 Florida is recognized as one of the states that in the forefront of the green housing development. There are green building coalitions as well as government programs in Florida, largely accounting for the accessibility of green homes. Florida also has home builders who are becoming a part of the green building revolution. Florida Green homes, LLC is an example that EnviroCitizen.org has found of these green building companies.
A relatively new company started in 2004, Florida Green Homes is named appropriately for what it does well. The company specializes in building certified Green Homes in Palm Coast, Jacksonville, Daytona Beach and the surrounding areas. The homes are independently certified Green by the Florida Green Building Coalition, FPL BuildSmart, Florida WaterStar and EnergyStar. They even include native landscaping in the standard package. Three floor plans come in twelve different varieties as well as custom-built.
Energy and water conservation are two of the main priorities focused on when building. Homes are placed so that they can use the sun for lighting in a practice called daylighting. This means that the house has specially placed windows and clerestories so that the sun can be used to light the home during daylight hours in a comfortable way. All appliances and fixtures are made to conserve energy use. There are also compact fluorescent lights (CFE) for all lighting used after dark. Occupants of these homes also get to take advantage of ENERGY STAR rated refrigerators, washers and more. The homes also are well insulated and sealed so no energy is wasted. The homes have each been carefully inspected to ensure that there are no leaks that would otherwise waste energy for temperature maintenance. The insulations used are specially selected to carefully insulate walls and ceilings so that any outside weather does not interfere with the climate inside the home. For water conservation, the builders use water conserving fixtures such as aerated showers and low-flow toilets. Outside, drought tolerant sod and landscape are used for each home. The homes are also built in such a way that they are safe for any surrounding wildlife. The homes have several certifications that show that every detail of the homes have been thought through to assure the new owners that they are environmentally-friendly.
EnviroCitizen.org hopes that we will see more of the same from Florida Green Homes. Home owners can rest at east knowing that they are making a wise investment by saving the Earth's resources when they choose communities like those of Florida Green Homes.
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