Points of Interest | Green Energy News

April 18, 2004 – Vol.9 No.4

POINTS OF INTEREST.

A weekly collection of websites worth visiting.

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a brand-new, independent-from-the-grid all-solar home built with thick, heavily insulated walls made of earth friendly materials?

A pleasant dream for a green future.

But in reality most homes in the marketplace have already been built and they are very traditional, very conventional with only some, if any, energy efficiency enhancements in place.

Yet existing homes are often renovated, rehabilitated and remodeled. It’s a kind of national pastime. The popularity and success of home improvement stores is testament to the always-present desire to turn an ordinary home into a castle. It’s in the rebuilding process that energy efficiency and the possibility of grid-free living can begin.

So what can homeowners and remodelers do to make a home greener? What direction should they go in?

A good starting point on the Internet is the Energy Efficient Rehab Advisor operated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The site tour begins with the creation of a profile of the home being remodeled and then walks site visitors though a series of suggestions that the owner, builder, or remodeler can take to energy-improve the home. Each improvement also shows the typical cost of energy-improvements as well as savings and the pay-back period.

Along the way user can check more in-depth information related to each home improvement with appropriate links.

The site is applicable to typical construction of U.S.- built homes but could also be helpful for some building techniques used round the globe. Visit the excellent Rehab Advisor at http://rehabadvisor.com/