When a business manages their fleet, intelligent reporting is important for many different reasons ranging from cost-efficiency and convenience to how it impacts the environment. Everyone knows how motor vehicles have a negative impact on the environment, but by intelligently and accurately reporting data regarding fleet operation... Read more
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Many people will tell you that building a green, energy efficient home is much more costly than a traditionally constructed home. In the past, this would likely have been a true statement, however, some builders are now able to construct green homes that are comparable to or even less expensive than traditional construction.
Heather's Home - built by Ferrier Custom Homes - is an affordable 2000+ square foot, three bedroom green home built near Ft. Worth, Texas. The home is highly energy efficient, rating in the top one percent of U.S. Energy Star homes built today. This high degree of efficiency means major savings when it comes to utility bills - averaging around only $15 per month. And for Texas, where it gets very hot in the summer months, that's saying quite a lot. Heather's Home is the first home in the United States to be certified under the new and more strict American Lung Association's Healthy Home guidelines. Additionally, it was built under the NAHB Green Home Building guidelines and has been accepted into the Building America Program sponsored by the Department of Energy. Even more accolades include being the first Texas home to receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification and the third home in the country to receive LEED's Platinum certification. Heather's Home was also awarded the top most honor (Gold) in the Energy Value Housing Awards by the United States Department of Energy, the National Renewable Energy Lab, and the National Association of Home Builders. Following are some of the high performance and green features that went into the construction of the home... Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) High Efficiency Heating and Cooling System Solar Hot Water System Organic Landscaping Fluorescent and CFL Lighting CFL and Fluorescent Lighting Green Sustainable Products - Trim, Counter tops, Floor Coverings, Finishes, etc. Non VOC Interior Finishes Green Sustainable Products - Counter tops, Trim, Floor Coverings, Finishes, etc. CFL and Fluorescent Lighting Attic Fan for a "Thermo-Siphoning" Effect Metal Roof High Efficiency Heating and Cooling System "Thermo-Siphoning" Attic Fan A key factor that lends to the overall efficiency of the home is it's passive solar design. In Texas, and other warm climates the passive solar principles employed by Heather's Home work to reduce sunlight exposure in the summer months while maximizing it in the winter months. A typical passive solar design in more northern climates would see these points reversed. Hot water is generated from solar panels on the roof. This feature alone can cut as much as thirty percent off of an electric bill. Although full-fledged solar power systems can be pricey, the cost of a solar hot water system can be as little as $3,000. Ferrier Custom Homes uses a HERS (Home Energy Rating System) test to ensure quality control. Raters inspect and test the home during and after construction to verify that the home meets EPA's strict guidelines for energy efficiency. The process includes a blower door test (to test the leakiness of the house), a duct blaster test (to test the leakiness of the duct system), and review of a thermal bypass checklist (inspection of common construction areas where air can flow through or around joints and insulation). Heather's Home not only looks great, it's affordable - proof that a high performance, green, and modern home can be economically pragmatic. Thanks to the innovations of Heather's Home there is no reason that more builder's shouldn't be building green homes for the general population. Shout it from the roof tops - you don't have to sell the farm to build a green home.
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