Sustainable
Technology and Energy Institute
Green Building: Materials & Technologies
Last updated May 23, 2002
Note: as a part of my involvement with the planning
of the Second
Neighborhood
(Song) of Ecovillage
at Ithaca (EVI), I have been working with other EVI members on locating
green building materials and techniques. Many thanks to the following
people who have been involved with the research: Jon Harrod, Joe Nolan,
Greg Pitts, Rob Champion, Laurie Drinkwater, Mike Carpenter, David Hessler,
and all the other members of Song who contributed. – Francis Vanek
Technologies and manufacturers/vendors shown here are those chosen
or researched by our project. For more general lists of green building
materials, you may wish to look at:
For additional information about other technologies and techniques being
used in the building of the Second Neighborhood, check out http://www.ecovillage.ithaca.ny.us/songfiles/greenbuild.html
Here is an alphabetical list of items, along with descriptions, vendor
names, and websites.
A-M N-Z
Compact fluorescent lightbulbs: 70-80% less electricity
consumption than standard incandescent bulbs. Light quality and compactness
of bulbs has improved greatly in recent years, thanks in part to a shift
from magnetic to electronic ballasts.
Composting toilets: use biodigestion to transform
harmful excrement into a harmless byproduct, requiring little or no water
for flushing. Models are either self-contained or else have a digester
separate from the bathroom (these typically require a small amount of flush
water).
Manufacturers:
Information:
Drain heat recovery device: Uses a heat exchanger to transfer
heat between waste water running down the drain and cold water running
up into a bath or other water faucet. Available from Jade Mountain
(www.jademountain.com) by going
to (http://www.jademountain.com/ecologyProducts/greywater/greyheat.html)
Manufacturer:
Grey water systems: reuse non-black wastewater (i.e. not
from the toilet), either for toilet flush water (a “cascade” system) or
for outdoor purposes such as watering a garden. For more information,
the titles “Create an Oasis With Grey Water” and “Builder's Grey Water
Guide” are available from the Rodale Institute (www.rodaleinstitute.org),
click on “RI Bookstore” and then look under permaculture books. A
range of off-the-shelf grey water systems is available from Jade
Mountain (http://www.jademountain.com/ecologyProducts/greywater/greycomplete.html).
Light tubes: similar idea to a skylight, but using a round
opening in the roof connected to a mirrorized tube to allow daylight to
enter the interior of the house and then be directed to an interior space
with inadequate day lighting (such as a hall or interior bathroom).
Manufacturers:
Materials exchange: website for posting and exchanging unwanted
building materials and fixtures for western New York region. Available
at www.recycle.net/matex/view.html
Photovoltaic panels: Convert sunlight into electrical
energy. Two options: 1) stand-alone system with batteries, or 2)
intertie system which sells excess electric production to the electric
grid, and then buys electricity when PV output does not meet electric demand.
Real
Goods (www.realgoods.com)
stocks Siemens, Unisolar, Kyocera, Evergreen, Astropower
brand PV panels.
Refrigerators: much improved in recent years so that there
is now a wide range in efficiency, with the most efficient “Energy Star”
models providing great energy savings, often for only modestly higher cost.
Many examples exist but here are two:
-
Mass produced efficient refrigerator: Whirlpool (www.whirlpool.com)(Select
refrigerators from the products menu, recommended models ET5WSEXKQ or ET8WTEXKQ)
-
Limited-production, ultra efficient refrigerator: Sun Frost
(www.sunfrost.com)(Search for models
RF12, RF16, or RF19)
Straw Bale Construction: Use straw bale in walls instead
of traditional wood and insulation combinations in order to build a natural,
well-insulated home. More information available from Sourcebook
Straw Bale (www.greenbuilder.com/sourcebook/strawbale.html).
A registry of existing straw bale houses is available at http://sbregistry.greenbuilder.com.
Structural Insulated Panels (aka SIPs): As the name implies,
these panels combine the structural and insulation function of the exterior
wall into a single unit. They both simplify the building process
and provide increased insulation for the same amount of embodied material,
since they reduce the “thermal bridging” effect that occurs in stud walls
with insulation.
Water filtration systems (countertop, undersink, or whole
house): reduce environmental health hazard by removing impurities from
your drinking water.
Wind Electric Conversion Systems: Turn wind energy into electricity
using a turbine typically mounted in line with the axle to which either
2 or 3 blades are attached. Real Goods (www.realgoods.com)
carries Windseeker, Air, Southwest, Whisper makes of wind
generator.
Windows (Energy efficient): Double-glazed, low-e windows
reduce thermal loss and facilitate passive solar design in cold climates.
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