eco-friendly housing
Posted by Mystery Book on January 29, 2008
I have always had a dream of building my own house that is efficient & eco-friendly but still enjoying the amenities of modern living. I have been reading about some of the techniques that can be deployed for new developments without substantially increasing the initial cost.
1. Location of the house – In real-estate it’s always “Location,Location & Location” and when designing a eco-friendly house, location is key. A good location will provide for maximum use of abundant locally available materials e.g. full sun, wind, rain, well etc.
2. Benefiting from the Sun – In colder climates, it is best to layout the house to maximize the exposure from the sun. Also using windows with light reflecting off heat-radiating materials, proper insulation to retain the heat, heating water and even generating electricity are some potential ways to exploit the abundant power of the sun. From a cost point of view though, generating electricity even with rebates from federal and state governments, is far more expensive.
3. Benefiting from the Wind – Using Windmills to generate electricity, designing the house to allow wind flowing for cooling and ventilating the house during summer and even power pumps to move water to the water mini-towers. But most people like trees around their houses which screen out the wind, windmills look ugly and birds get killed so using the wind for cooling and ventilating the house is a cheap option with proper home design.
4. Benefiting from the Rain – Locations with healthy rainfall can collect the water and use it for watering plants, laundary and toilets. Filtering the water before use would also allow it to be used for bathing. The problem is open standing water goes bad quickly so use of a small tank to store the water is a good idea. Mounting the tank on the roof would allow for some water pressure. Having a covered well also is beneficial and reduces dependencies on the local water supply but well water comes with lots of risks and water needs to be treated and filtered before use.
5. Heat Pumps – Use of these devices allow for efficient heating & cooling of houses where temperature extremes exist. These units are more expensive though.
6. Storage spaces – Storage space is always at a premium and sooner or later, you will hit this issue. Storage areas need to be created by using hidden spaces, corners and maximizing the amount of easily accessible areas in the house by reducing stairs, hallways etc.
Several more ideas exist but in the end it is proper designing of the house that makes most of the difference. Spend the time and money to look for a good designer first!
