What Is The Most Energy Efficient House Design?

Energy-Efficient Home Design

 

A national rating system established by the U.S. is the Home Energy Ranking. Energy Department. The Score represents a home's energy efficiency based on the structure and heating, cooling, and hot water systems of the home. The Home Facts provide the existing structure and structures with information. In order to achieve a higher score and save money, guidelines demonstrate how to boost the energy efficiency of the house.

 

Consider investing in energy conservation before you plan a new home or remodel an existing one. You will save energy and money, and it will make your home more comfortable and more durable. It is also a good time for the planning phase to look at a green energy system that can provide electricity, water heating, or space heating and cooling. You may also want to explore the financing choices for an energy-efficient home.

 

The first step in an existing house is to conduct a home energy inspection (sometimes referred to as an energy audit) to find out how energy is used by your home and to assess the best ways to cut energy usage and costs. 

 

WHOLE-HOUSE SYSTEMS APPROACH

Optimizing home energy efficiency requires a whole-house system approach to ensure that you and your team of construction professionals understand all the factors, specifics, and experiences that impact the use of energy in your home whether you intend to design and construct a new home or do an extensive remodel on an existing home. These include, in addition to the actions of occupants, site conditions, and environment,:

 

• Appliances and home electronics

• Insulation and air sealing

• Lighting and daylighting

• Space heating and cooling

• Water heating

• Windows, doors, and skylights.

 

You will also want to work with an energy inspector to use the Home Energy Score before making adjustments, which includes a ranking of the current performance of your home, as well as a list of improvements and future savings.

 

ULTRA-EFFICIENT HOMES

Ultra-efficient homes integrate state-of-the-art energy-efficient architecture, appliances, and lighting with renewable energy technologies that are commercially available, such as solar water heating and solar power. Designers may also integrate passive solar heating and cooling and energy-efficient landscaping techniques by taking advantage of the local environment and site conditions. The goal is to minimize as cost-effectively as possible the usage of home energy and then meet the reduced load with renewable energy systems on-site.

 

ADVANCED HOUSE FRAMING

Consider using advanced house framing (also known as optimum value engineering) if you are constructing a new house or adding to an existing one, which decreases timber usage and waste and increases energy efficiency in a wood-framed house.

 

COOL ROOFS

To capture more light and absorb less heat from sunlight, cool roofs use highly reflective materials, keeping homes cooler during hot weather.

 

PASSIVE SOLAR HOME DESIGN

To provide heating in the winter and cooling in the summer, passive solar home design takes advantage of the climate and site conditions.

 

EARTH-SHELTERED, STRAW BALE, LOG, AND MANUFACTURED HOMES

If you live in or are planning to purchase an earth-sheltered, straw bale, log, or manufactured home, more specifics and links to tips to help increase the energy efficiency of your home are below.:

 

Efficient Earth-Sheltered Homes

Earth-sheltered homes can be constructed underground and can be cozy, sturdy, and energy-efficient when well planned and constructed.

 

Straw Bale Home Design

In the United States, straw bale structures were fairly widespread between 1895 and 1940, but it was not until the mid to late 1990s that construction codes started to accept them as a viable solution. Two existing methods of straw bale construction include non-load-bearing or post-and-beam, which uses a straw bale in-fill structural structure, and load-bearing or "Nebraska design," which uses the stacked bales' bearing ability to sustain roof loads.

 

Proposed straw bale structures face considerable barriers, including:

 

• Local building code approvals

• Building loans

• Mortgages

• Homeowner's insurance

• Community acceptance.
   

Contact your city or county building code officials to learn about the building code requirements for your state. It may be possible for your state energy office to provide details on energy codes suggested or implemented in your state.

 

ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN LOG HOMES

For wall structure and insulation, log homes use solid wood logs and require care in design, construction, and maintenance to achieve and sustain energy efficiency.

 

EFFICIENT MANUFACTURED HOMES

Manufactured homes are constructed in the United States (formerly referred to as mobile homes). Housing and Urban Development Department (HUD) Code, and are installed on a permanent chassis so that they can be relocated. By caulking and weather stripping, air sealing, and selecting energy-efficient lighting and appliances, owners can boost the energy quality of these homes.