Green Building

One of the most exciting changes in home building industry is what is commonly called ‘Green Building’. Green building can be divided into three parts; energy efficiency, sustainability and building science.

Energy efficiency is what most people think of when they think of building ‘Green’. This can substantially reduce your energy cost and make for a comfortable home. Whether your goal is to save money or to have less of an impact on the earth, you can accomplish both items without to much added expense.

Sustainability is the lessening of the impact on the earth. This can be accomplished in a number of ways:

• Through using fewer materials in the construction of your home
• Recycling of construction debris
• Using locally produced building materials which do not need long transport distances to arrive at your site
• Using recycled construction materials &
• Utilizing materials that are durable and have less harmful side affects.

Building science is perhaps the most important factor and the one the average builder has the least knowledge. It integrates the whole house concept. Any builder can build a super tight, energy efficient home. But what are the possible harmful side effects and how can they be overcome. One example is the replacement of the air expelled through exhaust in you baths and kitchen. With a super tightly built home the amount of air infiltration into your home is dramatically reduced. However, when air is expelled through exhausting, the replacement air has to come from somewhere. Without proper controls it can come from the chimney of a fireplace, vents on hot water heaters expelling carbon monoxide fumes, garage entry doors which allow harmful fumes from the garage into the house, etc… Another huge concern is dealing with moisture build up in the home. Without proper controls you could have a huge mold issue in no time.

We at Casa Sereno Homes can help you integrate as much or a little of ‘Green Building’ practices into the construction of your home. For very little additional cost you can increase the performance of your home which will pay dividends for many years to come. Or if you want to go for a maximum performance home utilizing as many green features as possible, we can accomodate.