Strategically sized overhangs are an essential part of a home's passive solar energy strategy.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (Reclaim). Incorporating this mantra into your lifestyle is the first step to going green.
Incorporate dimmers for your incandescent bulbs. By dimming your lights just 25 percent, you’re only using 20 percent of the electricity you’d typically use.
Buy better light bulbs. Energy Star-qualified CFLs (compact fluorescent bulbs) use 75 percent less energy than standard lighting, and LEDs (light emitting diodes) can reduce energy consumption by 80 to 90 percent.
Build with low-emitting and solvent-free adhesives (e.g., grout for tile) as an overall plan to ensure good indoor-air quality.
Switch to Energy Star qualified appliances which use 10 to 15 percent less energy and water than standard models. (Appliances account for up to 34 percent of your home’s utility bill.)
Change your furnace filter several times during winter and summer. Look for furnaces with annual fuel utilization efficiency ratings of 90 percent or higher.
Use low-flow showerheads and faucets to reduce water usage. Screwing on a WaterSense labeled faucet can decrease the amount of water a household uses by more than 500 gallons per year.
Choose sustainable flooring made from reclaimed wood, rapidly renewable bamboo, recycled ceramic tile or wool carpet.
Install high efficiency toilets (HETs). They use 20 percent less water than ultra-low-flush toilets. Toilets account for approximately 30 percent of indoor water consumption.
Use low-VOC paints, stains and finishes, which are guaranteed to have less than 250 g/L VOC content, contributing to healthy indoor-air quality.
Wrap your timber frame in structural insulated panels (SIPs). They not only have high R-values, they also create a tight shell, the other major component for an efficient home.
Plug into green power: Some utility companies offer state-issued certificates that represent power generated from renewable energy projects. Go to eere.energy.gov/ greenpower for info.
Harvest rain for household uses such as irrigation. (Roof runoff will be your main source for this.) For drinkable water, filtration and purification systems are necessary.
Solar electric and thermal-energy systems use sunlight to heat water and make electricity without greenhouse gas emissions. They can reduce your monthly energy bills; plus, you may be able to sell energy back to your local power company.
| Tweet |
Busting Myths About Green Energy and Green Homes
4 Things You Must Know About Hardwood Flooring in a Timber Home
Plains Geometry: A Colorado Timber Home
