Riversong Design - sustainable design, green solutions, solar, healthy homes

There are green solutions to these issues, at little extra cost, if you design and build carefully and know what and where to buy as you build.

A new house is by far the biggest, most expensive and longest lasting item in which most of us will ever invest our time and resources. It is our dream home after all, and often the impulse is to design in every trendy amenity and feature possible. But to get it right we really need to start with first principles, grappling with the preconceptions that our consumer society has taught us, and exploring what we really need functionally and spiritually to make a home. We then need to move toward understanding the problems and opportunities in the choices we make, and their impact over the long haul on our health, our happiness, and our pocketbooks, as well as on our community and our environment.

There are lots of problems with the way we build. Look at indoor air quality, for instance. A new house using conventional paints, caulks, adhesives, carpets and cabinet materials, and with inadequately designed ventilation or moisture control measures, may well have indoor pollutant levels several times urban smog alert levels. Or take conventional stud framing. Most carpenters use outdated practices, whereas choosing to build using advanced framing techniques can reduce structural redundancies, saving materials costs by 40%, reducing construction waste and the destruction of forests, and greatly increasing energy efficiency.

These are examples of money and resources thrown away unnecessarily, as well as neglect of both the environment and our own health. There are green solutions to these issues, at little extra cost, if you design and build carefully and know what and where to buy as you build. Accessibility and adaptability, careful site planning for sun and natural ventilation, good rain and ground water management, effective thermal insulation, renewable energy systems, and use of healthy, recycled and local materials wherever possible. With dedication, imagination and cooperation between the homeowner, the designer, builders and suppliers, it is possible to create functional, affordable, durable and sustainable solutions that bring spirit, beauty, health and well-being to our homes.

Suggested Reading