GREEN BUILDING

Energy & Atmosphere

Material Conservation

Sustainable Building

Water Conservation

Indoor Air Quality

Third-Party Raters

Sustainable Building Siting & Orientation

Cheap energy is a thing of the past. When building or renovating a house, it is critical to think of the long-term implications of the way the home is designed and built. We have already addressed ways that a building can use far less energy by building tight with alternative methods such as ICFs and SIPs combined with alternate energy sources such as geothermal HVAC.

Using these methods without maximizing the passive solar energy a home can absorb, however, is missing a huge opportunity to gain a great deal of the heating and cooling load from the most renewable source we have, the sun. This is one part of siting a house on a lot that is important to consider, but not the only factor. A lot should be viewed independently of the house that is to be built on it. What are the geographic, geologic, and topographic considerations of the lot? How can we use these features to produce a home that sits in the optimal area for proper drainage, best energy use, and shelter from the elements?

Another factor to consider when siting a house is water elements and the natural flow of the inhabitants of the land, the animals who may live there or use the land as a corridor. The house should protect water resources and when possible, work with the land to protect natural habitat and native species. This shows respect for the land, and will result in a more harmonic and beautiful setting. The resources we save today may be more valuable than we can imagine tomorrow.