Five Important Ideas for a Malibu Green Construction Project

If you are considering building a new house, incorporating eco-friendly elements will be better for the environment, and you and your family. Nowadays, there are so many options that you can incorporate in your Malibu green construction project, both inside and outside your home. Busch Design Build, Inc., your local Malibu contractor, will provide five green idea projects for you.

Five Important Ideas for a Malibu Green Construction Project

1. A Green Roof – Los Angeles suffers from Urban Heat Island Syndrome (UHI), according to Permanent Roof, which happens when land is covered by cement and concrete, which give off heat. Also, fumes from energy use and automobiles heat up the air, causing irregular weather patterns. Using a green roof will help with your carbon footprint. There are several options when choosing to install a Los Angeles green roof, according to Permanent Roof. A reflective, or white coat roof has a special coating that reflects the sun’s rays, preventing excessive heating. The coating lowers electricity bills because the roof heats less than usual, which results in less air conditioning use.

A garden roof consists of a garden on the rooftop. These types of roofs are popular in other parts of the world, like Europe, and are coming around to the USA. Garden roofs not only look pleasing to the eye, but they reduce the temperature of the roof, absorb carbon dioxide, and produce oxygen.

“Photovoltaic (PV) roofing systems involve solar cells and panels that channel sunlight and convert it into electricity, thereby producing energy savings,” the site claims. “California offers rebate programs for local businesses and residential homeowners interested in having PV systems installed on their roofs.”

2. Eco-Friendly Floors – While most traditional homes in the USA have carpets installed, they are not always the most healthy choice. Carpets trap dirt and dust, which can lead to you or your family member suffering from allergies. Plus, if you have a little one crawling around on the floor, you don’t want them to get that dirt in their mouth. Why not try an eco-friendly solution to your floors? Currently there are many choices to choose from, such as bamboo, hardwood and tile.

* Bamboo Floors –  This type of flooring is made from the bamboo plant from Asia. Bamboo flooring is known as the most durable flooring in the world. It lasts for many years, and its durability is similar to hardwood. A bamboo floor is also resistant to being destructed by insects, or moisture damage. Bamboo is eco-friendly because the bamboo plant grows much faster than traditional wood; “Bamboo grows like the weed it is: as much as a foot a day, reaching full height within six months and harvest strength in four years,” states MSN Real Estate. “A tree, by contrast, must be replanted and takes 20 to 120 years to mature to harvest.”

* Hardwood Floors – If you want to go the traditional route and install hardwood floors as part of your Malibu green construction project, then make sure to purchase those certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. They make sure that the wood that is used to make the floors is harvested responsibly. “Dozens of types of wood are produced in FSC-certified forests in which the trees are regenerated, biodiversity is conserved, and air and water quality are preserved. FSC-certified wood flooring comes in hundreds of different shades and styles,” according to Green America.

* Tile Floors – A great eco-friendly floor is made from tile; picking this choice will help preserve the trees needed to be cutdown for hardwood floors. Tile can be made from glass, ceramic, metal, or stone. These materials are durable, and make great green floors in Malibu. To go a step further in being eco-friendly, try to find recycled tile so you can reuse materials that were originally used for something else.

3. Water Saving Features – In our other blogs, Five Easy Steps to a Los Angeles Green Remodel, we spoke about the importance of installing water saving features in your house. Not only are they good for the environment, since they save water during every use, but they are also great for your wallet, since they save you money on your water bill. Examples of water saving features that you can install as part of your Malibu green construction project are high-efficient toilets that flush once for liquid waste and twice for solid waste. Toilets “use 26 percent of the water in your home,” according to How Stuff Works, so purchasing these water saving models will help.  Opt for low flow shower heads and faucets.

4. Programmable Thermostat – One of the most important features of your Malibu green construction project is also one of the smallest. Heating and cooling costs are the highest they have been in years, and installing a programmable thermostat in your home is an easy way to save money every month. This kind of thermostat allows you to set a a desired temperature, and have it automatically changed throughout the day. So, while you are at work, your house can be programmed to stay at 75 degrees, but an hour before you come home, it can change itself to a cool 68 degrees so you and your family can enjoy a pleasant home environment. A programmable thermostat can be found for as low as $40.

5. Insulation – Although you can’t see it, like other aspects of your Malibu green construction project, insulation will play a huge role in how comfortable you are in your house. A properly insulated home will keep cold air out in the winter and hot air out in the summer; in addition, insulation acts as a barrier to loud noise. You can choose from  fiberglass, foam and cellulose, and a Malibu contractor can install it in walls and the attic of your house.

Busch Design Build, Inc. is a Malibu based global design firm that has been providing architectural and landscape design services for over twenty years. If you would like to learn more about our green design services please contact us at your earliest convenience via phone or e-mail. We also offer a wide range of other green services, including: Malibu Green Remodeling, Malibu Chemical Sensitivity Construction, Malibu EcoTech Build, Malibu pH build, and Malibu Eco Construction.

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