LIHU‘E — Everybody seems to be going green these days. In fact, it was hard to pass by any of the booths at the 18th annual Contractors Association of Kaua‘i Home Show without seeing the word splashed across business vendors’
LIHU‘E — Everybody seems to be going green these days. In fact, it was hard to pass by any of the booths at the 18th annual Contractors Association of Kaua‘i Home Show without seeing the word splashed across business vendors’ displays and brochures.
Even The Gas Company is doing their part to turn the company green, said Kaua‘i Branch Manager Glen Takenouchi. The business has caught a ride on the environmental bandwagon, as efforts are currently underway to create a synthetic natural gas from used products like cooking oil, he said Friday. Though the process is currently available only on O‘ahu, utilizing gas is a more efficient resource because it consumes “less than 40 percent of the carbon output of electricity for the same tasks,” according to The Gas Company’s brochure which employees were handing out at the expo.
Also promoting green products was RSI/Rosa’s Roofing & Building Supply Manager Ray Ellis.
“A lot of people are environmentally friendly” these days, he said.
From recyclable metal frames to rooftop shingles which reflect sunlight, the company is staying in pace with the growing trends and even plans to carry shingles with an integrated photovoltaic system in the near future, he said.
And while individuals prefer to outfit their homes with the latest so-called planet friendly upgrades, new construction without a doubt has slowed, Ellis said. Renovations on the other hand are reportedly booming.
“This branch has been hopping with renovations,” said Jocelyn Jacinto of Honsador Lumber.
Also “making use of Mother Nature,” the company is promoting green upgrades that can admittedly weigh heavily on one’s pocketbook, she said.
Which might be why some residents are taking advantage of tax rebates like the one connected to earth savvy window treatments, said Window Trends owner Bruce Grantham. While everything the company has to offer is ecological, the Duette brand is the “only shade certified to qualify for tax rebates,” which is likely why people are opting to purchase them, he said.
In general, however, he said everyone is “much more careful about how they buy.”
Agreeing with Ellis, Grantham said new construction has “pulled back.” And while folks are willing to renovate and have the money to do so, they are scared to spend it, he said.
Having been in business on Kaua‘i though two hurricanes, Grantham compares the current economic situation to that of another “bad hurricane, but without the building afterwards.”
“It’s grim,” he said. “But, you just do the best you can.”
