BUILDING OR REMODELING?
 The new guide for creating a functional home will be available soon! Finally there’s a tool to help you:
-
Select products and features that enhance the mechanics of daily living
-
Build a more durable, energy-efficient, and healthy home
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Take control of the bottom line and much, much more!
Over
400 photographs and tips!
Sign up for release notification of this new e-planning guide at
newbook@detailedsolutions.net
Green...What's It
Mean?
It’s hard to go for 24 hours these days without hearing something about green—green lifestyles, green products,
green buildings. So what does it mean to build a green house? To homeowners, green means a water-conserving,
more durable, healthier, and more energy-efficient home. To planet Earth, green buildings mean much more.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), buildings are responsible for:
- 39 percent of total energy use
- 12 percent of total water consumption
- 68 percent of total electricity consumption
- 38 percent of carbon dioxide emissions
By adopting green building strategies to reduce these numbers, we can maximize both economic and environmental
performance. Here are a few of the main elements that should come into play when building a green home. Discuss
each one with your builder and/or architect (more will follow in the next ezine):
1-Orientation and Design:
What’s one of the simplest, most-often-overlooked ways to take a chunk out of your energy bill? Select a lot
that allows the most advantageous positioning of your house in relation to the sun. By combining proper home
orientation with a design that’s focused on retaining the sun’s heat in winter and blocking it in summer, some
experts estimate a potential energy savings of 30 to 40 percent.
More information on this subject is included in our June 2007 ezine entitled
Positioning your Home for Energy Savings. Access to this and other past
issues can be found in our archives at
Ezine Archives. For this particular ezine, look for Volume 2, Issue 6.
2-Sealing the Building Envelope:
We’re not talking insulation here; that comes later. This step refers to a frequently overlooked detail in
new-home construction: reducing air leakage into and out of the home. Insulation cannot overcome air leakage
from unsealed areas. To reduce the high cost of air infiltration, detailed caulking and sealing are needed.
 Holes need to be sealed around all penetrations including gaps surrounding plumbing, electrical boxes, exhaust fan
housings, recessed lighting, air registers, attic access doors, the chimney flue, the dryer vent, and wiring. Gaps
around electrical outlets need to be filled too. This element of green construction reduces the amount of energy you’ll
use to heat and cool your home.
3-Proper and Thorough Insulation: Once a tight shell has been created
by sealing the building envelope, it’s time to insulate. Upgrade to a spray-on foam insulation if you can.
Because this product is applied as a hot liquid and expands to fill the nooks and crannies, it achieves a
high level of insulation. Batt insulation is still a very popular product, but it can’t hold a candle to
the qualities of spray-on foam. For more information on spray foam, visit the Spray Polyurethane Foam Alliance
at
www.sprayfoam.org.
Not only does whatever insulation
you select need to be properly installed—no gaps or compressions—it also must be installed thoroughly. For
example, neglecting to insulate in areas such as between the tub and the exterior wall or between the fireplace
and the exterior wall can be costly mistakes.
Basement or crawlspace insulation
is another area that is not overlooked when it comes to proper green home construction. Insulated foundations
deliver a big bang for the buck by reducing HVAC costs in a home by up to 50 percent!
Many of you may not be aware that I
am a Certified Green Professional and a Green Home Certifying Agent. My website,
One Stop Green Home Certification,
provides information on the testing (including an
insulation inspection) that can occur during construction of a
green home. Check out the
ductwork smoke test video and learn how to stop some of your energy dollars from going
up in smoke!
The Thermal Bypass Checklist Guide, published by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), provides more
photos and information on the proper sealing and insulating of your home. Take a look at,
www.energystar.gov.
Much more information and many more photos on green and energy-efficient construction, insulation
options, the insulation inspection process, (along with hundreds of additional tips for building a
functional home), are available in my new e-planning guide,
The Difference is in the Details, scheduled
for release in just a few weeks! Sign up for notification at
newbook@detailedsolutions.net.
Copyright © 2008 Tracy DeCarlo, Detailed Solutions,
Inc. - All Rights Reserved
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by sending an email
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Tracy DeCarlo,
author of "The Difference is in the Details" publishes the idea-packed, monthly e-zine
"Tips for Designing a Functional Home." If you're ready to learn how to plan a more
durable, energy-efficient, and easy-to-live-in home, get your
FR*EE tips now
at
www.DetailedSolutions.net.
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