Environment Vs. The Pocketbook When Building Green

Less is more when it comes to building a green home. If an existing home uses less energy, utility bills go down and stay down and that means more money in the homeowner's pocket.

Understandably, costs are the bottom line for many builders and homeowners. Festus, Missouri builder Nelson Scherrer of Mississippi Valley New Homes said it is sometimes difficult for homeowners to make eco-friendly choices because many times it is a pricey option and today's homeowners are not going to be in their house for decades.

"Unfortunately some environmentally friendly items are cost prohibitive. And even though (the homeowners) would see a decrease in their utility bills over time it is not like it was when our parents bought a house that they were going to be in for 35 to 40 years," Scherrer said.

"From what I hear most people move every 7 to 8 years so they might have moved before they would get their investment back on a super efficient system."

Scherrer, who builds $189,000 to $260,000 homes in Timber Wolf Valley just south of Festus, was happy to report that general building materials and home appliances are now manufactured to be more environmentally friendly. So the building basics are going green.

So what characterizes a green home anyway? The Web site, www.Buildinggreen.com states that green remodeling or new construction includes the use of products made with salvaged or recycled content, ingredients that conserve natural resources, non-toxic components and water and energy conservation components.

While some may see this as another politically correct fad, green homes and their up-front costs do offer greater durability, less maintenance costs and lower energy bills than typically constructed houses.The best-known group in green building is the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). This non-profit group developed its own point system for green projects in 2000. Their new rating system, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), is based on eight categories: energy efficiency, site selection, site development, resident's awareness, water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, materials selection and innovation.

For the wannabe conservationist who would like to join the green movement there are many ways to remodel and upgrade an existing house. Brian Peterein, owner of Perfect Air Heating and Cooling in Festus, said that the time to replace a furnace and opt for a high-efficiency model may come sooner than homeowners think.

"In the St. Louis area the average life (of a heating/cooling system) is 15 to 20 years. So if it was installed around 1990 it is ready to be replaced," Peterein said.

"The older standing pilot models were only about 65 percent efficient. Today's models start out at 80-percent efficient."

The Web site, http://Greenhomeguide.com, spells out the eight ways to make your home more energy efficient.

1. Make sure the walls and attic are well insulated. Effective and properly installed insulation slows the rate of heat loss in the winter and air conditioning in the summer. Make sure an infrared camera is used during or after the installation to detect voids.

2. Replace or upgrade windows. Boost existing windows' efficiency with weather stripping at least but ideally replace windows with more energy-efficient models. According to www.EnergyStar.gov replacing windows will save seven to 24 percent on utility bills.

3. Plant shade trees and shrubs around the house. If an older house has poor insulation and windows, effective landscaping can save energy especially if deciduous trees are planted on the house's west side.

4. Replace an older furnace with a high-efficiency system. If the existing furnace was built before 1992 it is estimated to waste 35 percent of the fuel it uses. A new condensing furnace with a 90-percent efficiency rating could save the homeowner up to 27 percent on the heating bill.

5. Improve the efficiency of the hot water system. First, set the hot water heater to the warm setting (120 degrees). Second, insulate hot water lines to hold warmth between uses. Third, use low-flow bathroom fixtures. If a hot water heater needs replacing, new products to consider are the on-demand or tankless water heaters.

6. Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). CFLs can save ¾ of the electricity used by typical light bulbs. The CFLS are more expensive but it takes 10 incandescents to last the 10,000 hours that a CFL will last. Replace the most used lights in the house first. National Geographic's Web site, www.TheGreenGuide.com, states that if every American household switched to efficient bulbs in only one room, power plants would release one trillion pounds less of CO2, the major greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere each year.

7. If you buy a new refrigerator, do not leave the old one plugged in. Industry leaders say do not continue using the old fridge in the garage or basement because it could cost up to $150 per year in electricity to keep it running. But the new fridge, especially if it is Energy Star rated, may cost as little as $30 per year to run due to efficiency advances in the past 30 years. When purchasing a new refrigerator choose a top-mount freezer model as they use 20 to 25 percent less energy than a side-by-side.

8. Schedule an energy audit for more expert advice on an existing home. Energy auditors and raters use dedicated tools and skills to propose the most cost-effective green improvements for a specific home. Look for raters who are RESNET (Residential Energy Services Network) accredited.

Perhaps one of the newest buzzwords in green homebuilding is an energy efficient "building envelope." A building's envelope relates to the inner workings of the house that keeps the house warm in the winter and cool in the summer. The home's insulation, foundation, windows and doors, heating and cooling, air filtration and roof make up a home's envelope and if many of these systems are highly efficient, the homeowner will see the greatest savings.

An easy way to create an efficient building envelope without installing huge solar panels on the roof is to construct the new home ideally on the site. HGTV's Web site for professional contractors, www.HGTVPro.com, calls this passive solar design and states there is the potential to minimize, even eliminate in warmer climates, the need for mechanical heating and cooling.

For new construction, HGTVPro.com says that ideal site orientation is where the home's long axis runs east to west to maximize solar heat. Properly hung and sized awnings and overhangs can shade windows in the summer and let the sun shine in during the winter months. Lastly, natural cooling is a cost effective way to achieve an efficient building envelope. New homes designed with cross ventilation pathways are usually able to turn on their air conditioners later and turn them off earlier.