Why Build Green from the Start?

Living Green

Is your dream home a green home? If you’re building new in Florida these days, you have a lot of company, and a lot of choice. Some of the busiest builders in the state are those that consider themselves “green builders”, and there are plenty of them to choose from. Whether you call it green building, sustainable homes or any other name, taking the environment and our world into account when planning and building your new home just makes sense, both financially and environmentally.

Green building is more than solar heating and toilets that use less water. Green building principles address everything from the selection of your home site to the paints that you use on your walls and the color that you choose for your exterior. Here’s a quick rundown on the different ways that your choices affect the environment – and in many cases your pocketbook.

Lot Preparation, Design and Development

Green builders, architects and site designers will take into account a number of things that reduce energy use, conserve water and make your home more environmentally friendly. Just a few examples:

Taking advantage of natural shade provided by existing trees and land features reduces your dependence on electricity for cooling your home. Windbreaks provided by nature can also make your home more wind resistant – something very important here in the hurricane belt.
Facing your home to take advantage of the sun’s energy can reduce your energy costs as well. Southern facing roofs are ideal for solar energy collection, for instance. Even if you choose not to use solar at this time, choosing a home design with a roof that allows for solar panels in the future is a green bonus.
Using native plants – or existing features – for landscaping is good for the environment in a number of ways. You’ll reduce the maintenance needed for your lot because you’re letting Mother Nature take care of the watering and sun requirements. You reduce your impact on the environment around you because you don’t risk introducing alien pests and predators (yes, plants CAN be predators) into the landscape. Your home will be a part of the environment rather than an interruption of it.
Choosing drought resistant plants for landscaping – including your lawn – reduces the amount of fresh water that you’ll need for maintaining that green look you love.

Energy Efficient Design and Construction

Properly sealing your home can reduce your energy costs significantly because you reduce the amount of heat transfer between the outdoors and the indoors. Air leakage accounts for 25-40% of the energy and expense of heating and cooling your home. In addition, tighter home construction can keep dust, pollen, exhaust fumes and other pollutants out of your home, making it healthier and more comfortable.

Green Construction Materials

Another way to make your dream home greener is to substitute sustainable and greener construction materials for more conventional building materials. The definition of green varies, but green materials include products that are made with salvaged, recycled or waste material, materials that renew themselves rapidly (like bamboo) and products that conserve energy by reducing the amount of fuel used to transport them.

Another important part of building with green materials is choosing materials that are healthier for both your family and the environment. Materials that don’t release harmful and toxic gases into the air (low VOC finishes, for instance) or that are as close to natural as possible are better choices than highly processed materials or those that are harmful to the atmosphere. If you want to read more about green construction materials, you’ll find a great discussion of what makes a product green at Buildinggreen.com.

Use Energy Star Compliant Products

We tend to think of Energy Star compliance in terms of appliances, but there are over fifty categories of products that can receive the Energy Star (including homes in some states). Choosing Energy Start fixtures and appliances throughout your new house will not add significantly to the cost of your new home. In fact, these days it’s hard to find appliances that aren’t Energy Star compliant. Energy Star compliant products will, however, significantly reduce your energy costs and your carbon footprint year after year after year. You can cut your energy expenses by 20% or more just by using Energy Star compliant products and appliances.

Water Efficiency

One of our most important natural resources is clean, fresh water. Green homes can incorporate dozens of ways to conserve, preserve and reuse water. Many of them add almost nothing to the cost of your home, and some can even reduce it. These include low-flow showerheads, low water use toilets and aerators on all faucets. They also include landscaping choices that reduce or eliminate the need to water plants, or irrigation and plumbing systems that reuse gray water from your home for purposes that don’t require potable water – watering plants, flushing toilets, washing clothes, etc. Choosing water efficient appliances and designs will not only reduce your impact on the environment, it will reduce your future water bills significantly.

Simple Choices, Big Effects

Even the simplest choices can have unexpected beneficial effects. The color that you choose for your home’s exterior, for instance, can reduce your cooling costs by as much as 20%. Choosing light colors for your floors and interior walls as well can keep your home considerably cooler without resorting to air conditioning. Choose low energy light bulbs for your lighting fixtures and you’ll realize savings two ways – both in the energy said to light your home and in the energy said by not having to counteract the heat from your light bulbs.

If you’re building your dream home, or buying a brand new built-from-scratch home, you’ll find that many of the suggestions for building green are already incorporated in the design. Here in Florida, many sustainable building practices are part of the law and written into the building code. Of course, you’ll have many choices in the finish work of your new home. Get familiar with the standards of green building so that you can make the best choices in floor coverings, wall treatments, windows and doors and other decisions – both for the environment and for your family.

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