Building a top of the line luxury home can become daunting without the proper understanding of the process and its finer details. Everything from the type of insulation to the brand of appliances needs to be decided upon by the homeowner and the builder. Fortunately, there are several energy efficient premium quality products you can use to get the most of your investment.
New homes, especially luxury homes, are more efficient than ever, and the prices for energy efficient technology and building materials have decreased as more people decide to build with them. Going green is truly a win-win situation.
Super Efficiency in Splendorous Lakeside Living
Take for example the Blackey Cove Estate in Moultonborough, NH. This 7,600 square foot custom lakeshore home uses wood and stone products that are natural to New Hampshire. The end result is a home that is as much a part of New Hampshire as Lake Winnipesaukee, which it breathtakingly overlooks.
Energy efficiency was a top priority when constructing this beautiful home, so Meridian Construction utilized several advanced, one-of-a-kind construction methods to make Blackey Cove Estate the most efficient home in the region. It starts with the home’s Intello membrane insulation. Highly adaptive, the temperature-sensitive membrane protects walls against condensation in winter by contracting, and facilitates from drying out in summer by expanding. Damage to walls from moisture and mold are greatly reduced, and the inside temperature remains stable.
Almost half of a home’s energy consumption goes toward heating and cooling. Therefore, being able to keep your home at a seasonally constant temperature year round can save energy conscious and construction-savvy owners thousands of dollars in energy bills.
Other innovative building techniques of the Blackey Cove Estate include double roof and wall systems entailing double inch and a half strapping in correlation with Roxul insulation in order to create a thermal barrier. Roxul is an advanced yet very effective stone wool insulation material. The use of ductless minisplit heating and cooling units also aids in providing the house with outstanding efficiency levels. Blower door testing of the Blackie’s Cove Estate yielded air tightness results very rarely witnessed in residential applications.
Today’s Innovative Heating and Cooling Systems
It is also important to consider what type of heating system you wish you install when building your dream house. The EPA ranks geothermal heating systems as the most energy efficient, environmentally clean, and cost effective space conditioning systems on the market. Geothermal systems use a pump to transport air between your home and the earth. In the winter, warm air underground is brought up into your home through forced air or radiant floor heating systems. The process is reversed in the summer, where warm air is pumped out of your home and transported underground to be cooled. The constant temperature of the earth makes geothermal units twice as efficient as traditional air conditioners or air-to-air heat pumps. They also require little maintenance, saving you from the hassle with costly repairs. Of course, not all building lots can support geothermal systems due to various underground conditions but they are becoming more popular wherever they are feasible.
Sustainability Meets Luxury in Fine Homebuilding
Once the floorplan and infrastructure of your house is set, the next step in the process is choosing appliances and lighting elements. You can make the most of your home’s electricity through products that are Energy Star compliant. These products are certified to use 10 to 50 percent less energy than “standard” appliances. Anything from refrigerators to clothes washers can be eligible for an Energy Star certification. Many people have shown a willingness to pay more for Energy Star certified products in order to save money in energy over the products’ lifetime.
Another growing trend in new home construction is the widespread use of LED lights inside and outside the house. LED light bulbs are superior to incandescent, fluorescent, and halogen bulbs in terms of longevity, energy consumption, and maintenance costs. They throw off a soft and comfortable yet bright light for better evening vision. They’ve become so prevalent, that the U.S. Department of Energy estimates that LEDs will save Americans up to 190 terrawatt hours of electricity per year by 2030.
More and more people are utilizing some degree of energy efficient technology or sustainable (green) building practice in their homes. One nationwide program, LEED, (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) has seen the number of homes it certifies double between 2011 and 2013. There was a time when people were reluctant to go green, due to high costs and inefficient technology. Today, it is possible to indulge in high quality building products and techniques to create the house of your dreams, as well as enjoy the peace of mind that comes from saving money on energy.
