A Green Seal of Approval for Your Home

Provided your home meets a minimum threshold for energy efficiency, you may be eligible for certification under a range of national and regional energy-efficiency certification programs. Even if you don’t already meet required thresholds, a few inexpensive improvements may be all that stand in your way.

Certification through programs such as ENERGY STAR, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Green Building Program, LEED for Homes and others can show potential buyers that a home promises significant utility cost savings over homes without certification – a major selling point in today’s economy. Certification also helps ensure that homebuyers and sellers alike are making greener choices that reduce overall environmental impact.

Read on to learn more about a range of energy-efficiency certification programs and how to participate.


ENERGY STAR

To qualify for certification under the ENERGY STAR program, a home must meet strict guidelines for energy efficiency as set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Homes must be at least 15 percent more energy efficient than homes built to the 2004 International Residential Code (IRC), and typically include energy-saving features that make them as much as 20 to 30 percent more efficient than standard homes. Some of these features include effective insulation, high-performance windows, tight construction ducts, efficient heating and cooling equipment and energy-efficient appliances.

According to ENERGY STAR, homes certified through its program use substantially less energy for heating, cooling and water heating, resulting in average savings of $200 to $400 annually. Additional savings on maintenance can also be significant, and ENERGY STAR homes are eligible for financing through energy-efficient mortgages.

The EPA reported in July 2009 that nearly 17 percent of new homes built in 2008 earned the ENERGY STAR label, up from 12 percent in 2007. According to the EPA, American families living in ENERGY STAR homes slashed more than $250 million in annual utility bills in 2008 alone, saving enough energy to avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 29 million cars.

NAHB Green Building Program

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) launched the National Green Building Program in February 2008 – an education, verification and certification initiative for builders located anywhere in the United States. For a home to qualify, an independent home energy rater must verify that it adheres to the NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines and the ICC 700-2008 National Green Building Standard, which award point values across a range of categories, including lot and site development; resource, energy, and water efficiency, indoor environmental quality and homeowner education.

The NAHB website features an interactive scoring tool that helps homebuilders and homeowners alike guage how a home will score according to the Guidelines and Standard. The scoring tool also provides continual feedback, helping those who use it to understand what steps they can take to make a home more green.

Both single- and multi-family homes, including renovations, are eligible for certification through the NAHB program. To locate an accredited National Green Building Program verifier, use the state-by-state listing on the NAHB website or call the National Green Building Hotline at (877) NAHB-GRN begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (877) NAHB-GRN end_of_the_skype_highlighting.



LEED for Homes

LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a rating system created by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) in 1998. LEED ratings measure the overall performance of homes in the following eight areas:

1. Innovation and design process
2. location and linkages
3. Sustainable sites
4. water efficiency
5. Energy and atmosphere
6. Materials and resources
7. Indoor environmental quality
8. Awareness and education.


There are four levels of LEED ratings – certification, silver, gold, and platinum – awarded according to the number of points a home earns in each of the above eight categories.

Participation in the LEED for Homes program requires third-party inspection and verification through LEED for Home Providers and Green Raters. LEED for Home Providers are organizations selected by USGBC to provide certification services in local and regional markets, and Green Raters are individuals who work as part of the Home Providers team to perform field inspections and performance testing. The USGBC maintains an updated list of providers on its website.

New homes, renovated homes, and multi-family homes that meet LEED standards can be marketed and sold as LEED-approved, which can significantly increase their resale value.

(Better Homes & Gardens-Live Green)

Things To Consider...

We get questions every day about green building and more often than not, they are the wrong questions.  They're wrong because they aren't asked in the right order.  When you decide to build a green home, it's a very wise decision to find an architect and green builder who will help you ask the right questions upfront.  Don't start building and planning your dream house with the desire to go green, but not even think about the direction your house faces.  So here are 10 things to consider when you are getting geared up and starting to dream about your next home. 

1. Get oriented. Before you build, study the lay of the land, and put the sun to work for you and your home. Notice how the sunshine travels across the property, then orient your house so the rooms you'll use most often catch the best rays.


Take your climate into account. Are winters brutally cold? Plan your home so main living areas -- or any rooms you might use during the limited daylight hours of winter -- receive southern exposure. If harsh winters swing into sizzling summers, invest in high-efficiency windows (such as those with low-E glass) to keep cool.

2. Don't waste space. Do you really need a guest room? How often would you use a den? Eliminating rooms that you'd rarely use will help keep your building budget in line. In addition, you'll save the cost of heating and cooling these rooms in the future. Sit down and examine how you'll use each space in your home. What you decide might not adhere to conventional design standards, but if it will work for your family, go ahead.

3. Help out your HVAC system. Make your building materials and home design work double duty. That way, you can purchase a central air-conditioner and a furnace with less power -- and a smaller price tag. For example, use argon-gas-filled double-glazed windows. Then you can let in vast sheets of sunlight and save on the heat bill at the same time.

Ventilation is also an important part of heating and cooling. Strategically placed doors at either end of the house, along with double-hung windows at reachable heights, can be opened to let breezes sweep through the house. Similarly, an open floor plan allows heated or cooled air to pass easily from one space to the next.

Money, Doors, Surfaces, Water

4. Spend money where it counts. How your building budget is allocated is largely an individual decision, but creating an energy-efficient home usually requires a few up-front expenses that will save money in the future. Paying extra for custom work can maximize a modest space; that can be more economical than spending money and resources on additional square footage.

5. Skip the doors. Of course, doors on certain rooms, such as closets, bathrooms, and the master bedroom, are a must, but limiting the use of doors can help decrease costs. Consider separating rooms with a simple step down, a corner, or a change in ceiling height that allows the entire space to drink in the same sunlight and air (whether heated, cooled, or fresh from the outdoors), while still visually dividing the spaces.

6. Leave surfaces exposed. Drywall and the labor required to install it can get expensive. Think about leaving ceiling beams -- and the recessed lighting therein -- exposed in several areas of the house, including the breakfast room and part of the kitchen. Exposed structural elements provide visual interest and give the illusion of more volume and a higher ceiling.

7. Save water. New toilets are stingy with water, using a standard 1.6 gallons per flush. Some toilets have dual-flush handles, which allow you to choose between flushing less water (just over a gallon) for light waste or using the full amount for solid waste.

Opting for short showers rather than baths will conserve even more water, as will installing low-flow showerheads. Especially if your house has a septic tank, it's important not to overuse water. You're also saving a natural resource.

Coatings, Recycling, Natural

8. Use simple (or no) coatings. Chemical paints and coatings can be a source of major irritation in a new home. Not only can they aggravate asthma or allergies -- especially in children -- but they also require adequate ventilation and drying time.

Use water-base paints. They have less odor and require less cleanup than oil-base or alkyd paints. Treat wood floors with a citrus-base oil for a light sheen rather than with layer after layer of polyurethane.

9. Use renewable or recycled products. Simple choices in finish materials can help make your home ecologically sound. Opt for flooring manufactured from recycled materials where possible, such as rubber with embedded neoprene chips in an entryway. Not only is rubber resilient, easy-to-clean flooring, but using a recycled version keeps the material from ending up in landfills.

In the absence of recycled materials, select products that are renewable. Purchase exterior wood doors from a company that buys its lumber from a conservation forest (the company plants a new tree for every tree that's harvested).

Use maple butcher block for kitchen countertops, or fireslate, a material that looks like slate but costs about half as much. Fireslate is used in laboratories, especially in school science classrooms, because of its durability, heat-resistance, and low cost.

10. Go natural, not synthetic. Select cellulose insulation, which is made out of plant fiber, instead of fiberglass, and Homasote, a recycled newspaper product, as a substitute for drywall in some places. Use linoleum for the kitchen floor rather than vinyl, carpet made of wool and sisal, a natural grasslike fiber and wood floors. A metal roof shields the house from harsh sunlight, and since it's not petrochemically produced, is a nontoxic material.

More Tips


Green building, while certainly not difficult, is not quite mainstream yet, at least in most regions. That's why it's a good idea to research the subject on your own so you know what to ask for and what sort of things will work for your new house. Scour home improvement magazines and books for tips, and explore the Internet for information (conducting a search for the term "green building" will help you get started. Your search will lead you to local, regional, and national sources for eco-sensitive materials and methods.

"You have to dig and find out about these things for yourself," says architect James Sterling. "It's still a kind of underground thing." It's also important to work with architects, designers, and other home-building professionals who are familiar with environmentally friendly materials on the market. These people will know what's available, where to buy, and how to get a fair price.


(Better Homes & Gardens-Live Green)

That's Right, We're in the Top 7!

Fayetteville recently made the list of Top 7 Unexpectedly Green Cities! 

"When we think of green cities, most of us think of the same perpetual lineup: Portland, Boulder, San Francisco, Seattle, and Burlington. We here at HuffPost Green wanted to expand the green cities label with some more contenders. What about Eugene? Fayetteville? Austin? Long Beach?

Rated one of the NRDC’s green cities to watch with a population of 67,158, Fayetteville is an up and coming green city nestled in the Ozark Mountains. Fayetteville boasts an impressive farmers market in the newly renovated downtown square, featuring fruits, vegetables, flowers and herbs. Since 2007, Fayetteville requires all buildings greater than 5,000 square feet to be LEED-Silver Standard certified. The city also instituted Project LIGHTS to provide energy efficient light bulbs to low-income residences. Fayetteville is the first in the state to employ a Sustainability Coordinator, using the funds saved through eco-friendly measures to pay for the job."

We were so excited to read this and know that we are smack-dab right in the middle of a growing revolution in the U.S.!  We love what we do, but more than that, we want to help people save money and live healthier lives, all while being excellent stewards of the earth we've been given!  It is our passion to be leading the way as green experts in this fast growing field so let us know if you have questions and we'll do our best to answer them! 

Email us at contact@greenovationbuilders.com

We'd love to hear from you!

10 Ways to Tighten Your Belt in the Kitchen

Recession is still in the air, and talk of a second downfall in our ever-so-stable economy is one of the main topics! So here are some tips on tightening your belts. Taken from one of our favorite sources Planet Green!

The weekly grocery bill takes up a lot of the average family's income so here are some ideas about how to cut out some of the fat.


1. Ditch prepared meals right now: Consumers have been led to believe that they don't have the time to cook and it simply isn't true. You can have a healthy meal on the table within half an hour. Prepared meals have more fat, more sugar, more salt, more preservatives, and more garbage waste than anything you can cook yourself.

You will be paying significantly more per serving than if you cooked it yourself. Someone has to pay for executive salaries and television advertising, why should it be you?

2. Plan ahead: Yes, this is going to take a bit of effort, but once you get going it will be easy. Make sure you have a well stocked pantry. Canned or dry legumes, rice, pasta, canned tomatoes should all be on hand to make quick, nutritious meals.3. Plan your week: Take the time to work out a menu plan for the week. Most people grocery shop once a week and they toss things into their carts, without considering what they really need. If you know what you are going to eat, and you have the right ingredients, you'll be less likely to call for takeout, or head out to the fast food joint.

4. Cook more meatless meals: Meat will consistently be the most expensive food item in your grocery cart. The ready availability of other protein sources allows you to expand your food repertoire and have a healthier diet.

5. If you do use meat, use less: As I pointed out in my weight loss post, no one needs a 10-ounce steak. Cut back on the amount of meat that you cook and increase the amount of vegetables for each serving.

6. If you do use meat, use a cheaper cut: There's a reason why your mother or grandmother made stew-it's cheaper. There are lots of recipes for braises and stews that use cheaper cuts of meat and cook for a longer time.

Take advantage of a snowy Sunday afternoon and get something cooking that will fill your house with a wonderful aroma. If you make a large recipe, you will probably get more than one meal from it.

6. Use your leftovers: If you are cooking instead of eating prepared foods, you are going to encounter leftovers. Don't let them turn to mould in the back of your refrigerator. Add leftover vegetables to soups, toss them into that stew, make a stir fry ,or take them to work for lunch.

7. Plan meals that will stretch through the week: If you make a spaghetti sauce one night, make enough to use in another meal. Use it as a soup base or make an eggplant parmigiana.

8. Make friends with your freezer: I admit to being a total hypocrite saying this, because my freezer holds a bottle of gin and martini glasses and precious little else. I don't work outside of the home, however, so I don't need to "bank" any food in the freezer. If you are making that spaghetti sauce already, make twice as much and freeze some for another day.

9. Brown bag it for lunch: I sent my kids off to school with a hot lunch every day once they were in high school. Sometimes I made something new, but mostly I just made enough dinner the previous night that I could heat it up in the morning. You have to invest in a good thermos, but it is significantly cheaper than buying lunch in a cafeteria or a restaurant.

10. Forget the pineapple: Unless you live in Hawaii, of course. Buy local vegetables, in season. Support your local farm economy buy going to your local farmer's market.

5 Things that will Drastically Cut your Electricity Bill

One of the first steps that you should take in an economic slump is finding all the areas of fat and cutting them. I don't mean going on a diet, well I sort of do, a utility diet. Do everything that you can to control your fixed expenses. That means downsizing your living space, transportation, cable bill, water bill, and electricity bill. Cutting your electricity bill can have a dramatic effect. Here are some quick and easy ways to downsize your electricity bill really fast:

Plug everything into power strips and turn them off when you leave everyday.

Control your thermostat and dress for economic success, which means heavier pajamas. Get under the blankets at night and turn the heat off if you can. You save $114 annually by adjusting your thermostat three degrees.

Use candle light. It's so much more relaxing and it doesn't take any energy at all. If you're just sitting around watching television turn off the lights and enjoy some soy candles.

Don't buy a television for every room. They suck up way too much energy.

Use the most energy efficient appliances in the kitchen like the slow cooker instead of the stove. When compared to a conventional oven which uses 2.7 pounds of CO2 for one hour of use, a slow cooker uses .9 pounds of CO2 for seven hours of use. If you have the money, buy energy efficient appliances.