Concerns about rising energy costs and protecting the environment have encouraged residential builders and consumers to focus on so-called “green” building.
Green building, a catch-all term that encompasses a variety of products and design techniques, can mean something as simple as choosing energy-efficient appliances and environmentally friendlier flooring and paints, but it also applies to where and how a builder chooses to locate a home and whether the site efficiently recycles materials.
Green building refers to both new construction homes and to remodeling projects, but it can also be used to describe the choices consumers can make even with small changes such as replacing windows or carpets.
The January 2008 Better Homes and Gardens magazine New Home Building Survey found that more than half of those surveyed want green building and green remodeling options. In response to consumer and builder demand, new guidelines for residential green building have recently been introduced by the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Homes program (www.usgbc.org).
In addition, the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) National Green Building Program guidelines are expected to be completed this spring (www.nahb.org).
The Arlington County government introduced the “Green Home Choice Program” in 2003 as incentive for builders. The program includes listings of the techniques and products that make homes more environmentally friendly.
According to the Green Home Choice Program, green home components include, but are not limited to:
• Specific construction practices to minimize and recycle construction waste
• Careful insulation practices
• Nontoxic interior finishes — low volatile organic compound (VOC) paint, sealants and carpeting
• Components made from renewable resources — cork or bamboo floors, wheatboard cabinetry
• Recycled content components, such as recycled glass tiles, recycled-content counters
• Energy-efficient appliances — Energy Star-rated refrigerator, dishwasher, water heater
• Photovoltaic (solar) panels
• Water-efficient appliances and landscape irrigation — front-loading clothes washers and moisture-sensing irrigation systems
• Storm water collection — rain barrels or larger cisterns
• Careful placement of shade trees
• Careful placement of windows to maximize interior light and ventilation.
In Montgomery County, the government introduced green-building requirements for commercial construction and multifamily residential buildings of 10,000 square feet or larger, requiring them to be LEED-Certified or an equivalent standard.
Many Web sites provide information about green building and green products, including the Green Guide (www.greenguide.com), Greener Buildings (www.greenerbuildings.com) and the Sustainable Buildings Industry Council (www.sbicouncil.org).
The Amicus Green Building Center (www.amicusgreen .com) provides lists of green products that builders and consumers can purchase, including a wide variety of paints and stains without formaldehyde and with no VOCs, indoor air pollutants that are carcinogenic and can cause allergies. Environmentally friendly paint strippers and cleaners are also available.
For flooring, Amicus sells a wide selection of certified wood products, which means that the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has certified that the wood comes from sources that use sustainable forestry methods to protect trees, soil, streams and wildlife. Bamboo, cork, palm and eucalyptus flooring is available, along with reclaimed wood from old warehouses and barns, and antique heart-of-pine floors reclaimed from Carolina mills dating to the 1800s. Pure wool, naturally dyed and chemical-free carpets are available from Amicus, along with carpers made of recycled plastic.
Consumers can also find a variety of green counter tops made of recycled paper and glass. Other counter options include kirei, a composite panel board of reclaimed sorghum, poplar wood and a nonformaldehyde binder.
Parquet-patterned bamboo butcher block is available for kitchen counters, islands and kitchen tables. Green cabinets for the kitchen, bathroom and office are available in a variety of materials, include wheatboard, bamboo, FSC-certified and other sustainable woods and wood veneers, all with healthy finishing options. A variety of wall and floor tiles made of recycled glass are also available from Amicus.
For water-saving, Amicus and other vendors sell dual-flush toilets, which conserve water by offering a choice of a flushing the toilet with less water for liquids and more water for solids.
Minitank water heaters or tankless water heaters can heat small amounts of water and can be placed under the kitchen or bathroom counter, saving water and energy used to store larger quantities of hot water and to pipe hot water from a far-away heater.
Aquabarrel rain barrels are a simple way to collect and store rainwater for gardening.
Many of these products and similar items are being showcased by builders in their developments of individual homes, condominiums and subdivisions of homes that have green features.
At Poplar Terraces in Falls Church (www.poplarterraces .com), four homes are being built with Energy Star certification, which means that they must be 30 percent more energy-efficient than the minimum standards for the current national energy code.
The homes are built with Structural Insulated Panels (SIPS), which are custom-made for each house and provide thermal efficiency. The homes have all-brick exteriors that not only blend with the neighborhood, but also provide thermal resistance and a low-life-cycle cost.
Bic DeCaro, a Realtor with Westgate Realty Group in Falls Church, says the rain gardens in each Poplar Terrace home filter water through a system of stone and soil to release it slowly into the watershed with fewer damaging chemicals and less danger of flash flooding.
The homes have been sited perpendicular to the street to minimize their visual impact and to maximize the distribution of daylight. While some of the trees were saved during construction, new maple trees and shrubbery were planted to provide afternoon shade in the summer.
In the future, solar panels can be added to the southwest roof slope on each home with ease, since the builders kept any roof penetrations on the northeast slope of the roof.
Bill Zahler, senior vice president and general manager for Artery Group LLC, says his company began building every one of its homes in Maryland and Virginia to be Energy Star compliant beginning in 2005. (www.arteryhomes.com)
“We believe that building green homes is a niche that will become mainstream,” Mr. Zahler says. “The MRIS (Metropolitan Regional Information Systems) added a line to their listing information where you can choose to show that the HVAC system for a home is energy-efficient. I predict that 10 years from now MRIS will have a line where you can select whether a home is Energy Star compliant.”
Mr. Zahler says that with energy costs rising, the homes built with energy-efficient features will be worth more in the future. He says this should convince some skeptical buyers that spending a little bit more to purchase an Energy Star home will be a good long-term investment.
Standard features on Artery’s homes include low-E windows, high-efficiency heating and air conditioning systems, improved insulation, tight air ducts and a controlled air-filtration package.
The Energy Star program estimates that certified homes use about 30 percent less energy for home heating, cooling and water heating.
Mr. Zahler says Artery has had a mixed response to its optional green features, which include the use of zero or low-VOC paint and PET polyester carpet, which is made from recycled plastic bottles.
“Families with children with allergies or asthma often want a lot of the options, especially things that make the air healthier,” Mr. Zahler says. “A lot of people add bamboo flooring just because it’s cool, but only a few people have chosen the dual-flush toilets.”
Mr. Zahler says electronic air cleaners and carbon filters are popular, along with a UV light that kills bacteria, especially in homes that are on well water or a septic system. A less popular item is the kitchen composter, an outdoor product that he thinks might appeal mostly to intensive gardeners.
Buyers can upgrade from a 13- to a 15-SEER air conditioning system that is 20 percent more efficient, but Mr. Zahler says most buyers are satisfied with the standard level of energy efficiency in the Artery homes.
“Even with our standard level of Energy Star efficiency, the difference is as if you had left two windows open all year compared with keeping them closed,” Mr. Zahler says. “That’s how much outside air comes into your home when you don’t have enough insulation, tight air ducts and energy-efficient windows.”
At Lofts 11, a 27-home condominium in Northwest Washington, builder Taurus enterprise Group Inc. added a green roof for increased energy-efficiency and installed low-energy tinted windows in each home with a shading device and passive solar features.
The homes have high-efficiency water heaters and heating and air conditioning systems, along with low-VOC paint. Each home has a dual-flush toilet for water conservation and Energy Star-compliant appliances. The kitchens have Scandinavian-made environmentally friendly counters of either recycled glass or recycled paper, and buyers can opt for custom-designed bamboo cabinets. (www.lofts11.com)
In Davidsonville, Maryland, High Tec Homes LLC has built Five Gables at Sunpoint, a luxury home with 12,000 finished square feet of living space and extensive green features.
Priced at $2,299,950, this home has 11 separately controlled heating and air conditioning zones, with a geothermal heating and cooling system, two gas water heaters and a booster pump to equalize the water pressure.
The Energy-Star-certified home has been built with an “Eco-Block” foundation, which is a 2-inch-thick insulated concrete form that insulates the home while adding noise and wind reduction, a fresh air recuperation system keeps the air healthy, while open-cell cellular foam insulation eliminates drafts in the exterior walls, roof and some interior walls. (www.cbmove.com/Robert.Garner)
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