Going Green

At the moment, there are few houses designed to be "green" from the ground up, and not many available for sale.  The real estate market, however, is jammed with an inventory of houses built from the 1940s through the present day.  These houses were constructed to varying grades made of materials with a vast range of efficiency.

In May of 2012, I became the new owner of one such property.  It is my new home, my investment, my responsibility, and one of the most outwardly visible statements to the world about my values--how I choose to live.

Can I start with an average house on an average street in an average town, and apply innovative methods and responsible materials to bring it closer to ideal--without sacrificing modern comforts?  This is my intention.

The goals include:

• Reduction of energy expenditure
• Improve efficiency of highest energy consumers
• Employ environmentally responsible and sustainable materials for all upgrades

Many guides already exist on this topic, and I will not attempt to re-write the book.  Instead, I want to provide--with practical example--ideas that people like myself can employ to improve their homes economically and ecologically.

Posts are tagged to indicate the type of task (plumbing, HVAC, etc.) the difficulty (easy, moderate, difficult, and hire-someone), and the relative cost (inexpensive, moderate, expensive, and call-the-bank).

The United States Energy Information Administration data from 2009 shows that the average household in Florida consumes 1120kwh per year.  For starters, I think we can beat that.