Sustainable building involves practices and procedures ranging from choosing a site
to designing, building, maintaining, and renovating and addresses issues such as efficient energy, water, and
resource use, and the reduction of waste and environmental degradation, among other things ...
Sustainable Building And Green Architecture
The construction industry is one of the main areas impacted by the increasing popularity of the
green movement. Home building, sustainable design, green building materials and green architecture principles
present exciting challenges in the area of sustainable building.
Sustainable building is also known as green building or green construction. Sustainable building involves practices
and procedures that range from choosing a site to designing, building, maintaining, and renovating. These practices
and procedures concern themselves with efficient energy, water, and resource use, and the reduction of waste and
environmental degradation, among others.
Sustainable building aims to lessen the environmental impact of construction. Since buildings contribute to a great
deal of our land use, water and resource consumption and atmospheric alteration, diminishing this influence is
vital to maintaining the health of our population and planet. Sustainable building brings a wide array of
materials, practices, and products to the development and design of eco-friendly construction. Such projects often
highlight solar and/or wind elements for the conversion and creation of energy, alternative building materials, and
green building concepts to bring about the goal of low-impact construction.
Some of the central goals of sustainable building include:
Reducing environmental impact (reducing the amount of natural resources buildings consume and
the amount of pollution given off)
Siting and structure design efficiency (minimizing the total environmental impact associated
with all life-cycle stages of the building project.)
Energy efficiency (reducing energy loads with solar water heating, using high-efficiency windows and
insulation in walls, ceilings, and floors to increase the efficiency of the building envelope,
orienting windows and walls, and placing awnings, porches and trees to increase shading in summer
or solar gain in winter, and also using techniques such as effective window placement to increase
natural light and reduce the need for using electric lighting during the day.)
Water efficiency (using "greywater", or wastewater from sources such as dishwashing or washing
machines, for irrigation and non-potable purposes like flushing toilets and washing cars.)
Materials efficiency (using green materials such as renewable plant materials like bamboo and
straw, lumber from sustainably managed forests, and a range of non-toxic, reusable, renewable, and
recyclable products.)
Indoor environmental quality enhancement (reducing volatile organic compounds and other air
impurities such as microbial contaminants.)
Operations and maintenance optimization (applying green practices such as recycling and air
quality enhancement.)
Waste and toxics reduction (e.g. reducing the amount of waste that ends up going into landfills
and converting waste and wastewater into natural fertilizer.)
Taking advantage of renewable resources (e.g. using sunlight through passive solar, active
solar, and photovoltaic techniques, using plants and trees in green roofs and rain gardens, and using
packed gravel or permeable concrete instead of conventional concrete or asphalt to enhance
replenishment of ground water.)
The Complete Idiot's Guide To
Green Building And
Remodeling - This
guide helps environmentally conscious people make real-world
decisions about building or remodeling a home. Readers will find
information on how to save money by going green when building or
remodeling, how to find the right green integrated system
design, how to choose heating and cooling equipment, and how to
save money on water.
Sustainable Construction - Aiming For Environmental Efficiency And Optimum Resource
Usage
While techniques and products in the green building industry are constantly evolving, the aims
remain the same. That is to create buildings with an insight toward efficient design, efficient energy, efficient
water and natural resources, enhancement of indoor environment quality, and toxin and waste reduction. Optimizing
one or more of these standards is the essence of eco-friendly construction.
The aesthetics involved in sustainable building is the principle of incorporating a design that promotes harmony
with the natural surroundings and resources. Some key processes in designing green construction are the utilization
of green products from local suppliers, reducing loads, optimizing systems, and generating renewable energy
on-site.
Sustainable building must include measures to reduce the building’s energy use. This ranges from solar design to
energy conserving window treatments and highly efficient insulation. Designers may orient windows, walls, awnings,
and porches to create shade in summer and maximize solar effect during winter months. Window and glass placement
can also maximize the natural light, decreasing energy use for illumination.
A building’s environmental impact is greatly reduced by the introduction of on-site renewable energy generation
such as solar power, wind energy, or biomass. The most expensive item to add to any building is power
generation.
Another key element in sustainable building is water conservation. This may be achieved using several means. The
use of low-flow toilets and low-flow showerhead greatly reduces water consumption. In sustainable
building, it is a good idea to consider replacing toilets with bidets because the elimination of toilet paper
reduces sewer traffic and increases the possibility of re-using water on-site.
The use of green materials is vital in sustainable building. Many green alternative building materials are
available for all aspects of construction. The building market is one of the fastest growing eco-aware wholesale
and retail concerns. The building industry seems to have very quickly grasped the consumer and contractor demand
for sustainable construction products. Because of this, it is quite simple to procure eco-friendly construction
materials for green building. There are practically thousands of green alternative products available to builders everywhere.
Through the examples we’ve provided, you can easily see that sustainable building is a thorough and devoted
construction process that achieves eco-friendly, low-impact, environmentally conscious results.
The Basics Of Passive Solar Design
The object of a passive solar home is to sustain thermal comfort
through the use of the sun. This use of the sun reduces the requirement for
active systems for heating and cooling of the home. Passive solar design is a
component of green building design and doesn’t include mechanical ventilation.
The sun’s daily path is the key element in passive solar
design. Any given latitude has a unique sun path. In the Northern
Hemisphere, in regard to latitudes farther than 23.5 degrees from the equator, the
sun’s highest point will come toward the south. As the winter solstice gets
closer, the angle of the sunrise and sunset progresses more and more
southerly. At this time of year, the daylight hours shorten, having a
dramatic effect on passive solar design. The opposite of this occurs during
the summer season, when the sunrise and sunset progress northerly and the daylight
hours lengthen.
The converse of this happens in the Southern Hemisphere.
The sun, however, rises in the east and sets in the west no matter what hemisphere
you’re in. Part of passive solar design is to arrange rooms in regard to the
sun path of your location. There are many elements in passive solar design
that pertain to sun path, such as orienting the home so it faces the equator,
extending the dimensions of the house along its east/west axis, placing windows to
be facing the midday sun during the winter and to be shaded in the summer season,
minimizing western-facing windows, correct placement of shading components like
trees, shrubbery, fences, and shutters. It is also important to use effective
insulating techniques to keep the home from losing energy due to heat transfer.
Direct solar gain is a passive solar energy design that controls
the quantity of direct solar radiation that comes into a living space.
Indirect solar gain controls the amount of solar radiation reaching areas adjacent
to living space. Insulated solar gain makes use of solar energy to move heat
passively to or from the living area. All three types of solar gain are
elemental to and must be included in passive solar design.
Heat storage is also a key consideration in passive solar house
design. Since the sun doesn’t shine all of the time, thermal mass keeps the
home warm when the sun cannot. Such storage is commonly designed for a few
days at most. It usually is made up of a custom made thermal mass such as a
Trombe wall, cistern, ventilated concrete floor, or a roof pond or water wall.
The effectiveness of direct solar gain is greatly impacted by
the use of insulated windows or removable window insulators like window quilts,
interior shutters, or shades. It is also important to consider the
often-overlooked element of absorbing and reflecting exterior colors when designing
passive solar homes.
Certainly, there is much involved when considering passive solar
design for your home and it is highly recommended to consult with architectural and
building firms experts in creating such living environments.
In this article we will discuss the various types of standard roofing options and their
qualifications as a green roof. Among the current options available for standard residential housing, some
roofing materials are more eco-friendly than others.
Among the worse offenders are composition asphalt shingles. These roofing shingles are popular for their low
price and are made of a composite of asphalt, cellulose, and mineral grains. While it is true that some of
these shingles are made using recycled materials, they contain petroleum products and no one ever recycles the
roofs themselves. Due to their short lifespan, asphalt shingles make up a large percentage of all building
material waste. This is not a choice you want to make if you are serious about green roofing.
Recycled synthetic shingles can be a good alternative to asphalt shingle or cedar shake.
These shingles are made with rubber or plastic that is combined with wood waste. They are manufactured to
imitate wood shake and are made of materials that would otherwise be waste. Because of their construction,
they resist UV rays, fire, and are long-lasting. Recycled synthetic shingles are comparable in lifespan to
50-year asphalt shingles. While the roofs themselves are not able to be recycled because of their
composition, they are made mainly from recycled materials, making them an imperfect, but good choice for a green
roof.
Cedar shakes are a poor material for roofing and are banned in many areas due to susceptibility
to fire. They deteriorate quickly and the best cedar shakes are made from old growth lumber, which is a
non-renewable resource. All of this makes cedar shake a bad choice for a green roof.
Clay roofing tiles are one of the very best choices for green roofing. Because of their
weight, installation may require a strengthening of the roof structure. Clay roofing tiles are available in a
wide range of colors, so remember that the lighter tiles are best suited for solar reflection. Clay tiles are
non-leaching and make an excellent base for collecting water. Clay roofing tiles should be at the very top of
your list for green roof materials.
Slate tile is another good choice for a green roof. Like clay tile, a slate roof can
require that you beef up your roofing structure because of the weight load. Slate quarrying, however, has a
much-reduced environmental impact when you compare it to the production of other roofing materials. Slate is
non-leaching and can literally last hundreds of years. Slate tiles are a good choice for green roofing
materials.
Metal roofs are commonly made from steel, copper, or aluminum. They are light and
therefore use less energy to ship. They are commonly made from recycled materials and can be indefinitely
recycled over and over again. Because mining and smelting metal has a large negative environmental impact, it
is best to use metal roofing made from a high percentage of recycled material. In the case of copper and
steel roofs there is a current debate about the cleanliness of roof runoff and its impact to the eco-system.
Therefore, when choosing a green roof, give a thought to a mostly recycled aluminum product rather than any
others.
Recommended:
Home Energy Savings Manual - Learn
how to save up to 50% each month on your home utility bills without installing solar panels
or a wind generator! This manual identifies 4 specific categories of home energy usage and
the necessary steps to reduce costs in every single one of them! More details ...
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