Eco-Home™
Sustainable Urban Living
The Tour

Recent scientific findings show that the way we humans inhabit our planet is causing problems which threaten our very survival.

Of necessity, our grandparents and their parents had many effective ways of doing things that were energy and water conserving. Since then, technology has replaced many of these ways with methods that are easier and quicker, but often also waste our natural resources and poison our environment.

The question then is: What is the way to live in the city that will insure our survival and raise our quality of life? The answer:

SUSTAINABLE URBAN LIVING
Sustainable Urban Living is based on our most advanced understanding of planet earth and our place in the family of life.

Sustainable Urban Living combines the ecological wisdom of traditional cultures with the newest technology to achieve the best of both worlds: environmental integrity, along with ease and speed.

Sustainable Urban Living brings country pleasures to the city: clean air, clean water, peace and quiet, pesticide-free, locally grown food, the beauty and health benefits of natural vegetation . . . and keeps the city pleasures too: ready access to cultural resources and diversity, economic opportunity, intellectual stimulation and spontaneous social contact.

Sustainable Urban Living is lifestyle aligned with the planetary life-support systems. Eco-Home™ demonstrates Sustainable Urban Living in Los Angeles.

WHAT IS ECO-HOME™?
It is a living, working, environmentally sound, energy efficient, economical single family home which serves as a model for others to follow.

Here, on a typical city lot, you will see the working physical systems needed to live an ecologically sound life in an urban environment.

The systems currently in place include:

XERISCAPE

A Xeriscape is a drought tolerant landscape. Recognizing that 50% of the water used in southern California residences gets poured on lawns and gardens, Eco-Home's front yard has been landscaped with plants that can survive and thrive on our natural rainfall once they are established. Many of the flowering shrubs and trees in this design are native, but others come from similar climates in Mexico, Australia, and the Mediterranean among others.

FOOD GARDEN/ORCHARD
The backyard is an ornamental vegetable garden in an orchard of more than 28 fruit and nut trees. The vegetable garden is irrigated by recycled rubber soaker hoses that provide maximum moisture with the least amount of waste. The orchard is triply productive; providing fruit and shade in the summer and firewood, from tree pruning, for supplementary heat in the winter.

Using the sun to generate electricity is a renewable, non-polluting technology. Two sets of photovoltaic panels provide enough electricity to power the entire Eco-Home™ and the office during the day. At night, solar power stored in batteries is sufficient for overhead lighting.

SOLAR HOT WATER
Water is pumped up to rooftop panels where it is heated by the sun. The heated water then descends to a well-insulated water storage tank in the basement to be used as needed. During the summer, all the hot water needs of the home are met by the solar hot water system. Some days during the winter there may be need for back-up water heating.

ON-DEMAND WATER HEATER
On the few days when back-up water heating is needed, an on-demand water heater boosts the temperature of the solar heated water instantaneously when a hot water faucet is turned on. This eliminates the energy waste of keeping a large tank of water heated continuously.

RECYCLING
Metal, glass, newspaper and plastic are collected in a convenient under-counter drawer in the kitchen for deposit in a mobile bin for city curbside collection.

LOW- FLUSH TOILET
Not flushing every time you use the toilet may make some people uncomfortable. Installing a low-flush toilet, which uses just 1.5 gallons per flush instead of the 3 to 5 gallons of older toilets is a good alternative. You can see how well it works at Eco-Home™.

PASSIVE SOLAR RETROFIT
The Meeting House, a remodeled garage, demonstrates how architectural modification and good insulation can harness the sun for space heating.

GRAYWATER SYSTEM
Water from the washer, shower, bath and bathroom sink is filtered and pumped out to irrigate about 10 of the fruit trees.

THE ECO-HOME™ TOUR
You can tour the Eco-Home™ demonstration project and experience sustainable urban living for yourself.

We conduct tours on alternate Sunday afternoons. Reservations are required. Call (323) 662-5207 or e-mail us at ecohome@pacbell.net

Click to view the Eco-Home™ Tour Schedule 2006