However, there are other things that you have to think about as well when you are trying to manage an eco-friendly building. One issue is knowing how to purify the air.

The most obvious solution is to use traditional air purifiers. However, conventional air filtration and ventilation systems are known for having very large carbon footprints, because they need a lot of energy to operate, especially with a large building. They are also great for decorating your building.

A better alternative is to use plants. Plants require no energy beyond the water needed to keep them alive and the natural light provided by the sun. They can do a lot to purify the building with a fraction of the carbon footprint of traditional filtration systems.

Choose the Right Plants to Purify Your Eco-Friendly Building

With the “jungalow” style of decorating seeming to have some serious staying power, it appears that houseplants are going to be in vogue for quite a long time. On top of how houseplants decorate your living rooms and other spaces in your home, they also come with tremendous benefits. Houseplants are known to purify harmful toxins in your house and improve air quality. Let’s take a look at some of the best houseplants to purify the air in your home.

Snake Plants

Snake plants, also known as “Mother In Laws Tongue,” are some of the most common plants to see in people’s homes. Not only are they incredibly easy to propagate, but they’re also even easier to keep alive. They require little watering and don’t need as much sun as other houseplants. These beautiful plants are active and powerhouses at filtering out formaldehyde and benzene during the day.

Spider Plants

The stunning spider plant is another beautiful plant that’s easy to propagate and share with friends. Spider plants are a great addition to any corner of your house if you enjoy hanging planters where you want to add a hook to the ceiling. Though they require a fair amount of pruning to keep them healthy and looking their best, they are fantastic purifiers. Another bonus to the spider plant is it’s non-toxic to pets, so if you’ve got fur babies in your family, this is a safe plant for your space.

Hoya Sunrise

The beautiful Hoya Sunrise is a plant that can boast the ability to purify all five of the harmful VOCs. Not only that, this plant is ridiculously hardy. Though they do well in high light situations, they can also survive in low light. They also don’t need too frequent watering, so you can have them in your office as well and not worry about them while you’re using your PTO or sick days. Also known as the Porcelain plant or Wax plant, their beautiful green leaves feature stunning white flecks.

Aloe Vera

If you’re like many people, you remember seeing an Aloe plant on your mother or grandmother’s windowsill at all times. Not only is aloe fantastic at soothing burns from the kitchen or sunburns, but they also purify the air in your home! Aloe plants are great at filtering benzene, which is found commonly in household cleaners and detergents. They don’t take up a lot of space either, so that you can place several throughout your home for maximum benefit.

Pothos

Also known as Devil’s Ivy, the Pothos plant is one of the most common plants you’ll see in people’s homes. This plant trails beautifully, making it a conversation starter depending on how long you’ve had the plant. They look great on top of bookcases and shelves or hanging planters because of their long, trailing vines. These plants are hard to kill, so they’re great for beginners, just starting with houseplants. They also love moisture, so make sure you’re watering them weekly year-round and consider putting them in your bathroom where they can enjoy all the steam and humidity.

Flamingo Lily

If you’re looking for a pop of color as you’re purifying the air in your home, look no further than the Flamingo Lily. You may not know them by name, but you probably would be able to on sight. These beautiful red blooming Lilies are great at filtering out harmful toxins. They require plenty of sunlight so put them in a sunny room or directly on a windowsill. They’re also thirsty little plants, so make sure you’re watering once or twice a week–just check their soil first.

Kimberly Queen Fern

Ferns can be intimidating to some people when it comes to houseplants because they’re quick to dry out and shed leaves without the proper care. However, the Kimberly Queen fern is one of the best plants you can own to filter out harmful air contaminants. Luckily, this breed of fern doesn’t require the same level of care as other ferns, so make sure you’re keeping her in a low-light location and watering every five to seven days.

Adding houseplants to your already green home is a beautiful, inexpensive way to improve the air quality for you and your family. While there is a bit of a learning curve to caring for plants, plenty of apps and online resources make it easy to work. So, here’s to your home and your health!

Plants Are Great for Purifying Green Buildings

You need to know how to properly purify your eco-friendly building. You have to find energy-efficient solutions, which means conventional purification systems are not a good option. These plants are much better alternatives.

The post 7 Air Purifying Houseplants for Green Buildings appeared first on Green Building Insider.

Most of the emphasis on green buildings centers around their construction. However, there are important maintenance guidelines that must be taken into consideration as well. If you manage a green building, one of the most important things that you need to do is make sure that the HVAC systems are eco-friendly. You can’t do this without finding the right parts first.

Eco-Friendly HVAC Projects Require Finding the Right Parts

HVAC systems have a great impact on the quality of our life. This system is a crucial investment that requires proper planning to choose and buy the right one suitable for your needs. It is important to be comfortable all year round.

Unfortunately, HVAC systems are not without their downsides. One of the biggest issues associated with HVAC systems is their carbon footprint.

HVAC systems account for around 40% of all energy consumed in commercial buildings. They obviously play a large role in contributing to the climate crisis. Therefore, you need to make sure that you have an HVAC system that operates as efficiently as possible to minimize the impact on the climate.

When you choose your system, there are significant factors to consider to get the right HVAC supplies. Finding your HVAC supplies is not a straightforward purchase, especially if you are trying to lower your carbon footprint; however, you will make an informed decision with the guidelines below.

Consider the following when purchasing your HVAC Supplies for an Eco-Friendly Building

There are a lot of things that eco-friendly building managers need to do when they are installing or maintaining an HVAC system. They must make sure that it is regularly tested for air leaks that could cause energy efficiency ratings to go down.

However, it is equally important to make sure that the system uses the right parts. This can help make sure that the system operates efficiently. It will also reduce maintenance needs, which is also going to help the environment. Reducing maintenance needs will lower the number of parts that you use, which also preserves natural resources and lowers the carbon footprint by not requiring technicians to travel regularly.

Usage

This is one of the vital factors when looking for HVAC supplies, how you’re going to use them. It is important to find a system compatible with your lifestyle, the nature of work, commitment to environmental sustainability and other factors. For example, you can choose a temperature controller when working an area that needs particular temperatures for operations.  Keeping it at the right temperature can help reduce energy use and lower your carbon footprint.

Speed Control

Find the one fitted with easy-to-use speed control when buying your HVAC supply. This is vital for the equipment to match the operational requirements. Ease of use is important. The best option is to choose an HVAC system that is easy to use and operate. Find a system that doesn’t require in-depth skills or technical expertise to manage it. This is the best way to save the time and money you require to find a specialist.

Safety

The reliability and safety of your system are crucial. These are some vital things to consider when looking for your HVAC supplies. First, ensure that your HVAC supply can operate without causing any bodily harm or affecting the surrounding. The best HVAC equipment supplier fit their supplies with safety standards. Ensure that you read the labeling before buying. 

Frequency of use

Before buying this device, it is essential to consider how you intend to use it. The more you’re going to use your system, the more it will be prone to wear and tear; therefore, find the time to choose the right one that can operate for long hours without stalling or overheating.  

When sourcing for your HVAC parts, you can overcome this challenge by finding a supplier that caters to professionals. HVAC equipment supply is a very competitive market. As a result, it is becoming increasingly hard to find the best HVAC equipment, supplier.  There are different places you can source and buy your HVAC supplies, including your local hardware shops, online stores, national home repair chains, etc. 

On the other hand, new and better products are entering the market regularly. Therefore, consider those that add value for the industry experts when choosing your HVAC supplier. Therefore, you should start by determining the retailer who offers the most value; this is the key to finding the right HVAC supplies and parts. 

If you are a building manager or an HVAC professional, you must source high-quality HVAC parts. In addition, you are responsible for making sure that you buy the supplies at a cost-effective rate. Finally, all HVAC professionals must satisfy their clients. To achieve this, you must do extensive research and consider the above guidelines.

Finding the Right HVAC Parts is Important for Green Buildings

Green buildings need to have the right HVAC parts in order save the planet by minimizing your carbon footprint. You will be able to make sure that your building operates more efficiently and uses less energy by equipping it with the right parts. This is one the most important steps to run an eco-friendly business.

The post Choosing the Right Parts for Eco-Friendly HVAC Projects appeared first on Green Building Insider.

Indeed, one of the most affordable ways to make your home more energy efficient is to focus on draught-proofing your windows. Energy efficient windows can be great investments for eco-friendly homeowners.

You might be skeptical that you need to make it a priority to make your windows more energy efficient. You will appreciate the argument better if you realize that the U.S. Department of Energy estimates that around 25-30% of all heat loss in residential units is due to windows. You can trim your heating and cooling costs considerably by making sure your windows are more efficient.

We’re not talking about replacing your windows here (though that might be necessary if they are hanging off their hinges) but simply helping them keep the cold air out and the warm air in. The air generally gets in through small gaps and cracks in your doors, floorboards and windows but the windows are typically the worst offenders and the most logical place to start.

Draught-proofing your windows doesn’t have to be a costly or laborious job either. Indeed, it can set you back pocket change but could end up saving you significantly more on your heating bills every year. You might even feel comfortable lowering the thermostat a notch, which is certainly not going to help the cause either.

Getting the right balance

Of course, the opposite side of the coin is that completely sealing your home can make it feel incredibly stuffy, particularly in the summer months. This is one of the most effective ways to make it more energy efficient. Warm air also often leads to condensation, which is never ideal. This means you need to strike a balance between sealing and ventilating your home. That’s why there are extraction fans in your bathroom and kitchen, after all.

There is a wide variety of sealant products available today, but the trick is to how each one works and what task they are appropriate for.

Wiper seals – These are strips made from plastic or metal that have brushes or wiper blades attached to them. This is attached to the inside of the window and creates a firm seal when it’s closed. Note that these are often more commonly used on doors.

Compression strips – This is a strip of foam that compresses when pushed into a narrow space (like the crack in a window). This is the affordable option but that doesn’t mean it should be sniffed at.

Silicone sealant – For when the windows are not designed to be opened as this seals them right shut.

Getting the materials right

If you’re getting new windows fitted, you’ll want to ensure they are framed in wood or uPVC as these are the materials that offer the best cost/efficiency balance. Double-glazing is also absolutely recommended and triple-glazed options are available if you want to go a step further. The gaps between the window panes are filled with air to prevent condensation and offer a perfect seal.

In either case, however, we’d always recommend hiring a professional to offer advice and keep you sealed nice and tight. But not too tight!

The post Learn to Create A More Energy-Efficient Window at Almost No Cost appeared first on Green Building Insider.

Since most homes and buildings regulate their indoor temperature through heating systems, it is imperative that there is no heat loss toward the exterior of the building. Unfortunately, most of this heat loss is through the windows, something that can now be prevented far well than ever before.

Today, most buildings are designed to be aesthetically pleasing and large areas are covered with glass rather than brick walls. This means that there are even larger areas from where the heat created on the inside can escape to the exterior.

The technology of vacuum insulated glazing helps buildings and homes meet the needs for creating net-zero energy windows, reducing their thermal transmittance value. This prevents any energy loss from within, making the area highly energy efficient.

These glass units are also effective in preventing heat from the outside heating of the buildings during the hot summer months. This is both good for the environment and your wallet.

What is vacuum insulated glazing?

The idea for developing a vacuum within sheets of glass was first born in 1913, but it was many years later before it was perfected enough to hit the markets in the mid-1990s, starting from Japan. The inspiration for the idea came from the development of vacuum-sealed flasks for keeping drinks hot or cold. By creating a vacuum between two or even three rigid panes of glass, thermal efficiency is maximized, while sound insulation is also created. The higher the insulation provided the lower the U value is.

Usually, sheets of 3-4 mm thick glass are hermetically sealed together with a seal, and the evacuated cavity between them has less than 0.1 Pa. The glass is separated by 0.13 mm high and 0.3 mm in diameter support pillars made from stainless steel. The inter-pane cavity is the key element for these glass units because there is no medium to transmit heat and sound between the panes. This is achieved by the reduced pressure and the low thermal conductivity spacers absorb it. Triple vacuum insulated glazing has a U value of less than 0.1 W/m²K.

Research has shown that homes that had conventional glazing that was retrofitted with triple vacuum glazing, dramatically minimize their annual heating costs by 15.31% and the heat loss from their dwelling falls by 10.23%.

Why is it recommended: Why not gas insulated?

Until recently, glazing systems that were filled argon, xenon or krypton, all inert gasses, were widely used. Because these gases are denser than air, they reduce the transfer of heat. Argon has a thermal conductivity of 67% of the air, Krypton has 35%, and Xenon 22%.

However, in areas with lots of windows, especially commercial buildings, it is far more practical to prevent the solar heat radiation from entering and this is one thing that these windows aren’t efficient at doing. There is also the risk of a gas leak, because of pressure differences between the inside and outside and these gases escape naturally, at a rate of 1% a year, even when the window is perfectly constructed. This is caused by daily and seasonal temperature changes that cause the gas to expand and contract alternately. The insulating gas is squeezed through the seals, and with time, these fail.

As the gas escapes, the insulated windows lose their insulating performance and there is also the chance that the center glass in a triple glazing unit might collapse. This ends up looking unsightly, and there is a possibility that the glass could break. There is also the consideration that Krypton and Xenon are very expensive, pushing up the price of making these types of windows. Even though Argon is cheaper, again the cost of using it for making windows increases because of the time needed to fabricate them with the gas.

With vacuum glass systems there is no fear of anything escaping as there is no gas. This is the reason for them being more efficient and are fast replacing gas filled glazing as the chosen window type. They can be fitted into many types of frames, but with wooden ones, they reach an even higher level of efficiency.

How this type of window works for energy efficiency

• A vacuum is by far a better insulator because there is no air or gas molecule to transfer any heat transfer.
• The thin vacuumed gap ensures that there is nothing to conduct the transfer of heat and it is only a fraction of a millimeter wide.
• The completed units have half the thickness of conventional double-glazed glass.
• The windows are waterproof and airtight and cannot absorb moisture between the panes thanks to the inorganic seals that are used to seal the edges of the units. These thermally separate the inner and outer panes and form a continuous thermal short circuit.
• E-coatings also help to slow the transmission of external radiant heat.
• The panes are kept from touching each other by a series of fine beads that are arranged in a grid pattern and they take up a minimal amount of space to ensure that hardly any heat loss is allowed.

Is it safe enough to use?

Not only does vacuum insulated glazing maximize thermal efficiency, but also it has no gas between the spaces of the glass panes. There are other additional benefits, and besides the fact that there is no danger of any gases escaping, which will cause the glass to look unsightly or even to break, they are much thinner and suitable for many applications and façade designs.

Custom sizing this type of glazing is easy, and these can be made available for many building projects. They are ideal as replacement windows in any building where renovations are being made and are ideal as retrofits in older buildings. Even historic buildings can now consider changing their windows safely while also making them more energy efficient.

Therefore, vacuum insulated glazing has less weight and bulk, and provides the energy efficiency that regulations require, helping people achieve their desire to preserve the planet and its resources.

The post The Role of Vacuum Insulated Glazing to Make Homes Highly Energy Efficient appeared first on Green Building Insider.

One of the first and most important steps that we can take is to reduce our energy consumption. And more exactly, in this article, we will discuss how to make your own home energy-efficient:

Impact on the Environment

Trying to move into a green home is not the cheapest decision that you can make, for sure. And trying to build one from scratch isn’t either, plus the fact that it’s a very stressful process. Given these facts, you might wonder what’s the exact impact that your decision to move from living in a traditional home into a green one, can have on the environment.

Well, for starters, it’s worth to mention a well-known fact that we all most probably are aware of by now: every form of electricity generation has a certain impact on our water, air and land. Another fact that not everyone is aware of, is that almost 40% of the energy consumed in the United States is used in order to generate electricity.

So here’s the first question that comes to one’s mind right after acknowledging this fact: How do I use electricity more efficiently? If everyone would start asking this sort of questions, a lot of great things could happen, like less fuel needed to produce electricity or less greenhouse gases emitted.

What Can You Do?

Luckily, thanks to technology advancements that are being made constantly nowadays, it’s much more easier for people to help the environment. The only other thing that’s necessary, is people’s willingness to make a change. Here are some energy saving techniques that you can start thinking about:

Insulate

One thing that will help you cut down on your yearly energy-usage is making sure your home’s insulation is as recommended by the Department of Energy (DOE). You mainly have to check the insulation level in certain places of your home, like the attic, the sidewalls and crawl spaces. Of course you can do that yourself if you are able to, but if not, you can always hire someone that will help you reduce the energy loss in your own home.

Shutterstock Licensed Photo – By ronstik

But that’s not that the only benefit that insulating your home brings. One other benefit is the control that you have over noises. You might wonder what does noise have to do with insulating your home. Well, if you go for fiberglass insulation, this will not only keep out the noise from outside of the house, but it will also reduce the probability of hearing noises from one room of your household in another one. The best part about choosing to insulate your home this way, has to be the fact that fiberglass insulation is very environment friendly.

Solar Energy

If you would have large, south-facing windows all over your home, you would be able to do more than 80 percent of your heating by just using solar energy. Well, if that’s possible (and it definitely sounds amazing), think about what can happen if you would go for rooftop solar panels.

Shutterstock Licensed Photo – By Diyana Dimitrova

And if it wasn’t already obvious, using solar energy in your green home has a positive effect on the environment. If you go for this alternative source of energy, you automatically help reduce the usage of other energy sources that could have larger negative impacts on the environment. There are some toxic materials that are used when building the solar panels, but they’re not even close to being as harmful to the planet as traditional energy sources.

Windows, Doors and Garage Doors

Are you interested in the idea of cutting heat loss in half in your own household? Of course you are, who wouldn’t be? Well, one great technique that you can start thinking about is investing in storm windows and doors. And if you want to be even more effective, you can always go for double or triple-glazed windows.

Another upgrade that you didn’t know you needed in your life is energy-efficient garage doors. This upgrade could be the perfect decision that you’ll make next winter, given the fact it can dramatically lower your home’s heating bills.

Lightning and Appliances

This might seem hard to believe, but you are able to cut the electricity used for your home’s lightning by as much as 75 percent. How’s that possible? Just think about replacing your regular incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs. And the lightning bulb is just a minor example of a thing that you can change in your home, get your money back (and even more) and also help the environment at the same time. For example, you can think about purchasing energy-efficient home appliances.

If you use energy-efficient home appliances you are being really helpful when it comes stopping the exploitation of natural resources. Also, another benefit of using this kind of appliances is controlling the pollution. The explanation is simple: when producing energy and using water, oil, coal or natural gases, it can lead to water, air and soil pollution because of the industrial effluents and emissions.

It’s clear that something has to change, isn’t it? The uncontrolled consumption of energy is one of the main sources for some of the biggest issues that our planet is facing nowadays. It might not seem like something revolutionary that can change the entire world, if you start doing all of the things mentioned above. But the simple fact that you switch living in a traditional home for living in a green one, brings us as humans, one step closer to healing the planet and reducing the concern for the sick environment that we all live in.

The post How Energy Efficient Homes Are Good for the Environment appeared first on Green Building Insider.