Eco Friendly Building Products

Whether you are building a new house or remodeling an old one, the way to go is green with eco friendly building products. Eco friendly building products come from renewable sources, but they also work better and last longer that those used in the past resulting in more money saved. Eco friendly building products can cost more at the outset, but as more manufacturers come on board with more products, the prices will come down. And the higher cost is offset in the long run with the extended life span and the fact that these eco friendly building products are energy saving as well.

Cotton is one of the most eco friendly fabrics. Cotton grows from seeds and is harvested much like you would vegetables. Cotton has been used for clothing and household items for hundreds of years, but now it has a new use as eco friendly home insulation. Charlotte Environmental is a manufacturer of cotton insulation that they call UltraTouch. The product is made from 100% natural fibers and is not only good for keeping heat in, it is also good at keeping sound out. And it will not give you an annoying itch like traditional fiberglass insulation does. It also has the best ration for fire, fungus and corrosion resistence.

Paneling is another remodeling feature that is going eco friendly with products made from materials that are not normally connected with building materials. Greenway Supply is an on line retailer that has a wall paneling product made from wheat. The product is called BIOFIBER Wheat and is made from wheat straw. It comes just like traditional wood paneling in 4'X8' panels. They also feature a product called "Dakota Burl" Paneling. The eco friendly choice for paneling is a composite made from sunflower hulls. It can be left as it is or stained. It also comes in 4'X8' sheets.

The outside of the house can be constructed from eco friendly building products as well. Brick is the most popular choice for building a home, but traditional brick is not eco friendly. xella makes a brick from calcium silicate - lime, sand and water and are much higher in density than regular bricks. This means that they can be used both inside and out. Inside, they can be used as a load bearing wall even though they are thinner than regular bricks. It also makes them soundproof.
Outside they provide more insulation than a regular brick, helping you to save on heating costs. Calcium silicate bricks are molded, not fired like traditional bricks. They so not add pollutants to the air and take much less time to make.