If you are in the planning phase of building a custom home, you may be thinking about making it as eco-friendly as possible. Today’s modern eco-friendly houses combine comfort and style with energy efficiency. It is a socially conscience decision that will also save you money on your gas and electricity bills. Here is our guide to planning an eco-friendly custom home from the ground up.
High-Efficiency Heating and Cooling
When picking your gas furnace and your air conditioner, make sure to pick a high-efficiency model that minimizes energy consumption and maximizes air circulation and temperature control. To go along with these components, make sure to install an energy management system that allows you to control your usage from your smartphone or tablet. This will give you the control you need to turn your heating off if you know you won’t be back for the night. These systems also allow you to turn your lights on or off and check on your home’s total energy consumption.
Energy-Efficient Insulation
In order to keep your home warm in the winter and cool in the summer, you need to implement a number of energy efficient components. Your walls should be highly insulated panels that keep your home airtight and watertight. These eco-friendly wall panels are also mold resistant and discourage pesky insects. Your windows and doors should be super-insulated as well in order to keep the heat in during the winter and out in the summer months.
Water Conservation
There are a number of options available to help you conserve water at home. You can install on-demand hot water so that you don’t have to turn the water on for five minutes before it warms up – perfect for those chilly Calgary winters. You can install low-flow faucets, toilets and shower heads that will save water per use. There are even gray-water systems that will recycle the leftover water from your baths and sinks and reuse it in your toilets.
Solar Panels
A low-maintenance and cost-effective solution to generating your own energy comes in the form of solar panels. The electricity these panels feed into the grid go towards your electricity costs. This can eliminate your electricity bill altogether and even garner you a credit with the Solar Payback program in Alberta. If you are thinking of installing solar panels in your custom home, take the position of the sun relative to your roof into consideration.
For help with all phases of planning and building an eco-friendly home in Calgary, contact Tri-Link Builders today!
(403) 217-5916