Survey of lot lines
LEED projects are all about documentation and verification. It is one thing to say the house is in a developed area or has an uninterrupted thermal envelope and another to document those so that it can be certified as having these desirable qualities.
It is never too early in a project to start collecting this documentation which can be in the form of official documents, photographs, receipts, etc. There are also forms available from USGBC that assist in the documentation process.
In many projects the LEED AP will manage the documentation. That is a service that BOULD offers. However, since we are do it yourself types, I am going to manage the collection and Shane will train/advise me on the process. It will be good to have someone double check that we have the right paperwork.
When the project is submitted by Energy Logic, they and the green rater must sign off on every prerequisite for LEED certification and every LEED point that was achieved. USGBC does not collect the documentation but they rely on the providers to provide verification. This is a strict process that may not skip any steps or the points are lost. Documentation can mean the difference between achieving the level of LEED certification that we are seeking or settling for a lower level.
I would rather have to settle for a lower level because we CHOOSE not to gain a point due to cost or other issues than for a MISTAKE in the documentation! So part of the design charrette is to determine that documentation is being created for each prerequisite and point in the LEED system.
The points are kept track of using a spreadsheet known as the project checklist that was initially filled out during the preliminary rating. I have started the documentation process for the project, the first area being the Integrated Design credits.