Green Homes Go Mainstream

Green homes today seem to come largely in two flavors: more affordable green homes without electronics that can help to save energy, and high-end green homes loaded with electronics.

There’s a movement to put electronics into mainstream green homes. Lighting and shading control systems from Lutron will be featured in the National Homebuilder Mainstream GreenHome currently being built by Cherokee Investment Partners in Raleigh, N.C. The home is slated to be completed in 2007, and will be available to both builders and homebuyers to see different green features that can be incorporated into homes. “We are seizing the opportunity to influence the greening of large-scale development and vertical construction,” said Tom Darden, CEO of Cherokee, which specializes in brownfield reclamation.

The GreenHome will include two Lutron systems: the wireless RadioRA to control electric light and Sivoia QED to control daylight via shading. RadioRA uses an astronomical timeclock to automate lighting changes based on time of day. Automated shades help to reduce glare and protect interiors, as well as decrease solar heat gain.  Decreasing solar heat lowers energy costs associated with HVAC systems that would otherwise run more frequently.

In addition, the Mainstream GreenHome will aim to use 50 percent less fossil fuel than the conventional home, recycle or reuse 90 percent of all organic waste on site, consume 50 percent less water than the conventional home, recycle 75 percent of all construction and demolition waste, retain 95 percent of all storm water on site for reuse, create wildlife habitats, and 95 percent of all products will have low or zero volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that can be unhealthy to breathe.

According to Cherokee, the GreenHome is the first home in the nation known to be built in a typical subdivision under the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) Model Green Home Building Guidelines. In addition, the home will be certified with the Environmental Protection Agency/ US Department of Energy (EPA/DOE) Energy Star Program and the North Carolina Solar Center’s Healthy Built Homes state program, among others.

The GreenHome is expected to be completed in 2007 and will be available for tours. For more information, go to MainstreamGreenHome.com. There are some good green resources in the Partners section.