Understanding the Green Plan

Green homes are homes that are more efficient in their uses of the Earth's resources as well as their integration of sustainable designs and materials so that the home is a better quality, healthier one. Understanding a green plan means to understand the areas that we can improve our current patterns in our homes.

The lighting of your home is an area that can easily be improved. Passive solar buildings aim to maintain comfortable temperatures in the home throughout the sun's daily and annual cycles. This is done while reducing the requirement for active heating and cooling systems. Passive solar building design is one part of green building design, and does not include active systems such as mechanical ventilation or photovoltaic systems.

Saving water is the most important thing to consider when doing a makeover. Although much of the waste is caused by bad habits, installing and maintaining water-saving fixtures is an important step. Start by installing low-flow showerheads and faucets as well as toilets. Next, fix any leaks as soon as they happen. This is done rather inexpensively and will save gallons of water in the future as well as money.

Water heating is another point to consider. More than 10% of our energy bills typically come from heating up water. Although the best way to reduce that number is to use less of it for bathing, washing your hands and doing household chores, you can also consider a few other options. First, consider setting up a solar water heater. They are now reasonably priced and very effective. You can also install a waste-heat recovery system that preheats the shower water with the warm water going down the drain. Ask a green building expert on how to do this. There are other things that can be done such as creating better ventilation. This can be done with fans and upgraded HVAC systems.

Overall, having a green plan means that the designer carefully considers the needs of the occupants in collaboration with ways to make the most of the home itself without disturbing the natural environment around it. This is one of the exciting areas that architecture and home building are developing new green solutions for every day. If you are considering building, buying or remodeling so that you can live in a green home, EnviroCitizen.org suggests you speak with a green building expert about designs that can be not only environmentally friendly, but also unique.