Green Home Remodeling and Sustainable Home Renovation
Consider green building and sustainable building materials when renovating your home. There has never been a better time to consider green building or renovating with green and sustainable materials in your home. With climate change in the National discussion, homeowners are often asking us what they can do to be more conscientious in their remodels and renovations to do their part for the environment. It is essential to do your research on the options and find the right, trustworthy contractor who is well-versed in resource efficiency with whom to discuss your plans and goals.
Ensuring that your home is green and made of sustainable materials may cost a bit more up front, but will certainly afford the homeowner energy- and cost-efficiency in the long run. It doesn’t have to be hard being green! Home Remedy is one of these contractors that can help answer your questions about sustainability and resource management if you are interested in what it takes, but many don’t know where to start. What are the first things you need to do to consider making these kinds of environmentally-friendly changes to your home?
To give you an idea of our process, our first step is to speak with you about your goals. Do you want to save money on energy costs with your home renovation? Do you want to ensure your home is made of sustainable materials? Some of these goals can be achieved without a full rebuild but with thoughtful patching of holes in drywall, door jambs and beyond.
Often times, mindful window replacements moving from single pane to double or triple pane versions can improve how your home closes out or lets in the elements to help with energy consumption. Solar panels are also a relatively simple option for those looking to other avenues for electricity. Believe it or not, the color of your roof shingles can even absorb or reflect the sun’s energy and be costing you more, so new shingles could be installed for significant yearly savings. Even how you arrange the plants in your yard can prevent rain run-off, or collect it for the plants that need it. It may even be a matter of switching out some appliances to more environmentally-sensitive versions with the relatively new Energy Star certification.
When these more superficial changes have been made in the way of energy-saving appliances and simple tweaks in window options, structural improvements can be made with specific sustainable and green materials to go even further. Green varieties of installation can be inserted in between the inner walls of your house and the outer facade. This will keep heat and cooling in while keeping the elements out, making your house all that more comfortable and saving you money.
Additionally, to ensure you’re getting the best materials for your home’s remodel, you can look for building materials that contain post-consumer or post-industrial recycled content. That means it’s easy to recycle long after you’ve moved on. The materials you choose to use can also be sustainably sourced, which can add another level of environmental thoughtfulness. There is wood that is certified as sustainably harvested by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) that you can always find more information about. Plus, another great idea is to minimize the distance that any building materials need to travel to your house so you can reduce greenhouse gas emissions too!
If you want to do more research about your options before you give Home Remedy a call, there are wonderful resources online to read at your own pace to clarify the options and steps. GreenBuildingAdvisor.com has many answers to common questions, EPA.gov has a plethora of information for residential and commercial sustainably-built buildings, and, of course, we are more than happy to field your green questions at info@homeremedyhouston.com. Best of luck on your journey to your Home Green Home!