SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS
Eco Design
A green home starts with being well-designed. Taking into account the surrounding natural environment as well as the current and future use of the home.High performance, energy efficient Eco homes may include features like geothermal heating, wind power and solar panels, but these are not the defining features of green living. They come in second, and some you can even do without. A green home starts with being well-designed, well-insulated, and if possible, has glazing oriented to the south for passive heat gain.
Materials
By re-using existing building materials and buying locally, you just became part of the green building trend. As we have said, green building starts at the design phase, so you can incorporate these materials into your future build.
Mechanicals
Energy efficiency, insulation and orientation:
An efficient and resilient home is one that uses minimal energy to heat, light and run appliances. The biggest draw is *almost always heating, so reducing heat requirements is the best way to reduce operational costs.
A house with 60% of its windows facing south (passive solar) may have its heating requirements reduced by as much as 25% for virtually no cost. It is important that it be properly-designed to avoid overheating though, or you will negate any heat savings with air conditioning in the summer.
A well-insulated, well-sealed building is imperative to the performance of your home. No amount of solar panels will compensate for windows walls that leak heat and moisture.