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Chapter 11 Designing for Sustainability
Some designers are now using a technique
called solar harvesting. In one form of solar
harvesting, interior electric lights are fi tted with
light and motion sensors. When no one is in the
room, or when the natural daylight is suffi cient,
the sensors turn off the lights automatically.
Used with daylighting, this can be an excellent
way to reduce the amount of energy consumed
in a home.
Water Conservation and
Protection
Water is a somewhat renewable resource
in the sense that it constantly recycles itself
by evaporating from the Earth and then fall-
ing again as rain. However, Earth has only a
fi xed amount of water. As the human popula-
tion increases, and fresh water supplies become
more in demand, conserving and protecting
fresh water supplies becomes a priority.
There are many ways to design water
conservation into a home. For example, plan
to use only water-effi cient plumbing fi xtures
such as low-fl ow or ultra-low-fl ow toilets and
showerheads.
If the home will have an outdoor irrigation
system, plan for one that can use gray water.
Gray water is water that has been used in baths,
showers, clothes washers, and bathroom sinks.
It does not include wastewater from toilets or
from kitchen sinks or dishwashers—that water
is called black water and must be treated at a
sewage facility before reuse. Gray water has
been used successfully in many areas for irri-
gation purposes, greatly reducing the amount
of water used by a household. See Figure 11-13.
The reuse of gray water requires the separation
of gray water from black water, so this system
is best included as part of the overall, original
home design.
Operation and Maintenance
By incorporating a few additional low-cost
design ideas, you can help the homeowner live
more sustainably over the lifetime of the home.
For example, plan for ceiling fans in all of the liv-
ing spaces, such as the bedrooms, family room,
and living room. Running a ceiling fan costs a frac-
tion of what it costs to run a typical air conditioner.
Although ceiling fans do not cool the air, they stir
a breeze and greatly reduce the need for air condi-
tioning, which reduces energy consumption.
For all electrical appliances, including a tra-
ditional air conditioner, be sure the product has
earned the ENERGY STAR. See Figure 11-14.
Figure 11-12. Caulking around windows and
doors greatly reduces air leaks into and out of
the home. (LesPalenik/Shutterstock.com)
Figure 11-13. In a traditional home, water used
in the shower or bath fl ows down the drain
into the wastewater or sewage system. Gray
water irrigation systems reuse this water to
irrigate the landscaping around the home.
(Tiplyashin Anatoly/Shutterstock.com)