Archive for the ‘architecture’ Category

March 23, 2010

If You Have Good Taste in Design, You Won’t Want to Miss This Film

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Last week I had the pleasure of previewing the film Visual Acoustics: The Modernism of Julius Shulman with Steve Weiss of No Festival Required at the Phoenix Art Museum.  To be honest, and this is a little embarrassing coming from an architect who loves modernism, I had never heard of Julius Shulman before so I didn’t quite know what to expect.  It turns out I had been seeing his work throughout my education and career without even knowing it. Julius Shulman is only the most renown architectural photographer of the past century and this movie is a story of…

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March 22, 2010

Why We Are Surrounded by Crappy Buildings

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet This weekend a client was driving me to a house to show me the style she’d like for some renovations at her house.  I half expected to be shown a run-of-the mill stucco cookie-cutter home with little personality but that somehow seems luxurious to people.  This isn’t a reflection on my client but on most people I’ve run into who aren’t designers themselves. I was shocked and relieved that she showed me this beautiful ultra-modern renovation of a mid-century modern home: The owner of this house directed us a few blocks north of him telling us that there was…

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March 04, 2010

Is Laminate Flooring Green?

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Laminate flooring has a great deal going for it:  it can look good, it’s very easy to install, and it’s inexpensive.  It’s become a very popular floor for DIYers for those reasons.  But is it green?  The answer is:  it’s complicated.  Take a look at this video for the low-down on the green aspects of laminate flooring. laminate flooring video

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March 01, 2010

3 Reasons Concrete Floors are Great in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet I think concrete floors are a really wonderful option for Phoenix homes.  In fact, many of the mid-century modern homes built here had concrete floors.  3 Palms, our 1963 duplex is one of those.  Underneath the peel-and-stick Vinyl Composite Tile that we removed, we discovered this beautiful integral-colored sepia concrete floor. Aesthetically, concrete floors are beautiful and they evoke a raw cool feel that’s appropriate for our hot desert climate.  Here are three reasons to consider concrete floors: They keep your house cool during the summer.  This passive cooling is invaluable for our Phoenix climate and is why it…

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February 24, 2010

What’s so great about a Solatube?

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet For a long time I didn’t know what a daylighting system really was. I thought ok, you have your windows and your skylights. But there is a third thing called a daylighting system and it is neither a window nor a skylight. A daylighting system is a device with highly-sophisticated technology that brings measured, glare-free, heat-reduced sunlight into your interior space. It’s actually a technology that’s been around since the 1960’s but is gaining traction again due to our renewed awareness of sustainability. Today I’d like to talk to you about one of my favorite daylighting devices for your…

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February 23, 2010

Why Trex is Way Better than Wood, Especially for Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Wood warps, bulges, fades, peels, molds and eventually looks like hell here in Phoenix with our brutal summers. Plus it’s constantly expanding and contracting with the weather changes, causing all sorts of structural trouble. Here’s why Trex is way better than wood if you’re thinking of building an outdoor deck or a patio trellis: 1. Trex is made out of 95% recycled materials. It’s a composite material made from plastic shopping bags, reclaimed wood and sawdust. Trex hasn’t cut down a single tree during the entire lifetime of their business. Trex is an excellent example of “upcycling”, a word…

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February 22, 2010

Why you need a Metal Roof if you live in Phoenix

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Metal roofs are one of my favorite roofs because aesthetically-speaking they are so beautiful.  But whether you agree with me or not about the beauty of a metal roof, there are a few other great qualities of a metal roof I’d like you to consider if you’re thinking of replacing your roof. The Heat-Island Effect We all know that we have a terrible problem with the Heat-Island effect here in Phoenix.  It occurs in cities with large areas of paved surfaces, including dark absorbent roofs that absorb heat during the day and emit it back into the atmosphere, making…

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January 26, 2010

How to Get a Tax Credit for Remodeling Your Home

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet Now that tax season is around the corner, here’s some information on what products are eligible for Tax credits under the ‘Stimulus Bill’ or The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: Tax credits are available at 30% of the cost, up to $1,500 total, in 2009 & 2010 (ONLY for existing homes, NOT new construction, that are your “principal residence”) for: Windows and Doors (including Skylights) From June 1, 2009 – December 31, 2010 windows (and doors and skylights) must have a U-factor and Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) less than or equal to 0.30. You do not…

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August 12, 2009

High Utility Bill and Hot Guests at 3 Palms!

by: Taz Loomans

Tweet All of you who live in Phoenix know well that July is one of our hottest months of the year.  Things like “It is like the surface of the sun outside” have been said about this month.  Imagine how hard our air-conditioning has to work to keep us comfortable in outside temperatures like 112-118 degrees. Two things happened to alarm me that something is amiss with our air-conditioning unit at 3 Palms: 1.    I had a party for my family.  Anyone who knows me knows that I have a giant family.  Only 50% of my giant family was in…

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