Sustainable Strategies: Building Components.

Building Envelope

            To achieve optimal performance, like zero emissions, of any building integrated elements need to work together.  There are many different energy efficient strategies to apply to the building envelope. One method is passive solar heating and cooling. This method provides heat to a building using the energy generated by the sunlight. There are some factors that may affect effective solar heating as near by topography, trees, and/or other buildings can get in the way of sunlight. So it is most effective to place the solar panels that trap the sunlight in areas of optimal sunlight like on south facing walls. Insulation is another strategy that can be used to reduce thermal exchanges and in return reduce the amount of energy consumed. Some sustainable materials that should be considered for insulation include straw bales, cotton or denim insulation or organic choices that are synthetic or natural.

Mechanical Systems

            The HVAC system is a crucial element to consider when a building is trying to achieve sustainability.  HVAC systems should focus on optimizing energy use and maintain healthy air quality. Heating systems fall under this category as they produce warmth by heating air water or steam or directly by radiation into the indoor environment of a building. Energy Star rated heating systems should be used. One sustainable heating system is a geothermal well heating system. This is a system that uses the air or ground to heat and cool a building. To warm a building heat is derived from the outside air or the ground where the geothermal well is embedded. To cool a building the heat pumps reverse the operation, as shown below.

Ventilation Systems

            It is also important to pay attention to ventilation systems to help improve the indoor air quality of a building and address the amount of energy consumed from cooling a building. I think it is important to emphasize on natural air flow and provide as much fresh air as possible and as much sunlight as possible into a building. This entails utilizing cross ventilation. Cross ventilation is an approach where you place windows across from each other so air can naturally flow through a building. Tall towers can also be used to help push air vertically and create even more airflow. This picture below expands the cross ventilation view also shows how air can be pushed to higher levels of a building.

Building Materials

            Building materials are important to consider when achieving sustainability into a home. Though the architects have the most control towards what materials the building with contain on the envelope, interior designers have a say in some of the carpentry. It is important to use as many recycled materials as possible including materials like reclaimed wood and wood composite materials. Alternatives to wood are plastics. Though plastics take a long time to degrade they can be sustainably harvested and therefor can be considered as a material to use. Some of these plastics include thermoset, thermoplastic and bio based plastics.

*Information received from:,Sustainable design for interior environments . (2nd ed.). Fairchild Books.www.greengaragedetroit.com http://thompsonyoung.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/Cross-Ventilation-and-Stack-Effect.jpg