REGREEN Online Green Home Renovation Resources for Homeowners and Professionals
In my last post, I looked at the green home renovation guidelines published by REGREEN, a joint partnership between ASID and USGBC. Today, I’ll give a brief summary of a couple of the online tools available from REGREEN. Each of the tools can work together with the guidelines published in the booklet.
When considering a green remodel project click the Green Remodels tab on the REGREEN website. There you’ll see three subcategories: REGREEN Basics, REGREEN Projects and Case Studies.
REGREEN Basics provides a generic outline about how to begin a project broken down into four steps: Audit, Plan, Prioritize and Dig In. This is a great way to begin to think about you project from a ‘whole-house’ systems level perspective. As you look through the four steps, you’ll begin to think about how it applies to your project.
REGREEN Projects reviews nine sample projects:
Home AdditionProject details are provided with the information organized in the following manner:
The project reviews are a great way to develop an understanding of the green home renovation process and will help you to begin to think about how to approach your project. Each review is summarized and written in a format that is easy to follow and understand. References are included for additional information.
Case Studies of 18 different green home renovation projects and project types are reviewed. Lots of pictures are included and the information is very well organized. Reviewing case studies is a great way to get ideas about your green home renovation project.
Green Strategy Generator
Another useful online tool on the REGREEN website is the Green Strategy Generator. There are three fields selected with pull down tabs: Project Name (bathroom, gut rehab, etc.), Green Topic (Indoor Air Quality, Materials and Resources, etc.) and Design Elements (Equipment, Foundation, Lighting, etc.). When the fields are selected, a group of project strategies will appear. Each strategy includes an explanation, a summary of potential issues, references and links to related strategies where applicable.
The Green Strategy Generator is a useful tool for developing an understanding about how to approach and what to expect on almost any type of green home renovation project.
REGREEN Website is an Educational Tool
The resources on the REGREEN website are an excellent way to learn about green home renovation. The REGREEN online tools combined with the green home renovation guidelines will provide you with almost everything you need to know to get started on your green home renovation project.
If you or someone you know is looking to buy or sell a home in Denver Metro or Boulder County Colorado, I can help with most any type of transaction. Visit my website at E3GreenHOMES.com for more information.
Previous Post: REGREEN: A Collection of Green Home Renovation Resources for Homeowner and Professionals
EGREEN: A Collection of Green Home Renovation Resources for Homeowners and Professionals
I like to say the greenest home is the one that is already built. A green home renovation of even a small number of the 130 million homes in the U.S. could have a significant positive impact on the environment. For anyone that is either planning or interesting in learning about green home renovation there is no substitute for professional high quality project specific information.
REGREEN is an outstanding resource for green home renovation project information. REGREEN is a program jointly sponsored by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The main purpose of the program is to provide a comprehensive set of green home renovation guidelines to support all of the major components of a green home renovation project including water use, energy efficiency, materials and resources, and indoor air quality. In this post, I’ll review the green home renovation guidelines produced by REGREEN.
REGREEN has published a 164 page booklet titled ‘Residential Remodeling Guidelines.’ The booklet, which is available in PDF form on-line, is a powerful resource for home owners, builders and design professionals interested in green home renovation. A well organized collection of green home renovation strategies are presented complete with recommendations on proven technologies and case studies of real projects. Project guidelines are presented for either whole house or individual green home renovation projects such as kitchens, bathrooms or bedrooms.
The green home renovation guidelines address ten specific green home renovation projects:
A ‘whole-house’ systems approach to green home renovation is emphasized even when a project only consist of one or two rooms. The reason is that maximum results are achieved when a green home renovation considers how all the systems in a home work together to reduce the overall environmental impact. From this perspective systems design and integration practices are organized to cross-reference one another for maximum benefit.
The green home renovation guidelines are not intended as a stand-alone resource. The guide includes extensive reference to additional sources of information on specific topics. Users are encouraged to explore the added resources and to formulate their own project plans to formulate their individual green home renovation techniques, strategies and materials.
An emphasis is placed on project planning in order to identify resources and formulate strategies for everything from design features and building codes to overall performance. Each of the 10 green home renovation projects is presented with a project plan template covering pre-design and implementation related issues. A case study is also presented for each of the 10 green home renovation projects.
Regardless of the size or scope your green home renovation project, the ASID/USGBC 
Residential Remodeling Guidelines is a must-have for homeowners planning a project or interested in learning more about green home renovation.
If you or someone you know are interested in buying a green home in Denver metro or Boulder County Colorado, give me a call. I am a certified EcoBroker and I can help you locate a green home to suit your needs.
Visit my website at E3GreenHOMES.com.
John Thomas MSEE, MBA
Previous Post: LEED Certified Homes and Green Home Buyer Benefits (Part 2 of 2)
LEED Certified Homes and Green Home Buyer Benefits
In my last post I introduced LEED and the LEED for Homes program. In this post I’ll review the LEED for Homes Certification system and LEED home buyer benefits. All LEED programs are managed by the U.S. Green Building Council. The certification systems are periodically updated as new benchmarks are determined.
LEED for Homes is a rigorous certification program with well defined metrics for green home performance nationwide. The rating system evaluates home’s performance in eight principle categories.
1) Sustainable Site Selection: Location in proximity to schools, shopping, work and transit along with other factors enhancing the quality of life are encouraged. Attention to potential erosion, pollutants and interference with natural environment is discouraged. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Homes conveniently located central to work and community services means less travel time and lower fuel cost in addition to more efficient use of personal time.
2) Water Efficiency: Innovative techniques and technologies are used in LEED homes to reduce a home’s water use and to incorporate creative ways to reuse water. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Lower water bills and more efficient use of water resources.
3) Energy Efficiency: LEED homes use up to 60% less energy compared to the International Code Council’s standards for minimum energy efficiency. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Lower energy bills and lower carbon emissions.
4) Materials and Resources: The use of recycled and reclaimed materials is encouraged in LEED homes. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Efficient use of resources and lower carbon emissions.
5) Indoor Environmental Quality: LEED for Homes certification establishes benchmarks for indoor air quality by minimizing exposure to potential toxins and pollutants. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Healthier homes mean healthier people.
6) Innovation: LEED encourages innovative ways to improve a home’s performance while improving durability and comfort. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Innovative design and creative selection and use of materials take advantage of the latest technologies to help maximize operating performance which can increase comfort and lower operating costs.
7) Site Development: LEED homes use construction processes that minimize environmental impact and incorporate design practices that protect the land where the home is built. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Improved landscaping and external water management systems.
8) Awareness and Education: LEED is actively involved with helping to educate homeowners about green home features. A LEED certified home is intended to be an educational example to the community. LEED Home Buyer Benefits: Everyone benefits with greater community awareness of the features and benefits of LEED certified green homes.
LEED for Homes certification is awarded on the basis of points earned from compliance to LEED rating benchmarks. A total of 136 points are possible. The more points achieved, the higher the rating which means higher home performance.
There are four levels of LEED for Homes certification:
1) Certified: 45-59 points
2) Silver: 60-74 points
3) Gold: 75-89 points
4) Platinum: 90-136 points
LEED homes help create a healthier home and a healthier planet. LEED home buyers benefit from purchasing a LEED certified home while helping protect the environment and helping preserve natural resources.
Visit E3GreenHOMES.com for information about locating Colorado green homes in Denver and Boulder areas.
John Thomas
(m) 720-771-5594
(e): john.thomas@e3greenhomes.com
Previous Posts: LEED Certified Homes are a Green Home Buyer's Dream (Part 1 of 2)
LEED Certified Homes are a Green Home Buyer's Dream
LEED homes are healthier and more comfortable for their occupants. In this post I will introduce the LEED for Homes certification system and highlight the benefits for home buyers.
LEED stands for ‘Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.’ The LEED Green Building Rating System was developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) to establish guidelines for characterizing and monitoring compliance with green building benchmarks. The first generation of benchmarks called LEED Version 1.0 began in 1998. LEED Version 2.0 was released in early 2000. Both Version 1.0 and 2.0 apply to commercial buildings. Adherence to the benchmarks is voluntary and consensus-based and relies upon existing proven technology. The purpose of LEED is to encourage and support the building industry toward the adoption of more sustainable building practices.
Following the LEED rating systems for the commercial sector, LEED for Homes first arrived as a part of a pilot program in mid 2005. Designed exclusively for the residential market, LEED for Homes was officially launched as a part of LEED Version 3.0 in late 2007. The LEED for Homes certification program was developed to provide a means of determining how well a home is designed and built with regard to energy and resource efficiency and to evaluate the how healthy a home is for occupants.
By November of 2008 1,084 homes across the U.S. had received LEED for Homes certification and over 13,600 homes had registered to pursue certification. Today, approximately 3,000 homes have received the LEED for Homes certification and over 16,000 are registered to pursue LEED for Homes certification.
The USGBC estimates potential energy savings of 30% for the average home rated at LEED-Certified level compared to homes built to the Internation Energy Conservation Code. Energy savings of up to 60% are possible.
Homebuyers seeking a premium green featured home will want to consider one that is LEED certified because a LEED Certified Homes are a Green Home Buyer's Dream.
As a certified EcoBroker, I can help homebuyers locate and evaluate LEED certified homes in Colorado. Please feel free to contact me with any comments or questions.
Visit my website at E3GreenHOMES.com for information on Denver Colorado Green Homes.
John Thomas MSEE, MBA
(m) 720-771-5594
(e): john.thomas@e3greenhomes.com
Previous Post: Green Building Renovation Market Forecasts is Great News for Home Buyers & Sellers
Green Home Renovation Market Forecasts is Great News for Home Buyers & Sellers
I published a blog a couple of days ago where I questioned the availability of data on green housing market growth. In that post I pointed out how the data we do have is scattered about and not well segmented. I also mentioned that green home renovation data was almost non-existent.
Well, I may have spoken too soon on that one. There is some green home renovation market data floating around but like the new construction data it is not well segmented or organized. Even still, I thought I’d present what I do have.
The green home renovation data below was gathered from several press releases and news reports about a new market analytics report titled, “The Green Building Retrofit, & Renovation SmartMarket Report,” jointly published by McGraw-Hill Construction and the U.S. Green Building Council. I haven’t purchased the report but I may at some point in the future. For now, I’ll share the few morsels of green home renovation market information I was able to extract from the press releases.
Granted, this isn’t much in terms of information, but does give us some indication of the future of green home renovation potential. I like to say the greenest house is the one that is already built. With nearly 130 million homes across the country, it’s fair to say the green home renovation market has enormous potential.
This is great ne
ws for both home buyers and sellers because it reinforces the notion that green homes are moving toward mainstream housing market. This means there will be more green homes to choose from across price ranges and geographical areas enabling prospective homeowners to make better more informed buying decisions.
Many people don’t realize, for example, that it is possible to obtain a single loan to purchase a home and perform green renovations prior to moving in thus creating a healthier, more comfortable home with lower energy costs.
If you or someone you know is interested in purchasing a home in the Denver or Boulder areas of Colorado, I can help. I can assist with all types of home buying and selling transactions including locating, evaluating, buying and selling homes with green features and benefits.
Please feel free to contact me with any comments or questions.
John Thomas MSEE, MBA
(m) 720-771-5594
(e) john.thomas@e3greenhomes.com
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E3 GreenHOMES is a real estate service and investment firm helping buyers, sellers and investors. Our specialty is Energy-Efficient green homes. MSEE, MBA, REALTOR®, EcoBroker Certified®
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