What Makes a Home “Green”?

What makes a home green, eco, or sustainable? Here are the main features:

1. A green home doesn’t use fossil fuels. Fossil fuels contribute to climate change, are expensive, and can be dirty and smelly.

2. An eco home is energy efficient: i.e. they use less energy whether its fossil fuel energy or renewable energy. They cost less to run.

3. A sustainable home is more comfortable for the occupants. The same things that contribute to energy efficiency, insulation, air tightness, a heat exchanger etc., also make you more comfortable and healthy, a radiant heat, clean dust free air etc.

4. A green home has little embodied energy which is the energy used in making it or getting it to site. Concrete has a lot of embodied energy. Anything which has been transported a long distance such as bamboo from China will have a lot of embodied energy.

5. An eco home makes efficient use of water by recycling and reducing consumption. By the time clean drinking water arrives at your tap it has a huge amount of embodied energy. It has been diverted, collected, filetered, cleaned and pumped many miles.

6. A sustainable home is an ordinary home plus gadgets. A standard home, say built to minium standards, plus solar hot water and a bit of insulation is not an a sustainable home. Sustainability is about design and the thoughtful use of layout, orientation, and materials.

7. You can create a green home by renovation. Yes: Click here Renovate a Homes in Spain and here The Guide to Rennovating Country Property In Spain.

8. A green home typically has an integrated holistic design and higher quality more durable materials. Click here for Holistic Design

Important Questions

Are eco homes more expensive to build? Not necessarily. The key to energy efficiency is design. So it’s mainly about more thoughtful design. That should be free. Click here: It Makes Financial Sense to Build Green.

Do sustainable homes command higher valuations? Yes:Click Here: People will pay more for Green Home.