Green Home Building: Money-Saving Strategies for an Affordable, Healthy, High-Performance Home

434 Pages·2014·6.8 MB·English

by  Miki Cook

US/CAN $24.95 ARCHITECTURE / SUSTAINABLE BUILDING
A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO
BUILDING GREEN ON ANY BUDGET
MIKI COOK & DOUG GARRETT
… an invaluable resource for those committed to a deep understanding
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— Wayne Jeansonne, President, Solluna Builders LLC, custom home builder, Austin, Texas tr
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Green Home Building explodes the myth that high-performance, environmentally ie
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on any budget. Using proven methods based on applied building science, the r a
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COOK / [Green construction] is about going back to the common-sense
GARRETT COOK /
strategies of sustainability…Doug Garrett and Miki Cook have written a
GARRETT
very engaging book that covers all these principles and more.
— Eric Tang and Paula Rojas, homeowners, Austin, Texas
MIKI COOK is a green building and sustainability consultant who has dedicated her
career to educating contractors and the public on the strategies, methods and benefits
of green homes.
DOUG GARRETT is a building science consultant who has trained thousands of home-
builders, architects and sub-contractors to build energy-efficient homes using applied
building science to improve comfort, durability and healthfulness while meeting or
exceeding the energy code.
www.newsociety.com
Praise for Green Home Building
Miki and Doug nailed it! This book should be required reading for
every architect, builder, and homeowner aiming to build a home.
Green building is about how the house operates as a system. They
explain the components, tradeoffs, and decisions that lead to an
energy-efficient, comfortable, healthy, affordable home. Finally, a
comprehensive book that spells out information I’ve been sharing
with my clients for years.
— Wayne Jeansonne,
President, Solluna Builders LLC,
a custom homebuilder in Austin, Texas
Finally, a book about building green that’s for the people. Miki
Cook walked us through the construction of our very affordable
four-star green energy home in Austin. With her guidance we
learned that green construction is not about bells and whistles, nor
is it a vanity project for those with means. It’s about going back to
the common-sense strategies of sustainability: selecting the right
location, designing with the environment in mind, using only what
you need, and choosing materials that are healthy for you and your
surrounding community. Along with the Doug Barrett, she has
written a very engaging book that covers all these principles and
more.
— Eric Tang and Paula Rojas, Austin, Texas
In Green Home Building, Doug and Miki have provided an ency-
clopedic guide for home owners with ambitions to build their own
green homes. Particular kudos are due for addressing some import-
ant but oft-neglected issues such as “shape factor” and the life of the
building beyond today’s needs of the household — what about 10,
30, 50 years hence? This will prove to be an invaluable resource for
those committed to a deep understanding of what it means to build
a green home.
— Ann V. Edminster, M.Arch., LEED AP,
author of Energy Free: Homes for a Small Planet

Copyright © 2014 by Miki Cook and Douglas Garrett.All rights reserved.
Printed in Canada. First printing June 2014.
Cover design by Diane McIntosh. Cover image: Rendering by Michael William
of the Fighting 24th, Andrew Wagner, Architect
Interior drawings by Cheng Jia, grad student working on his Master
in Sustainable Design, University of Texas at Austin.
Energy Model by Adam Pyrek Architect,
Architecture + Daylighting & Energy Consulting, Austin, Texas
Zero Cost Premium Home “Sample Construction Budget” (Chapter 15) adapted
from project by Michael Gatto, Austin Community Design and Development C enter
(ACDDC), Austin, Texas, Studio Momentum, Travis Young, Architect
New Society Publishers acknowledges the financial support of the Government
of Canada through the Canada Book Fund (CBF) for our publishing activities.
Inquiries regarding requests to reprint all or part of Green Home Building should be
addressed to New Society Publishers at the address below. To order directly from the
publishers, please call toll-free (North America) 1-800-567-6772,
or order online at www.newsociety.com
Any other inquiries can be directed by mail to:
New Society Publishers
P.O. Box 189, Gabriola Island, BC V0R 1X0, Canada
[phone]
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Cook, Miki, author
Green home building : money-saving strategies for an affordable, healthy,
high-performance home / Miki Cook & Doug Garrett.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
isbn 978-0-86571-779-4 (bound).—isbn 978-1-55092-573-9 (ebook)
1. Ecological houses — Design and construction. 2. Ecological houses —
Economic aspects. 3. House construction — Environmental aspects.
4. Dwellings — Energy conservation. I. Garrett, Doug (Building consultant),
author II. Title.
TH4860.C63 2014 728'.047 C2014-903088-6
C2014-903089-4
New Society Publishers’ mission is to publish books that contribute in fundamental ways to
building an ecologically sustainable and just society, and to do so with the least possible im-
pact on the environment, in a manner that models this vision. We are committed to doing
this not just through education, but through action. The interior pages of our bound books
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This book is dedicated to all
who have prepared this path and mentored us.
To all the great people in this industry
who continue to define sustainability.
And to all those who strive to do
their share for a better future for us all.
Thank you!
Disclaimer
Information included in this book related to green buildings, energy efficiency,
water conservation, protecting our environment, healthy indoor air quality and
cleaning practices and sustainable building practices are provided as general ed-
ucational guidelines and are not meant to infer any specific guarantee of benefits.
Information provided herein is not an exclusive representation of high-perfor-
mance methods, materials or practices. Many other efficient, healthy, and low
environmental- impact products and building systems are available in the market
besides those referenced in this manual, and therefore errors and omissions may
and probably do occur. Since variations of products, building materials and meth-
ods and other green systems discussed in this book may or may not be installed in
your home, actual performance may vary.
Construction methods discussed in this book may require further investiga-
tion from sources outside of this book prior to implementation or determination
for appropriate applications. The authors offer no warranty, express or implied, as
to the completeness or appropriate use of these methods on any specific project or
application. The authors and publisher do not assume any legal liability or respon-
sibility for the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information, appara-
tus, product or process disclosed. The views and opinions of the authors expressed
herein may be subject to change.
Be wary of products that claim sustainable or green contents or practices
without providing substantiation, documentation or research. Only products that
carry Green Seal, Greenguard, Energy Star, Forest Stewardship Council, Carpet
and Rug Institute Green Label or other reputable third-party standard logos, or
have referenced compliance against industry-recognized standards, have been
tested and verified by independent verification methods and should be consid-
ered credible.
Contents
Foreword by Sarah Gutterman. . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
We’re All Green with Envy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
What Is a Green Home? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
How Can I Build an Affordable Green Home?. . . . . . . 5
section one
Show Me the Money
1. Location, Location, Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Smart Growth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Analyzing Your Building Site. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Other Considerations for Site Selection. . . . . . . . . . 19
Payback on This Investment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2. Size Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Assessing Your Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Paybacks on Right-Sizing Your Home. . . . . . . . . . . 37
3. Design, Design, Design: Everything You Need to Know. . 39
1. Designing for Your Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
2. Designing for Passive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
3. Designing for Resource Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Payback On Design Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
4. Building Products and Materials: Shades of Green. . . . 97
Global Citizens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Building Product Research. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Selecting Building Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
How We Use Building Materials . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Paybacks: Return on Investment for Building Materials:
The Real Cost of Housing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
vii
viii Green Home Building
5. Construction Waste: The 8,000-Pound Gorilla
of Cost Savings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Money in the Dumpster. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Three Strategies for Waste Reduction . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Payback: Return on Investment for Construction
Waste Diversion Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
6. Equipment and Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
Efficiency Ratings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
HVAC: Heating, Ventilation and Cooling Systems . . . . . 177
Hot Water Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196
Rainwater, Greywater and Onsite Sewage Systems . . . . . 199
Electrical Systems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Paybacks: Return on Investment from
High-efficiency System Upgrades. . . . . . . . . . . 214
7. Health and Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Toxins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Strategies for Improved Indoor Air Quality . . . . . . . . 222
Other Health Concerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
8. Outdoor Living. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Defining Your Outdoor Living Spaces . . . . . . . . . . 240
Landscaping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
9. Green Bling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251
The Modest Green Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253
The Mainstream Green Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256
The Custom Green Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Avoid Wasting Money. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263
10. Keeping It Green . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
Periodic Maintenance and Repairs . . . . . . . . . . . . 267
Commissioning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Lifestyle Choices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
Protecting Your Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
Green Makeovers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272
Green Power Alternatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278
Contents ix
section two
Getting to Zero
11. The Zero Energy Capable Home Model . . . . . . . . . 281
Net Zero Defined . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282
The Typical American Home. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Our Baseline Home. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285
Net Zero Home Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289
12. Net Zero Water. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
The Water-Energy Connection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
Where Does the Water Go? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308
How Much Water Is Available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318
Case Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326
How Low Can You Go? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 328
13. Zero Waste. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
Waste Beyond the Household . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
Waste Prevention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336
Waste Diversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338
The Key to Making Changes in Your Life . . . . . . . . . 341
14. Zero Your Carbon Footprint. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343
Revisiting Section One from a Carbon Perspective. . . . . 344
Our Carbon Reduction Plan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 359
15. Zero Cost Premium. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363
Reducing Your Total Cost of Ownership . . . . . . . . . 364
Reducing Your Construction Costs. . . . . . . . . . . . 365
Healthy and High Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 368
Putting It All Together. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
End Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 389
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405
About the Authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415