The 4 Basic Elements to building a Green Home

Green construction is more than the actual construction of your home, though that is a big part of the process. It is a beginning to end process which begins with the option of your land, the organize of your dream home, the materials and practices used while construction and finally, how you control and sound your dream home once it is completed. You can integrate as many or as few of these elements into your home's organize as you choose.

You resolve how "Green" you want to be.

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Let's look at the four basic elements in Green Building:

1. Expanding vigor efficiency

2. Materials superior for construction your home

3. Expanding the efficiency of water usage both in and exterior of your home

4. Enhancing air quality, which improves the health and productivity of your family

There are many parts to each element. Let's look at each of these in a tiny more detail

1. Expanding vigor Efficiency

Advanced Framing - Use a framing undertaker of a package deal who can apply industrialized framing technique while the construction of your home. This creates a structurally sound home with improved vigor efficiency, and lowers material and labor costs. This technique replaces lumber with insulation material and maximizes the wall that is insulated, Enhancing the R-value of the home. On average, industrialized framing uses 30% less lumber, which reduces the construction costs and saves 2% to 4% of the total vigor use. Hot Water Heater - Water heating can list for 14% to 25% of the vigor consumed in your home. To increase the efficiency of your hot water heater, locate it near the highest point of usage. This is typically near the shower followed intimately by the clothes washer. Pipes - Insulate the hot and cold water pipes within 3 feet of the hot water heater. This reduces standby heat loss. Your hot water heater is continuously heating the piping and water in it, even when no water is being used. Household Appliances - A green built home features appliances that are as vigor sufficient as possible. The U. S. Group of vigor and the U.S. Environmental security Group have industrialized a program called vigor Star which labels those appliances meeting literal, vigor sufficient criteria. The typical household spends ,900 a year on vigor bills. As you can see in the diagram above, a great deal of that vigor is consumed by the appliances in your home. Energy Star qualified appliances integrate industrialized technologies that use 10-50% less vigor and water than suitable models. Just look for the vigor Star label. The Federal Trade Commission requires that refrigerators, freezers, water heaters, washing machines, dishwashers and window air conditioners be labeled with an vigor Guide Label. The label for a hot water heater is shown here. This hot water heater uses 268 therms per year of vigor and is being compared to other similar models which use everywhere from 238 to 273 therms per year. This model's estimated annual operating cost is 2.When comparing different appliance brands for your new home, be sure to look at their estimated vigor consumption. This will impact the operating cost of your home for years to come.

Air Sealing - This is industrialized caulking which is a part of the airtight drywall arrival (Ada). Specifically, caulk or gasket drywall is installed on exterior walls at the top and lowest plates, windows and door frames; on interior walls at the intersections with exterior ceilings; and at electrical, plumbing or mechanical penetrations in the drywall. This arrival minimizes heat loss in your home. Work with your drywall undertaker of a package deal to see if he/she uses this method. Radiant fence - Reflect heat away from your home by installing a radiant fence (a sheet of aluminum foil with paper backing) on the underside of your roof. This significantly lowers your cooling costs by reducing your heat gains straight through your ceiling by 95%. Insulation - Add insulation to your attic to keep the heat in your house. There are some environmentally friendly insulation products made from recycled blue jeans, soybeans, cotton or newspapers. Solar Power - If the sun shines on your home for most of the day in the winter, you have the possible for solar power to reduce your vigor costs. A good solar organize allows the winter sun to reach a thermal mass like a tile floor which holds heat and radiates it into your home for a duration of time. Lighting - setup high-efficiency lighting systems with industrialized lighting controls. This allows you to only use the light when you need it. Replace original incandescent lights with energy-efficient ageement fluorescent bulbs. These bulbs will use 75% less electricity and last up to 10 times longer. When designing your home or remodeling project, introduce natural daylight into as many places as possible. Thermostat - Use a programmable thermostat to contribute you and your family the ease you want day and night while minimizing heating use when you don't need it. Ducts - Seal your ducts with mastic and insulate them to R-11. This minimizes the heat loss from your home. Paints - You can mix non-toxic ceramic powder into your interior paint to insulate your walls and reduce the estimate of heat passing straight through to the outside. These ceramic particles originate a radiant fence that reflects the heat back into the room. Redirect The Heat - If you have a ceiling fan, redirect the heat back into your room by reversing the direction of the blades to counterclockwise. This brings the heat back down into your room.

2. Materials superior for construction Your Home Plastic Lumber - This goods can be used for non-structural applications such as fences, benches, decks, retaining walls, and picnic tables. It is weather and insect resistant, and will not crack, splinter or chip. It does not need painting and will not leach chemicals into the ground or exterior water. By doing this, you minimize the estimate of lumber used in your home, reduce your ongoing maintenance costs, and you won't harm your local habitat.
The Us is home to 4.5% of the people but is responsible for over 15% of the world's wood consumption. Engineered Wood - This combines the raw materials of wood veneer and fiber with adhesives to produce such laminated lumber as wood veneers, I-beams and roof and floor trusses. The manufacturing process uses fast growing, small diameter trees, allowing more than 80% of the log to be used in the end product. This produces a goods which is very consistent and stable while decreasing the impact on a natural resource. Fiber Cement Siding - This is a composite of cement and wood fiber reclaimed from wood processing waste or small diameter, fast growing trees. It produces a siding which is durable and low maintenance. Many fiber-cement composites offer a 50-year warranty, which increases the value of your home and decreases the maintenance costs. Brick -The process of extracting clay for brick results in tiny wasted material. Brick has a limitless lifespan and can be recycled or salvaged after demolition. Recycling - The sufficient use of materials when construction Green comes in two forms. First, recycle construction waste and use reclaimed construction materials while construction when appropriate. Once your home is finished, institution responsible recycling of the materials you use every day. organize - When working with your architect or designer, use suitable dimensions, engineered wood and stacked floor plans to reduce the thorough volume of lumber used as well as the volume of waste.

3. Expanding the Efficiency of Water Usage Both In and exterior of Your Home Porous Paving Schemes - Watertight, or "impervious," surfaces suchas paved driveways, walkways and patios don't allow storm water runoff to infiltrate into the ground's aquatic systems. Using uncompacted gravel, crushed stone and open or porous paving blocks for walkways and other light traffic areas minimizes the estimate of impervious surfaces on your property, allowing storm water runoff. Rainwater range - Rainwater collected from your roof is a free source of landscape irrigation water. This range ideas consists of a convenient roof and guttering system, a warehouse tank and a easy filtration unit. Low Impact improvement (Lid) - This innovative arrival mimics your land's original formula of water run-off instead of disposing and treating storm water in large, costly, end-of-pipe facilities. This can come in the form of open spaces, vegetated rooftops, reduced road widths and curbs, pervious parking lots and sidewalks, medians and other buffer zones using more vegetation. Plumbing - organize your home to use recycled water for toilet flushing. Use ultra low-flush toilets and low-flow shower heads.
Some older toilets use 3-7 gallons per flush while an ultra low-flow toilet uses less than 1.6 gallons per flush.

A family of 4, each showering for 5 minutes per day will use 700 gallons of water per week - a 3 year drinking contribute for 1 man in the Us. Using a high execution shower head uses 1 - 1.5 gallons of water per tiny - up to 60% less than a original shower head.

In Your Yard - Mulch exposed soils in your organery beds and heighten that soil with compost to a depth of 8-13 inches to increase the quality to hold water. select plants that have low water and pesticide needs. Planting trees not only beautifies your yard, but will also increase the value of your home while decreasing your impact on the environment. A singular mature tree can contribute nearly 0 in vigor and resource values in terms of cooling, erosion and pollution control. Plus they reduce your "carbon foot print."
Putting the right plants in the right place and developing quality, wholesome soil means less watering in the summer, less need for chemicals and less waste to worry about.

Chemicals - Avoid outdoor chemicals and fix oil and other fluid leaks to preclude contamination of the water runoff.
agreeing to the Ny State Attorney General's office, 95% of pesticides used on residential lawns are considered possible carcinogens by the Epa.

Hot water - Use recirculating systems for centralized hot water distribution or use "on demand" systems vs. original hot water tanks.

4. Enhancing Air Quality, Which Improves the health and Productivity of Your family The Epa ranks indoor pollution among the top 5 environmental risks. Unhealthy air is found in up to 30% of new and renovated buildings. The electricity generated by fossil fuels for a singular home puts more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than 2 average cars. Carpet - Using a low pile or less allergen attracting floor covering and pad greatly improves air quality. Wool or Pet floor covering (made from recycled pop bottles) are good choices. In addition, at installation, have the floor covering tacked down, not glued, to reduce pollutants. Many Green Built designs minimize the use of carpeted surfaces, replacing them with hard surfaces which don't have these pollutants and are easier to keep free of dust, mold and mildew. Paints - Use low-Voc (Volatile Organic Compounds, such as formaldehyde) paints. Ventilation - While you want to seal your home to preclude heat loss, this creates a need for mechanical ventilation. Ventilation can be provided by quiet fans with automated controls or by heat rescue ventilators. Talk to your Hvac undertaker of a package deal for the best ideas for your home's design. construction materials - To preclude microbial contamination, select materials that are unyielding to microbial growth. Drainage - contribute sufficient drainage from the roof and surrounding landscape, as well as allow proper drainage of air conditioning coils. Window treatments - Avoid artificial window coverings or those that cannot be cleaned easily.

Even though there is a lot to think about when using Green construction techniques and principles, it is manageable and doable. We here at UbuildIt can help you work with your architect or designer, subcontractors and suppliers to help you build or remodel your dream home while minimizing your impact on the environment. Taking the time to plan and build or remodel your dream home using UbuildIt and Green construction will unquestionably impact you and generations to come.

The 4 Basic Elements to building a Green Home

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