EarthCraft Construction Continues Local Green, Clean Building

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January 11, 2020•2 min read

January 11, 2020

EarthCraft Construction Continues Local Green, Clean Building

Published Saturday, November 30, 2019

By Alx Stevens

A loft for maximized square footage, a concrete foundation for energy efficient heating, straw bale as an economical material — these practices are part of EarthCraft Construction, a Boise-based design/build firm for houses, multifamily housing and other projects. In about a month, the firm plans to break ground on its first (and possibly the first) green multifamily housing project in Boise, said Jon Clark, EarthCraft Construction president.

“We’re not only addressing the issue with building more energy efficient we’re also addressing the housing affordability crisis that has been pretty much going on all around the country,” Clark said. “We’re pretty excited about that.”

‘GREEN BUILDING’

EarthCraft Construction was founded 11 years ago as a promise of “trying to leave camp better than we found it,” as founder Mark L. “Ron” Hixson puts it. Clark is four months into leading the company now, and he is grateful for Hixson’s continued mentorship in green and cleaner building.

This includes:

  • Straw bale as a building material — renewable and sustainable with a really high insulation value and a smaller environmental impact. There are at least three straw bale houses in the Treasure Valley.

  • Passive solar design — taking advantage of sun exposure on the south side of a building, if possible, in combination with a conductive concrete foundation as a heat bank that helps with energy savings.

  • Ductless mini-split systems — more energy efficient air flow and helps keep the house cleaner (without ductwork).

  • No crawl space — means less dirt in the house.

This house in Eagle is ultra green, having energy-efficient appliances, a heat recovery and insulation package, a passive solar design and other features offered by EarthCraft Construction.

This house in Eagle was built by EarthCraft Construction to maximize energy efficiency and airtightness.

 “We build greener, cleaner houses and we try to do it to the best of our ability,” Clark said. “I’ve been very fortunate in my life to have several mentors. … Ron, being a master designer, just has so much knowledge, and it’s my opinion if you want to progress quickly in any field, you need a mentor.”

The first passive solar straw bale house in Boise was built with 240 bales of straw harvested from Meridian, and was awarded Boise’s 2010 Excellence Award in Green Building. Find out more information about these building practices on EarthCraft Construction’s website https://www.earthcraftconstruction.com. 

Since his coming to Boise and joining Buy Idaho, Clark also plans to continue adding local business partnerships to EarthCraft Construction’s operation. Clark said he comes from a tight-knit community that encourages sourcing material and labor locally, and he is happy to have found something similar here, to help keep money local. 

“I love it,” Clark said. “I love buying local.”

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