Welcome to the website of Florida's Showcase Green Envirohome
(FSGE™) - only one (1) hour from Disney World.
Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne destroyed FSGE’s original
structure in 2004 displacing a single family - our family.
Eleven months later in 2005 Hurricane Katrina annihilated
two more homes that displaced the other side of our family.
The result was a project of passion, namely FSGE. Its
primary goal is to help the world mitigate the affects of
myriad natural disasters, obviate the need for filing an
insurance claim, and lower insurance premiums, energy, water
and maintenance costs, while considering the health of the
human body and the sustainability of the planet.
FSGE is being rebuilt in Indialantic, Florida with the
“best of the best” green building and green living
technologies as a 3292 sq.ft. “Near Zero-Loss Home™”, a
“Near Zero-Energy Home”, a "Near Zero-Runoff Home™", and
a “Near Zero-Maintenance Home™”. These technologies
include leading edge building envelope, solar, wind,
stormwater management, "green roof", indoor air quality,
home environment quality, and other green innovations
collectively providing hurricane, tornado, flood, fire,
mold, termite, impact, sound, normal weather and even
earthquake resistance.
FSGE has been featured in USA TODAY and touted on FOX News
as “The Greenest House In The World”. The
first-of-its-kind, “Affordable & Rewardable™”true
green home and live residential touring facility,
FSGE via one year of scheduled walkthroughs will be open to
the public at no charge. The purpose will be to demonstrate
the best building choices and practices available today,
helping people:
- See monitored "proof of performance" data from a live test site with 5 occupants
- Save money
- Improve health (65% or more of our time is spent indoors!)
- Mitigate, if not eliminate, potential catastrophe from natural disasters
- Conserve precious natural resources
What is “green”? Any building that is
ecologically friendly in the following areas:
- Ability to Withstand Natural Disasters
- Energy Efficiency
- Water Efficiency & Quality
- Durability
- Ease of Operation, Maintenance & Education
- Indoor Air Quality & Tenant Comfort
- Home & Business Environment Quality - Tenant Health both inside Building & on Property
- Sustainability
- Lot Design, Preparation and Development
- Natural Resource Efficiency
- Minimum Global Impact
- Environmental Awareness & Management
Artist's Concept
Located only a few blocks from the Atlantic Ocean on the
central part of Florida’s East Coast, FSGE is in a coastal
community that suffered great damage from three hurricanes
in 2004. To ensure stronger, safer and greener construction,
FSGE has partnered with more than 4 dozen, public,
quasi-public and private sector entities, including the
U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America Project. FSGE
plans to meet or exceed
12 sets of green building guidelines
and obtain 8 certifications, including Platinum LEED and
Fortified…for safer living. To fill in the gaps, FSGE is
currently creating its own green living guidelines, namely
Health Gems Home Environment Quality. Also, EPA WaterSense,
the new, sister program to EPA Energy Star, as well as the
DOE are both considering FSGE as a test site for water
conservation and a new wind technology, respectively.
University of Central Florida (UCF), the sixth largest
university in the U.S., was the first in the world to
identify the potential pollution mass in stormwater.
Consequently there is now law in the U.S. limiting pollution
to our water bodies, both surface water and groundwater.
However, residential runoff still accounts for the largest,
uncontrolled source of pollution in the U.S., especially in
areas with larger annual rainfall volumes. Using results of
research from UCF Stormwater Management Academy and assisted
by a grant from the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection, Mark Baker, LLC, builder of FSGE, constructed
the world’s first residential “green roof stormwater
treatment system” as part of FSGE using UCF’s patented
green roof media. This will be one of the key features of
FSGE as a Near Zero-Runoff Home™.
In addition to FSGE’s green roof stormwater treatment
system, FSGE plans to showcase such innovations as patented
SIP steel-reinforced exterior walls, a hurricane technology
rendering stronger, cheaper, faster and healthier
construction than both concrete block and stick and frame
when considering energy efficiency and reduced construction
labor (SIPs can lower labor costs by as much as 55%); water
and energy usage monitoring systems; a global-first "off
grid" all-DC solar air conditioner; a state-of-the-art wind
generator apparently 1/3 the cost of solar and designed to
supplement the home’s energy; and a solar water heater that
can produce hot water year-round, even on a cloudy day.
This site is currently under construction. Please check
back frequently for updates.
