Building a Eco-Friendly Home - The Benefits of Going Green

As more and more homeowners become aware about protecting our environment and the green building concept, builders, designers and architects are now incorporating green elements in every home that is built. With the advancement in technology and the emergence of modern building concepts, homeowners can now integrate these green elements without sacrificing the overall appeal of their dream homes.

Despite the heightened interest by various sectors about the green building concept, many homeowners still don't have a clear understanding of what constitutes a green home and how such type of structures are built. An environmentally friendly home has beneficial effects on the health and overall well-being of your family. It is also a financially sound option.

A Healthy Home

A green home makes use of building materials that are toxin-free. This ensures that you and your family are free from harmful pollutants that are normally present inside traditional homes. Common ailments such as asthma and cancer are caused by pollutants and toxins that are normally present inside our homes. The more common toxin-free materials include natural linoleum made from linseed oil and jute, strawboard made from wheat and insulating material made from recycled paper, old denim and even soybeans.

A Cost-Efficient Home

The cost in maintaining a green home is equal to or even cheaper than a standard home. You initial cost may be high, but the savings that you will generate in the long run is more than enough to offset your initial investment. You will save about 40% on your monthly electric bill and 50% on your water consumption. Green homes are relatively more durable than standard homes. This translates to lesser repairs and maintenance. The value of the green homes is much higher than their counterpart standard home and the demand for eco-friendly homes is steadily increasing.

An Environment Friendly Home

The cooling and heating of homes account to about 20% of total energy use of typical household. Add to that the energy requirements of household appliances, other electronic equipment and lighting, and you will see why homes are considered as the segment that consumes a lot of energy. On the other hand, green homes consumer 40% less energy compared to standard homes.

There are now green homes that are able to reduce their dependence on conventional sources of energy with their added capability to generate their own energy through alternative sources such as the biomass, geothermal, wind and of course, the sun.

Green home has highly efficient bathing and plumbing fixtures. They also adopt landscaping design that is drought-tolerant. Environmentally friendly homes also make uses of irrigation systems with advanced water-conserving features. These combined elements cuts water consumption by as much as 50%.

Fewer natural resources are used in the construction of the green home. This alone is a major boost in our campaign to save our natural resources. A greater portion of the materials used in building are recycled materials. In fact, there are homes that are built from salvaged materials derived from demolished building. Green homes also make use of renewable materials such as agri-fibers, soybeans, hemp and bamboo. Finally, when you build a green home, the construction waste generated is reduced by as high as 90%. This is a great relief to our environment if we consider that about 2 tons of waste is generated in constructing a standard home with a total floor area of 2,500 square feet.


written by : Laurel R. Lindsay