No products in the cart.
Ecological advices for the house
- List Item #1
- By Gabriel Gavazzi
Is your House Eco Friendly?
Currently, the protection and preservation of the environment is becoming a priority. One of the ways to participate in this is to favour the construction of ecological houses.
But how do you go about making a house more ecological?
Make Your House Eco Friendly Today!
Follow these simple tips to make your house more ecological
1. Pay attention to the orientation of the house
The orientation of the site and the building should always be towards the south in order to benefit from a maximum of sunlight. With an east and west exposure throughout the day, you fight heat gain during the summer. In addition, daylight increases during hot periods. Although you need more heat in the winter, it is more cost effective to get cooler in the summer. Orient the floor plan toward the sun. Design the house so that frequently used rooms, such as the kitchen and living room, are on the south side. Patios and decks should also be oriented on the south side of the house, with direct exposure to sunlight during daylight hours.
If your home is near a mountain, make sure it is built on the south side. This orientation will avoid excess shade when the sun is obstructed by the mountain on the north side.
Also consider the trees around your home. They are an important factor because they can provide shade on hot days. Trees that have deciduous leaves will shed them in the winter, allowing natural light to illuminate the house. Evergreen trees on the north side will provide shade from the summer sun.
Also, install as many windows as possible without going overboard. The exact number of windows needed is determined by the climate of the area. For a temperate climate, windows in your green home should be 5% of the conditioned area of the house.
2. Prioritize insulation
Reducing energy costs is one of the most important factors in choosing insulation. When it’s cold, the insulation system helps to keep the air warm inside. During the summer months, a good insulation system cools the interior of the home. To have the right insulation for green homes, here are some materials to choose from.
Sheep Wool
Cotton
Cellulose Wadding
Best Materials For Prioritizing insulation
Sheep Wool
When sheep’s wool fibers are compressed, they form millions of tiny air pockets. These block air and help heat homes in the winter and cool them in the summer. Moreover, wool is very breathable, which gives it a capacity to absorb moisture, without altering its properties previously mentioned.
Indeed, the outer layer of the wool fiber is water resistant. And when the wool becomes wet, it generates heat, which prevents condensation. So an eco-friendly home insulated with sheep’s wool fiber will save money, because you won’t need to adjust the heating or air conditioning.
Cotton
Being a renewable natural resource, cotton is one of the most environmentally friendly insulators. One of the benefits of cotton fibers is that they do not cause respiratory problems. In fact, it does not contain formaldehyde and is non-toxic. In addition, the resistance of cotton to heat flow is quite high compared to other materials. The high density of cotton also allows it to better fill a wall cavity and prevent oxygen from entering. When wall cavities contain less oxygen, the risk of fire spreading to the wood in the wall is reduced.eover, wool is very breathable, which gives it a capacity to absorb moisture, without altering its properties previously mentioned.
Cellulose Wadding
Cellulose wadding is loose-fill insulation that can be dry or wet. Made from recycled paper, primarily newsprint, but also cardboard and other suitable papers, it is the most environmentally friendly option. Cellulose wadding has a number of significant advantages. This insulation is resistant to fire, mold and insects. In addition, cellulose wadding is very affordable, while its R-value is higher than that of fiberglass.
For these insulations to be effective, you should always seek the services of a professional to optimize their installation.
3. Opt for ecological materials
Just as the name suggests, an eco-friendly home is usually built with materials of the same type.
In addition, wood-frame homes are easy to install and build. All parts are prefabricated in a factory, using an environmentally friendly manufacturing process. Wood also stands out for its durability as well as its fire-resistant properties.
Hemp
Hemp is an excellent alternative for the construction of ecological houses. Indeed, the price of wood can be subject to fluctuations and can easily skyrocket. Because of its duality, hemp can be used both as insulation and as a building material for an eco-friendly home.
Hemp concrete comes in the form of panels for walls and floors. Hemp rammed earth is mainly used for load-bearing walls and foundations. Note that this ecological construction material is as strong as concrete.
One of the advantages of hemp is that it can also be transformed to make plywood or other wood substitutes. Fully breathable, this material resists mold and is an excellent repellent for pests such as termites.
Straw
Building an eco-friendly home out of straw may seem like a stretch of the imagination. Know that straw is an approved building material. Contrary to popular belief, it is flammable, but its fire resistance is in the range of F 30. Straw bales do not produce pollutants during their creation.
Straw bales do not have the capacity to support static loads, but they are generally used as a covering for a wood-frame structure. Straw is also a material that is affordable for all budgets. You can save 5-10% on the total cost of your construction project. But the processing costs are higher.
Monomur brick
Monomur brick is a building material designed for green homes. It complies with the High Environmental Quality standards due to its optimal insulation level. Thanks to the monomur brick, you can save energy and enjoy a good thermal comfort, without using an external air conditioning system.
Opting for the monomur brick means taking advantage of a building material that does not release any volatile compounds or harmful substances. In addition to its thermal and phonic insulation capacity, this type of brick absorbs humidity and leaves no room for the formation of mold.
4. Favour ecological equipment
To have an ecological house at all levels, it is necessary to use equipment and materials that respect the environment. In your ecological house, you should therefore consider the following points.
- Equip your home with Energy Star appliances.
- Install low-flow toilets
- Light up your eco-friendly home with LED light bulbs.
- Opt for WaterSense faucets for your kitchen and bathroom
- Use green cleaning products.
- Stay cool by using an energy-efficient air conditioner
Some Best Ecological Equipments
Equip your home with Energy Star appliances
From the kitchen to the laundry room, appliances consume a large portion of your home’s energy. To improve their efficiency, focus on appliances with the ENERGY STAR label. This means that your appliance will use only 5-10% less energy. The ENERGY STAR label can be found on dishwashers, ovens, microwaves, stoves, etc.
Install low-flow toilets
Installing low-flow toilets is an effective way to reduce your water consumption. When you flush, the pipes extract less water compared to standard toilets. This will help reduce your water bill significantly.
Light up your eco-friendly home with LED light bulbs
LED light bulbs are a great way to save the environment. They use 90% less energy than incandescent models and contain no mercury or other harmful materials. Energy-efficient bulbs also last longer. By the way, LED bulbs come in a variety of designs and can be customized to fit any room in your home.
Opt for WaterSense faucets for your kitchen and bathroom
If you’re looking for eco-friendly faucets, choose the WaterSense label. This means the faucets are 20% more water efficient than a standard faucet. WaterSense faucets use a maximum of about 3 liters per minute, while the standard flow releases about 5 liters for the same amount of time.
Use green cleaning products.
An eco-friendly home needs maintenance. Because of this, the products you use should not be harmful to the environment. When buying a cleaner, read the label carefully and favor products that contain fewer toxic ingredients and have the appropriate label. You can also use natural products such as vinegar, baking soda, lemon, etc.
Stay cool by using an energy-efficient air conditioner
Sure, running your air conditioner all summer can make your home more comfortable, but it can impact the environment. That’s why you need an energy-efficient air conditioner. This is the case with split air conditioner models and packaged air conditioning systems.
5. Contact a professional for the construction
Building a green home requires the expertise of competent professionals. This guarantees that the work will be carried out in good conditions.
For the design of an ecological house, entrust the task to a project manager or an architect. This specialist will advise you on the location and orientation of your green home, as well as the effects it will have on the environment.
This expert advice is usually the result of a preliminary study. This often relates to the feasibility of the project. By calling on other professionals, the architect takes into account all the constraints that may arise. In any case, he will do everything possible to ensure that your ecological house meets all the required criteria.
After the design, it is time to move on to the actual construction. To start the construction, you will need to contact qualified and certified craftsmen: a mason, a plasterer and a carpenter. These professionals master their respective fields of activity. The carpenter can, for example, advise you on the wood species to choose for your ecological house. As for the plasterer, he will take care of the whole insulation system.
For the finishing of the work on your ecological house, always choose specialists. They can be plumbers, electricians and painters. These professionals must always hold a specific certification so that your ecological house is up to standards. The electrician will advise you on the appropriate lighting systems for each room to reduce your energy consumption. He will also know how to determine the location of the lighting to better optimize it. As for the painter, he will be able to choose the best paints to apply to the walls of your ecological house.