When building a new house, there is an endless amount of design opportunities that you can choose to make your home unique to you and your style preferences. Building your custom home allows you to be as creative as you want to be, but it can also be overwhelming. Since there are usually so many decisions to make and elements to include when you’re building a house, you want to make sure that you can save as much money where you can. The looming amount of tasks can often make homeowners overlook these money-saving design elements that cost them money in the future but also aren’t environmentally-friendly. It is important to consider eco-friendly custom home solutions because they not only save you money in the long run, but they also serve a greater purpose — they help the environment! Building homes takes a lot of resources and energy that can have large impacts on the planet, so it is our responsibility to build as “green” as possible. When you’re ready to build a custom home, contact Splittgerber today and speak with a custom home designer. We look forward to hearing from you!
Don’t Skimp on Quality Doors and Windows
Doors and windows that aren’t properly insulated or installed or properly sealed will let airflow in and out of the home. This means that your heating and cooling systems have to work harder to keep the house at a constant temperature, which not only wastes energy, but wastes your money. Installing high-quality windows and doors will prevent you from spending more money than you need to, and will also reduce your carbon footprint.
Use Recycled Material
When you’re building your custom home, it is important to think about where the materials are coming from. It takes a lot of energy and resources to create new materials for your custom home, which leaves a rather large and negative effect on the environment. Consider looking for materials that are made from recycled products, or you can repurpose old materials. Using recycled material won’t make your home look any less extravagant, and in many cases, people, yourself included, won’t even know that the material was recycled. Some recycled materials that you can use in your home include:
- Rubber roofing made from recycled products
- Composite decking made from recycled paper and wood waste
- Paper-based countertops made from wood pulp from managed forests
- Carpets made from recycled plastic bottles
Install Solar Panels
Photovoltaic solar panels have become a great option to reduce your energy consumption. While they are quite an investment upfront, they pay themselves off and also help in reducing how much energy you use. In some locations, the amount of energy you generate from your solar panels will be more than your household even needs, allowing you to store that energy for later use or make a profitable trade with an energy company and sell them the energy you’ve saved. If solar panels are too bulky for your custom home aesthetic, there are solar glass panels and even solar shingles that will work just the same and are more elegant solutions to your custom home.
Water Conserving Fixtures
Choosing to install low flow faucets, toilets, and showerheads are great ways to conserve home and will make a big improvement in your “green” home. Not only will they cut your water bill significantly, but they will also make your home environmentally friendly. On average, each person in the U.S. uses about 80-100 gallons of water a day for indoor home use. Multiply that by the 300 million people there are in the U.S. and you get a frightening number of how much water is consumed. Water shortage is a crisis that is easy to overlook or ignore, but it is a looming threat. In addition to adding low flow features, you can also harvest and recycle rainwater. Store the rainwater in a tank or water barrel and use it for toilets or in a sprinkler system.
Location
The location of your custom home is just as important as deciding on how to build it. Avoid building a custom home that faces west. This will minimize your sun exposure and will decrease the amount of work your HVAC system has to do. Secondly, you should also avoid building your home in an environmentally sensitive location, like areas that are prone to earthquakes, hurricanes, or floods. Lastly, make sure public transportation is easily available near your home. This will help you avoid taking your vehicle as you go to work every day and even run everyday errands.
Building your custom home is exciting, and entirely yours to create. When designing your luxury custom home, there are no design ideas that are off-limits — everything is up to you! There are concrete advantages to going “green”, like reducing your environmental impact, saving time, saving money, and even protecting your health! Whatever home you decide to build, however, contact Splittgerber Professional Builders. We would love to not only be apart of your dream, but help you create it. Call us today for a consultation. We look forward to hearing from you.
