There are many reasons for wanting to go green when building a home — whether it’s to save the planet, save some green, or a little bit of both — Vertical Design + Build is here to help.
It is our opinion that “going green” is about superior building practices using the latest available science to simply create a better home. If you are looking to build a new custom home in Sarasota, we have some tips:
Tips for Building an Eco-Friendly Home
- Insulation: Make sure your home is properly insulated which means sealing the building envelope to keep the moist, humid air where it belongs- Outside your home.
- Air Conditioning: Right-size your air conditioning equipment. You don’t want to oversize your system and short-cycle cooling periods as that is what removes humidity from the air inside your home. Variable speed equipment with makeup air to positively pressurize your home works best!
- Windows: Have windows installed strategically to take advantage of natural light but make sure that you install insulated windows to avoid the solar heat gain.
- Smart home technology: Utilize smart home technology to automatically control lights and temperature whether you are home or not.
- Maintenance-Free and Sustainable materials: There are many materials that just make better sense to use in our climate for both the inside and outside of your home – Composite siding, moisture-resistant, recycled-content drywall, reclaimed wood, etc.
- Conserve water: Use low flow faucets, toilets and shower heads. .
- Energy efficient: Use LED light bulbs and energy star fixtures and appliances.
- Net Zero: After you’ve got the energy load dialed down, you can consider photovoltaic solar panels (PV) grid-tied (to sell power back to FPL) or with a battery back up to power a portion of your home or get completely off the grid!
Contact Vertical | Design+Build to learn more. Our Sarasota architects and custom home builder team is ready to get started!
