Sure, stainless-steel appliances and granite countertops are more fun to talk about than insulation and taped ductwork. But smart shoppers concerned about saving the Earth and living comfortably once in a home will ask about construction methods.
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We turned for advice to Mary McLeod, coordinator of the residential program for the Austin Energy Green Building Program in Austin, Texas, the birthplace of Earth-friendly construction, and building science consultant Steve Easley, president of Chicago-based Building Media Inc.
The Web site of the Wisconsin Environmental Initiative, www.greenbuilthome.org also offers tips to buyers.
Among the suggestions:
– Use common sense when choosing a lot and house design. Having many windows on the high weather sides — primarily the west and north in the Midwest — may add substantially to heating or cooling costs.
– Look for porches and wide overhangs to protect the house from the elements.
– Ask about the HERS (Home Energy Rating System) rating, which is an evaluation of the energy efficiency of a home compared to a computer-simulated reference house of identical size and shape that meets minimum requirements of the Model Energy Code (MEC). Energy Star homes include a HERS rating.
– Opt for low-emissivity (low-E) glass for windows. Look for the National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) rating label. There will be two numbers: the U-factor (how conductive is the glass to heat?) and the Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (percent of heat gain from the sun through the glass). Both numbers should be 0.4 or lower. The low-E glass helps cut both heating and air conditioning costs, Easley noted.
– Ask whether the home has a high-permeability weather or infiltration wrap like Tyvek. The wrap should be 50 perms (measure of moisture vapor transmission rate of a material) or greater, which allows the house to breathe while helping reduce air and water infiltration so insulation can do its job.
– Ask about insulation. The preferred insulation is not just batts, which properly installed should fit the space without being squished or gaping, but also something sprayed or pushed onto the surface such as spray cellulose or foam, McLeod said. “You want it to go into every nook and cranny,” she noted.
– Ductwork should be taut with no more bends than necessary and no unnecessary snaking, McLeod advised. All ducts should be sealed by acrylic-backed tape to avoid the leakage of heated and cooled air which is about 25 percent nationwide, Easley said.
– Check the air conditioner to make sure it has a Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating (SEER) of 12 or higher.
– Use pleated, not mesh, filters in furnaces and air conditioners.
– Buy Energy Star appliances. The initial cost may be more, but that soon will be recovered in lower water and utility bills, Easley advised.
– Plant a lawn of native plants not grass. It will save water, avoid fertilizer runoff and save the air because a lawnmower produces 11 times the amount of pollution a car does in an hour.
– Protect indoor air quality by opting for more hard surfaces and less carpeting. Request non-toxic, formaldehyde- and VOC (Volatile Organic Compound)-free building products.