Build Your Home Green

On January 7th my husband and I, along with fellow poster Josh and his wife, attended a local workshop titled "Building a Sustainable Iowa". It was hosted by Center on Sustainable Communities and involved a presentation by Marc Richmond from Practica Consulting followed by the ability to visit with green vendors. The information was aimed at people building new homes or current homeowners wanting to make green choices.

I found the session very informative and presented from a reasonable point of view. Marc briefly covered what he called the "doom and gloom" side of building that we all hear about, but live so far away from. The majority of the time he discussed common misconceptions, pitfalls of making green choices, and tips. Here is a list of some of the items that really stood out for me:

• Every product that you purchase for your home from the building components to the paint and furnishings can contain harmful things like formaldehyde. These will "off-gas" for many years even if you can't smell it. Look for products with low or no VOCs and low or no formaldehyde.
• Don't get caught up in perfecting your projects. There are pros and cons to every choice so you have to do your research and find the products that fit the best with your goals.
  
• There are many green factors, so rank their priority for your purposes to stay focused. Some of the green factors mentioned were energy efficiency, sustainability, and indoor health.
• You may have a very efficient furnace, but if your duct work was done poorly and leaks, heating your home may be up to 30% less efficient than you think. Getting your system tested can point out areas that need to be sealed better.
• Insulation should completely fill the space between the studs. This has been a common problem with builders and is one of the easiest ways to lose money on heating your home. Watch insulation installation carefully if you are building a new home and remedy the problem if you have an existing home.
  
• Another good test for new and existing homes is a home pressure test. This will test for leaks around windows and doors, electrical sockets and other common culprits.
  
• Don't believe that green materials are always too expensive. Most green products are a few dollars more or even less than their counterparts, and if they are that close in price, why wouldn't you pay a few dollars more to make your home last longer and be healthier for your family? Isn't it worth it to raise your children in a safer environment?
  
• Green products have a lower quality than the old stuff, not! Marc pointed out that many green products have been on the shelf for years, but people don't think to look for them. A good example was paint. "Regular" paint hasn't changed for years, but low/no VOC paint has been evolving to keep up with regulations in states such as California. This means that eco-friendly paint is using the latest paint technology while the "good" paint is still using 20 year old technology.
  

The vendors at the show included companies involved with insulation, paint, windows, gas and electricity providers, construction and building materials that can be reused. I look forward to researching and possibly working with some of these companies for our home projects in the future.