Sustainable Construction / Materials
Remodels and Rebates
· Energy efficiency financing. The California Energy Commission offers loans on a first come first serve basis until March 2012 for energy efficiency projects. Loans need to be repaid within 15 years using the energy savings received. More information can be found at: http://www.energy.ca.gov/efficiency/financing/index.html
· Windows. The one stop shop for window information. This website offers guidance on how to choose energy efficient windows, standards and policies concerning windows, and even has tax incentive information all in one place. http://www.efficientwindows.org/index.cfm
· Replace older appliances with more energy efficient ones. PG&E will pay $35 for a refrigerator and $25 for an old air conditioner…plus they will come pick it up for you! Redwood Community Action Agency will replace your refrigerator for you if it is a model that is 1993 or older. Call them at 707-444-3831 Extension 201.
· Insulation. According to PG&E:
Insulating your attic and walls can help reduce your energy costs and make your home more comfortable. You can get a $150 rebate from PG&E for 1,000 square feet of qualifying attic insulation, and $500 back for 1,000 square feet of qualifying wall insulation. For more information on insulation, how it works, and rebate incentives go to http://www.pge.com/myhome/saveenergymoney/rebates/remodeling/insulation/
· HVAC. Heating and cooling costs are a significant amount of a building’s energy budget. PG&E offers rebates on energy efficient heating and cooling systems:
Central Natural Gas Furnace
Variable Speed Motor Air Handler System
Whole House Fan
Duct Sealing Incentive
·
http://www.regreenprogram.org/
The ReGreen program is a great resource for remodel information. It allows you to choose the project, the topic, and the stage of construction to get helpful tips and examples of case studies including these ideas.
· http://www.hgtvpro.com/hpro/pac_ctnt/text/0,2595,HPRO_20196_38468,00.html
This website offers tips on how to re-model and go “green” at the same time. There are tips and videos on how to do some of the re-models yourself, and other information about jobs that may require a contractor to complete the job for you.
If you are looking for more specific information on the building, remodeling, or maintenance of any other room or product feel free to contact Plan It Green ((707) 826-0665), stop by to explore the variety of resources available for check out (for free!) at Redwood Coast Energy Authority, or check out the Additional Resources section of this website! Redwood Coast Energy Authority also has a green building section on their website that may be able to help. You can find it by following this link: http://redwoodenergy.org/programs/humboldt-green-building-program
Material Resources
Sustainable Construction
Other Opportunities in Sustainable Construction
· Group deliveries together when possible and request minimal or no packaging
· Food and waste on job site
· Use electronic document and record keeping
· Use biodiesel light and heavy equipment
· Use energy efficient temporary lighting and equipment
· Encourage carpooling to and from job site
During Construction
Remember that there are many factors that come into play when determining if a material is considered green. Some of these are as follows:
· Toxicity
· Resource efficiency
· Durability
· Quantity of materials required to provide function
· Quantity of virgin material used
· Source location of material (where is it made?)
· Embodied energy (total energy used to extract the raw materials, manufacture the final product, transport the material to its point of use, and ultimately disassemble and deconstruct the material at the end of its life)
· Carbon footprint (greenhouse gasses produced )
· Maintenance requirements (cleaning and upkeep)
· Manufacturer’s environmental policies and practices
Green material options exist for most facets of residential building (framing, foundation, subfloor, doors, finish floor, interior walls, exterior walls, windows, cabinetry and trim, roof, insulation).
Be careful when attempting to choose “green” products to look for warning signs of greenwashing.
According to the Sustainable Building Advisor Institute “Greenwashing is the practice of falsely advertising one’s product, company or practice as “green” or “sustainable” for purposes of increased revenue or clientele.”
Use certification labels as much as possible (ex. Forest Stewardship Council wood, Carpet and Rug Institute Green Label, Energy Star, Water Sense) and be sure to identify green priorities for your project early on to help in choosing which products meet these standards.
Although it may seem to be enough to simply include specific green materials into the construction of a building, it is equally important to use material-efficient design strategies.
Some of these strategies include: building durability, adaptive reuse, design to use less, design for disassembly, and carbon-offsetting building strategies.
Building durability includes building in appropriate locations (avoiding floodplains, etc.) and slowing rates of resource depletion by focusing on durable materials and assemblies.
Adaptive reuse includes repurposed buildings and materials as opposed to the use of virgin sites/materials. In the design to use less strategy advanced framing, and multi-purpose space design are of great importance. That includes any material or space that serves more than one purpose (ex. structural material that can also double as a finish).
When building, it is important to consider the whole lifecycle of the building. Demolition waste has been calculated to be 25-30% of all solid waste. When using Design for Disassembly strategies, materials are chosen that are reusable or recyclable and readily broken down into their elemental materials.
This type of construction allows for reduced landfill space and postponed end-of-life impacts. Carbon neutral or carbon offsetting building strategies involve reducing or offsetting the embodied carbon footprint of the building.
An example of some of these methods are using locally sourced materials (to reduce transportation), avoiding bigger than you need (to save materials), avoiding energy-intensive materials as fillers, and selecting materials that can be re-used or recycled at the end of their lives.