Eco-friendly homes tend to conjure images of natural materials, solar panels, and modern design. In reality, an eco-friendly home can look and feel however you want — as long as home construction starts with green practices by your builder and that you choose sustainable materials as often as possible.
Let’s look at why you should discuss eco-friendly home construction with your contractor, and how to see your green building vision through.
Eco-Friendly Home Construction Materials
Many people think of solar panels and bamboo flooring when they hear the term eco-friendly home construction. Thankfully, there is actually a wide variety of materials that you can use to achieve a green home of any kind shape, size, and style. Some of the most common include:
- The building envelope. Strong insulation, cool roofs, and energy-efficient doors and windows, and other components of the entire building envelope should also be considered crucial.
- Recycled materials. From roofing shingles to kitchen countertops, many of the best options are actually the greener ones, too.
- Recyclable materials. When we do use virgin materials for home construction, we can consider whether those materials are recyclable to add to the long-term sustainability of the design.
- Local materials. The energy costs of international shipping and the potentially harmful practices of some foreign manufacturing can make imported goods less green than you might assume.
- Solar power and gray water. Include off-grid power generation and gray water tanks to give your new home’s utility systems a smaller footprint.
- Paint, stains, flooring, and more. The finishing touches of home construction often involve chemicals in paint, glues, and sealants that emit toxic fumes and are not eco-friendly to manufacture. Pay attention to these smaller details throughout construction.
Green Building Techniques in Home Construction
Eco-friendly home construction has to do with methods just as much as materials. Recycled materials may be conspicuous and obvious ways to go green, but do you have a contractor who is dedicated to green building techniques while putting everything together?
From green thinking in the design phase to environmentally friendly disposal methods for the trash and debris that home construction inevitably produces, there’s a lot to consider:
- Use of home orientation and shade trees to minimize heating and cooling costs
- Ventilation systems to reduce air conditioning
- Natural light to reduce electricity
- Building to avoid disturbance of surrounding trees, streams, animal habitats, etc.
- Drought-tolerant landscaping designs
- On-site recycling collection and waste minimization policies throughout home construction
Which Are the Most Eco-Friendly Home Features?
Experts tend to agree that your home’s energy efficiency, in terms of HVAC and electricity consumption, is the dominant factor in how green a home really is. After all, a more efficient home will be greener forever. With that in mind, the most important steps to achieving eco-friendly home construction include the insulation, roofing, windows, doors, and major appliances.
Solar panels and cool roofs help achieve high efficiency, but it’s important to note that the home’s inherent design affects efficiently greatly. For example, the kitchen should be designed such that heat can escape to the outdoors easily rather than warming up living spaces whenever you cook. Orientation for winter sun and afternoon shade during summer is also critical.
The Value of Hiring an Eco-Friendly Builder
As we alluded to, you need a builder who understands green design and methodologies in order to achieve a truly eco-friendly home. By working with a contractor who is always committed to green practices, you can be sure that your home construction process will be as earth-friendly as possible. Contact us for more information.