Green features don;t have to cost a fortune

I've been keeping up with the green movement and sustainability for quite some time now. In college I worked on a project that involved passive solar design. As my real estate career has developed I've worked with numerous people who have been interested in green features, and I think there is a common misconception about the cost associated with GREEN.

I just went to a continuing education class with Bill Gallagher (quite entertaining for ce). The topic of the class was green building. Having already been pretty well exposed to the topic, most of the info was not new to me, but it did refresh my memory.

Although there are levels of green building that can be expensive, like solar panels, there are also many simple things that can be done in the construction process, and even as simple as changing light bulbs, that can make a home "greener".

*Some inexpensive forms of green building are: Using more rapidly replacable materials, like bamboo. Energy star appliances, Water collection systems for irrigation, using high r-value insulation (or even foam insulation) and low u-value windows, reusing materials from old homes, limiting impervious surfaces, incorporating proper ventalation, using tankless water heaters, applying low voc paint, etc.

*Passive Solar - If one has the luxury of being able to start fresh, one thing that can make a major impact is the direction the home faces, and the angles of the windows. Depending on the location in the world, a house can be positioned to get the benefit of the sun in the winter, and shade in the summer. Plants and trees are also inexpenive ways to help with this. I've even seen homes bermed against to provide insulative qualities. Besides solar panels, there are other ways to benefit from the sun. Certain materials, like brick, absorb the heat from the sun and when the sun stops shining, they slowly release that heat. A step further with the same principle is using a solar mass, which can be as simple as a black barrel filled with water. The barrel of water absorbs heat from sunlight during the day and releases it at night, or it could be used for hot water during the summer.

"Being green" is a full circle thing. It encompassed everything from being close to things so driving is limited, to reducing energy consuption at home, to using local materials, to eliminating health and environmetal hazards. All of these things decrease the footprint we leave on the earth and also help to reduce our cost of living. It doesn't have to be expensive . The term "Green" does get thrown around quite a bit for things that are not really "green", but it also gets a cold shoulder sometimes from people because they think its too expensive. ITS NOT NECESSARILY.

For more information on the subject, visit www.usgbc.org, the website of the US Green Building Council. Smart building and renovating will have to embrace this now and even more so in the future.