Affordable homes: How to go green
W hat is a green home? A green home is essentially a house that makes efficient use of resources, such as energy, water, and materials. If a green home costs less and uses less resources, why aren’t more people constructing and living in green homes? While people make choices to improve their lives, like eating healthy and exercising regularly, why have they not made a green home their choice? Perhaps, green homes were not readily available as an option; or those marketed as green homes were simply not delivering the expected benefits.
The building market is itself transitioning towards green development. More architects and engineers are designing green homes. More developers are constructing and offering green homes. The International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, is certifying green homes through its EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies) voluntary certification system. IFC offers the free online EDGE software ( go to edge-buildings.
com), which quickly provides designers and builders with technical solutions to green a home. The EDGE software is also a decision-making tool for home owners which shows expected utility cost savings and return on investment for every measure incorporated in the design. At last, green homes can be designed, built, and certified, so people can now make that sensible choice for a green home.
WHAT MAKES FOR A GREEN HOME?
The EDGE tool offers a number of measures to green a home. Four of the easiest and most viable are described below.
Just enough windows. Glass windows are expensive and we need just enough of them to maximize daylight and ventilation, minimize unwanted heat from entering the house. For ample daylight and ventilation, each room should have at least one window that is transparent, operable, and around 20% the size of the outside wall.
The color white. The color white reflects the heat of the sun more effectively than any other color. Paint the outside of the roof and walls white and the indoor temperatures will drop to a more comfortable level during the day. The color white also reflects light better than any other color, so ceilings and walls painted white will make any room look brighter.
Energy saving lights. LED (light emitting diode) lights may cost a little more but they can cut energy use by more than a third compared to compact fluorescent lamps — for the same amount of light. They also function at cooler temperatures and last for longer hours of use.
Efficient plumbing fixtures. Showerheads and faucets that let flow six liters per minute, water closets that dispense 4.5 liters per flush, and many other efficient plumbing fixtures are readily available at prices comparable to less efficient ones.
A green home will be very beneficial to a typical Filipino family of four with the head of the family, earning a decent wage. In a small home, the family’s monthly utility bills for water and electricity will normally cost roughly P2,000. The same family in a green home would save around 20-40% on utilities or up to P10,000 a year.
A green home will always be the best choice, and with EDGE certification for homes, it is a smart choice.