FOUR CORNERSTONES OF SUSTAINABLE HOME DESIGN

Posted by jondavis on Wednesday, 13 of June , 2007 at 11:56 am

In the 30+ years that we have been designing and building homes, we have made the goal of ongoing improvement part of our company culture. Integrating new, proven materials and methods has been the norm for us from day one.

As I look at many of the so called “green homes” that are popping up, I realize how few designers/architects apply a systems approach to the challenge of designing homes that are truly sustainable. In the last 4 years many thousands of new homes have been built across the country, yet the vast majority of them were obsolete the day they were finished. They only add to the looming energy problems and do little or nothing to make our country’s housing appropriate for the current times or for what lies ahead.

This reminds me of an article I read years ago about the transition from the horse and buggy culture into the oil based, automobile culture. The gist was that in spite of the obvious and huge change in transportation technologies, the ability of people to really understand the significance of the change was woefully behind the curve. It noted that the number of people learning how to make wooden wagon wheels continued well after it was clear that the automobile was going to surpass the horse and buggy as our primary mode of transportation. People were not in tune with the rate of change and much effort and resources were wasted doing things right but not doing the right thing!

This is exactly what were are doing today in America. The bulk of new homes being built have no cohesive, sustainable approach to the looming reality of peak oil issues. Most new homes are essentially built with 1960s technology and most of the emphasis is on the “fru-fru” (amenities). Cosmetics without substance. Band-Aids are not the way to make real change; particularly given the short amount of time that we have to make the transition to a truly sustainable culture.

In our work we have based our homes on these four cornerstones:

Site based design
Minimizing Conventional Energy Use
Maximizing Renewable Energy Use
Sustainable building materials and processes

SITE BASED DESIGN
The first strategy for a Sunlight home (or for any building to be optimized for sustainability) is that it must be designed for the local climate, and for the site on which it will be built.

Edward Deming taught our generation that the first 15% of any process is crucial to its success. When these initial conditions are flawed, no amount of tinkering will make it right. Our Pre-Design Worksheets along with the initial, two day visit we make (with our clients) to each new project site are how we set correct initial conditions for the project. Good design is nothing more than good ideas applied properly. The initial design work is the foundation for the rest of process, so paying attention to the first 15% is critical to the success of the project.

MINIMIZING CONVENTIONAL ENERGY
Our second cornerstone is minimizing the amount of energy needed (first) to build the home and then to operate and maintain it over its lifetime. Keeping the house size smaller is a first good step in building a energy efficient home. Maximizing the amount the energy that the structure can generate is also important.

Super insulating new homes is a no brainer, in my opinion. If you think that fuel costs are high now, just wait 10 or 15 years! People are raising a ruckus over fuel prices now. A little research on the topic of “peak oil” will make it clear why it is imperative that we address this issue now. Building a home that uses 75% less energy (or more) ensures that you will have locked in the bulk of your utility costs for the life of the home. Society benefits when waste is reduced. Conservation of energy is our first line of defense in building a sustainable home.

MAXIMIZING RENEWABLE ENERGY
Our third cornerstone is the use of renewable passive and active solar energy generation to the extent possible given the location of the project. Passive solar design principles are well established and their use is beneficial throughout most of the country. In addition to energy benefits, the extra daylighting makes the home much more comfortable during the day. Thermal mass is important in a passive solar home and we have have been using thin, “distributed mass” on interior walls. It has always been our goal to make the workings of our passive solar systems as transparent as possible. The use of super insulation is also a large contributor to any passive solar heating and cooling schemes.

Active solar photovoltaic (PV) systems are well established and, with no moving parts, are very low maintenance. Federal and state tax credits are making them more cost effective. In areas where you can tie into the electric utility grid, selling your extra power by day and buying it at night, you are freed from using battery storage. Our home/office uses a small, 1.8 kwh system manufactured by Uni-Solar. On a yearly basis, the system is taking care of almost all of our electrical needs, which are more than a standard residence since we run our business from our home. We were in Germany last summer and were impressed with how the Germans have made it a national imperative to make their country energy self sufficient. In comparison our country has hardly gotten started.

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS AND PROCESSES
The last cornerstone of a Sunlight Home is using sustainable building materials and processes. Ceramic tiles made from recycled glass, renewable bamboo floors, and natural clay wall finishes are just examples of the possibilities of materials. Mitigating damage to the building site by protecting natural vegetation, keeping waste to a minimum, buying local when possible, recycling building materials, and using fly ash concrete are examples of better practices.

Another huge issue that bears on sustainable design is how we design our cities. Higher density towns, similar to the European model, is much more conducive to convivial life and more sustainable over all. City planning needs to catch up with the issues of sustainable culture.

There are many ways to approach the goal of a more sustainable lifestyle. We all must do what we can to be part of the solution and not part of the problem.

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Category: Custom Design, Green Building, Passive Solar

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