional Japanese style and surprisingly it worked well against this mountainous terrain. The Japanese gardens and Tea House allow the homeowners to spend more time enjoying the great Colorado outdoors.

Steamboat House by Trilogy Partners

When working on our Timber Trail project, located in the prestigious Timber Trail neighborhood in Breckenridge, we had to consider the rest of the neighborhood to make sure the home was cohesive in its space. We also wanted to combine some “old world” style with the latest in sustainable design.

Timber Trail by Trilogy Partners

For more information on Trilogy Partners visit our website at Trilogybuilds.com.

Are you waiting with bated breath for July 15^th, when the seventh and final installment of the Harry Potter movies, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2”, comes out in theaters? If you answered YES, you’ll want to continue reading our post.  We recently came across a great piece in Architectural Digest about the set design for the latest film. AD takes fans inside the mind of Academy Award–winning production designer Stuart Craig and gives glimpses into the brilliant scenery that will be lighting up the screen for the final Harry Potter movie.

Architectural Digest. Photo: Jaap Buitendijk

Architectural Digest. Photo: Jaap Buitendijk

Architectural Digest. Photo: Jaap Buitendijk

Architectural Digest. Photo: Jaap Buitendijk

Craig tells AD that “I love architecture, and I regard myself as a kind of architect—an architect that works in plywood, but nothing more substantial than that. We try to get the detail absolutely right. In a building as complex as Hogwarts, however, the mix of periods is absolutely permissible. We used the great Gothic cathedrals as locations in the early days. They date from the 12th to the 16th centuries. Even 19th-century Victorian Gothic elements were added. So there was no constraint in being true to architectural detail and respecting the history and form of it.”

NeoCon, the largest trade show of its kind in North America with 700 showrooms and exhibits to explore, wrapped up a couple of days ago in Chicago. The show featured some great sustainable design solutions, and Inhabitat has roundup of some of the highlights. Check out the best of NeoCon’s green offerings below.

Wool Clouds designed by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for Kvadrat, available in North America through Haworth.

3Form Gecko tiles are applied with water and give a bright pop of color, as well as privacy, to existing glass installations.

Vienta Wall Tiles by Arktura are durable enough for use both inside and outside.

What do you think of these eco-friendly design innovations? How important is sustainable design to you? At Trilogy Partners, we build custom homes with an eye to sustainability as well as style. Contact us today and let us help you go green!

images via Inhabitat

We specialize in sustainable building at Trilogy Partners, and these days there are so many ways to create a completely custom home that is beautiful, functional, and eco-friendly. We encourage our clients to embrace sustainable design, and this year we are proud to build Breckinridge, Colorado’s first Zero Net Energy home! If you want to conserve energy and help the planet, check out these energy-saving tips from The Daily Green.

• Water heaters are usually set to 140 degrees Fahrenheit, but most households don’t need to use that much steam. By turning your water heater down to 120 degrees Fahrenheit, you can save from 6-10% on your energy bill.
• Storm doors and windows can increase the energy efficiency of your home by 45%.
• Don’t pay for what you don’t use. In most households, 50-70% of energy expenditures go to heating and cooling, so when you leave the house, turn the thermostat up in the summer and down in the winter.
• Make sure your home is well insulated. There are federal tax credits available for installing highly efficient insulation.
• Choose a green building professional with experience in designing sustainable, energy-efficient homes.

If you are looking for a custom design-build firm to help you create a sustainable home, contact Trilogy Partners today!

photo via Flickr

Inhabitat reports that Steve Jobs has recently unveiled some rather unique plans for a new Apple campus. Jobs presented the plans at the Cupertino, California city council meeting, revealing designs for a “new clean energy spaceship-shaped campus.”

The design should allow Apple to fit more employees on their current plot of land, while also creating 350% more green space. The facility will have its own low-emissions power plant, and will only use grid power in case of a brownout. Parking will be located under the structure, and the company has hired an arborist to help select indigenous plants to add to the greenspace.

This is a really unique project, so it will be interesting to see more as the facility is constructed, assuming of course that the Cupertino city council approves the plans! Take a look at some images of the facility, below.

If you are interested in sustainable design and are looking for a world-class architecture firm to help you create a home that combines green convictions with personal style, contact our Colorado firm, Trilogy Partners, specializing in custom home design and construction.

images via Inhabitat

Solar panels have been big in the sustainable design and building industry for quite a while now, and this previously inaccessible technology has been getting more effective and affordable with every passing year.

According to Inhabitat, a Tokyo company called Smart Solar International has just developed an impressive new solar panel that “chases” the sun! These solar panels are made of aluminum mirror bars which rotate throughout the day to face the sun and absorb the optimal amount of energy. These new solar panels use much less silicon than previous models of photovoltaic cell panels, keeping costs down.

The article quotes Takashi Tomita, the head of the company, who says, “You can get both electricity and heat from the same device,” because the panel has an overheating safeguard that channels extra warmth and uses it to heat water. This is definitely exciting news for the sustainable building industry.

If you are looking for a custom home builder in the Colorado mountain region and want to embrace sustainable design practices, contact Trilogy Partners today!

photo via Inhabitat