Blog #2: House Visits

Green Houses

There may be a number of people who have read about sustainability in business and thought to themselves: “If businesses can lower their energy costs, water usage, and overall negative impact to the environment, what can I do to lower mine at home?” There are many different things you can do at home to lower your energy costs and only some of them require construction. We will discuss the major construction changes that a person can do by analyzing a rehab house and a custom built brand new home. For the home owners that are looking for less costly methods, we will go over some non-construction changes that will lessen their negative impact on the environment.

1^st House, Rehabbing Houses (making old houses more sustainable)

The rehab house was originally built in 1938. Much of the house was patched up through the years and understandably it was on its last leg. Then Farrier Builders decided to purchase the house and totally rework the house. Ferrier Builders is a company that is experienced in energy-efficiency and sustainable building practices [1]. Their focus was not only on preserving this wonderful piece of history, but also on rehabbing the house to be “green”. By using their experience they were able to keep the cost down by reusing lots of the house’s original materials. They also installed many green home products; tank-less water heater, mini-split air conditioning units, dual flush toilets, xeriscaping (using local plant in yard to eliminate supplemental water from irrigation), and dual pane windows. All of this may seem to be at a huge cost, but according to the builders that is not the case. They spent about 80,000 dollars on the rehab. If they would have not chosen to build for energy efficiency, they would have only saved 12,000 dollars. They would have also missed out on the 75 dollars a month utilities bill for a 1,638 square/foot house.

2^nd House, Building a house from the ground up to be “green”

The second house was a custom built house. It was built from the ground up with the design focusing on efficiency and sustainability. The style of the house was very modern and added to the house’s aesthetic feel both inside and out. Even though the lighting was low energy, they still presented themselves with a very sleek and artistic look. I felt that the house emanated a certain pride from both the builders and the owners. The roof was TPO and reflective, to reflect heat for lower air-conditioner costs. The toilet and the faucets were built to use very little water. The fireplace was state of the art. It heated the house through circulating the heat with ducts built into the walls and was completely sealed off with glass so there was no need for inside air. The builders responsible for this house's construction were Ferrier Builders. As much as the first house was humble, this one was stylish. As a change agent for sustainability, I would hope that the style and quality of this house is enough to get home owners wanting the same type of care and sustainability focus that this house received. This house's (1,730 square/foot) energy bills are only 65 dollars a month.

DON’T Be an ENERGY HOG

Non-construction things to lower energy costs at home

4 Things You Can Do To Save Energy [2]

1. Turn you refrigerator down: Refrigerators account for about 20% of household electricity usage. Set it close to 37 degrees (freezer close to 3 degrees). And check the seals and gaskets around the doors to make sure they clean and sealed tightly.

2. Do not overheat/overcool rooms: In winter set to 68 degrees (daytime) and 55 degrees (night). In summer keep it at 78 degrees.

3. Weatherize your home or apartment: Use caulk and weather stripping to plug air leaks around doors and windows. Caulking costs less than $1 per window, and weather stripping is under $10 per door. These steps can save up to 1100 pounds of CO2 per year for a typical home. Ask your utility company for a home energy audit to find out where your home is poorly insulated or energy inefficient. This service may be provided free or at low cost. Make sure it includes a check of your furnace and air conditioning.

4. Make sure you dishwasher is full when it runs and allow the dishes to air dry. Not using the heat drying cycle. This can save 20% of the dishwasher’s energy costs.

Sources:

[1] http://www.ferriercustomhomes.com/home/
[2]http://www.ecomall.com/greenshopping/20things.htm

PICs:
[a] greenhomeguide.com
[b] http://wallpapers.free-review.net/19__Green_House.htm
[c] energyhog.org
[d] kitchenand4th.com
[e] laundry-and-dishwasher-info.com