Environment Magazine

Can Your Builder Offer You a Sustainable Home?

By Gfl

There was a time when a green home meant little more than green-hued walls and green shingles. Thankfully, those days are long gone. Now you can ask your realtor for an eco-friendly and sustainable green home without second thoughts. Adelaide has its selection of new and used green homes for sale. Even though the Australian housing market is experiencing some slack, the demand for sustainable housing is on the rise.

How to prepare for the home hunt

Are you hunting a green home? Then here are a few tips that can help you find green home, brought to you with the help of builders Adelaide:

1. Check the energy consumption

A real green home expends lesser energy than a typical house in Australia. The HVAC system works optimally, and the house retains cooler temperatures for extended periods during the summer months. Eco-friendly and sustainable homes usually have a unique coat on the windows that let in plenty of natural light but traps excess heat outside. They should also have efficiently engineered doors that do not let in drafts.

2. Purchase a home your family needs

Do not invest in a house that is too big for your family. Downsize or upsize as per your family’s needs, but always remember that maintaining a large house is costlier than taking care of a small one. Most of the transportable homes in Adelaide have low carbon footprints, and they have multiple layouts that can accommodate the needs of every family. Furnished sustainable homes that come with multi-functional furniture built from reclaimed wood and multi-utility spaces are the favourites of all realtors and buyers right now.

3. Be ready for a considerable expense

The sustainable, eco-friendly and durable homes are sometimes considerably more expensive as compared to the traditional homes. The recycled wood and sparingly steel infrastructure can cost quite a few thousand dollars more than an uptown apartment or a suburban house. The standard houses might be cheaper than sustainable homes, but they cost more in terms of energy bills, repairs, maintenance, and regular upkeep. Most eco-friendly houses generate energy bills that are almost one-third of a standard construction house of the same size.

4. What to do when you can’t buy a new home

An alternative to buying a completely sustainable eco-friendly home is building one part-by-part. If you already have a lovely home, but you are worried about the rising energy bills, then you can take a few steps to turn it into a green residence. Apart from revisiting and repairing the insulation on every floor, you should double check the windows and doors. The windows should have an e-coating that allows plenty of natural light but keeps the heating infrared radiations outside during the summer months. The doors should not have cracks underneath or on the sides. A small opening can let in a draft that can potentially reduce the room temperature by 2-degrees within 5 minutes in the winter months.

Whether you are buying a new sustainable home in Adelaide or transforming your old abode into one, you should know that you are doing your part in building a better tomorrow.


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