Archives: LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)
Sunday, March 26, 2006
A greener home doesn't necessarily mean a more expensive home - and that knowledge helped SunTerra Homes of Bend earn the Custom Home Builder of the Year award at the National Association of Home Builders 2006 Green Building Awards on March 12. ...
Energy efficiency was a main goal, Chauncey said. The multi-level home is heated with radiant floors, with the tubing embedded in decorative finished concrete. Water is heated with an efficient air-to-water heat pump. Active and passive solar elements also offer heating and cooling benefits. The most efficient energy recovery ventilation system that they could find was also installed, he said, and all ventilation ducts are within the insulated envelope for added efficiency. ...
The house operates at 30 percent of normal cost for heating and cooling, according to Earth Advantage calculation, Chauncey said. And it all happened, he said, in an affordable, approachable way with the final cost per square foot well below the cost of new construction in Bend.
"SunTerra applies conservation based on economics," Chauncey said. "We strive to save more in energy costs than the upgrades add to the mortgage payment."