Chapter 1 WHAT’S GREEN BUILDING ALL ABOUT buildings can come in any color When we call Green Green something green this means it is good for the Earth Recycling is one way to live green and help the environment Green buildings help too They save water and energy They are also built from nontoxic materials that won’t make people sick 4 Green buildings are sometimes called eco houses
Most conventional houses use furnaces to stay warm and air conditioners to keep cool Regular or conventional buildings use a lot of energy People need heaters or air conditioners for comfort Lights use energy too Some conventional buildings don’t have many windows so the lights are on a lot Building materials such as vinyl paint carpet and varnish can outgas toxic compounds This means that tiny amounts of poisonous vapors leak out of them These poisonous vapors are called VOCs volatile organic compounds People might not be able to smell the fumes But the fumes are still not healthy to breathe Some can even cause cancer 5
Those are serious problems but they can be avoided by building green There are many ways to go green Stores now sell healthier low-VOC or zero-VOC paints Houses can also be built with nontoxic materials such as adobe and straw bales In general natural materials are safer to use than man-made ones often called synthetics It can be harmful to breathe paint fumes 6
Adobe homes are suitable for hot dry climates Green homes start with good planning including where to put the house When possible a house in a cold climate should be built in a sunny spot and a house in a hot climate should be built in a shady spot Using shade is a natural way to keep a house cool in the summer 7
