• Real-time rendering allows architects to analyze, process, and publish detailed 3D images and scenes instantly.
• Real-time renderings help design teams make informed decisions, saves time and resources, improves cost control, and betters clients’ understanding of a project.
• Enscape is a real-time rendering and virtual reality tool designed for architects that plugs directly into the modeling software a firm already uses.

Two-dimensional blueprints and three-dimensional models—both physical and digital—have long served architects well, but they aren’t always ideal for presenting design concepts to clients with a limited understanding of the technical aspects of the AEC industry.

As a result architects are increasingly turning to real-time rendering to better present their ideas through the creation of highly detailed, immersive, and interactive 3D representations.

Let’s explore the benefits of real-time renderings and more.

What is Real-Time Rendering?

Real-time rendering is a sub-field of computer graphics that lets the user render extremely detailed, immersive scenes extremely quickly and is used in everything from video games and film to architecture and design. Photo courtesy of Enscape

Real-time rendering, or real-time visualization, is a sub-field of computer graphics that is best described as the analyzing, processing, and publishing of data in real time. Real-time visualization allows detailed 3D images and animations to be rendered extremely quickly—under 33 milliseconds—and operates in a continuous feedback loop that responds to user input instantaneously. This is achieved through the efficient manipulation of key geometric data and expert replication of physical properties like texture, color, light, and shadow.

Technologically real-time rendering is nothing new; these renderings have been a staple in the video-game industry for decades and are key to immersive gaming experiences. Real-time rendering has also found a place in filmmaking as a visual-effects tool and has even helped spur advancements in virtual reality.

It is only fairly recently, however, that architects and engineers have begun using real-time rendering software in place of industry-standard pre-rendering programs to better present their ideas and designs to clients.

Pre-Rendering vs Real-Time Rendering

The most significant differences between pre- and real-time rendering are their speed and amount of interactivity. Pre-rendering refers to the creation of static images or videos in advance and saving them for further alteration. This method allows for the creation of a highly polished finished product but offers very little by way of interactivity and typically takes anywhere from minutes to hours to render.

Real-time rendering, on the other hand, allows the user to create highly interactive, easily manipulated 3D simulations that render in less than a second. Architects and their clients can then “walk through” spaces in real time and explore every single corner of a design as it would appear in context. “Real-time visualization has made the process of illustrating architectural designs easier and faster,” Dinnie Musilhat, part of the content team at Enscape, previously wrote for gb&dPRO. “It translates 3D models into something tangible and understandable for people with limited knowledge of technical architectural aspects.”

How Does Real-Time Rendering Work?

Real-time rendering is founded on what is referred to as the graphics rendering pipeline, a computer graphics framework that identifies the necessary steps for turning a three-dimensional scene or model into a two-dimensional representation on a screen. This pipeline can be divided into three core stages: application, geometry, and rasterization or ray tracing.

Application

Real-time rendering’s application stage prepares graphics data and produces rendering primitives for the following geometry stage. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

As the first stage in real-time rendering, the application stage is responsible for generating scenes, or 3D settings that are then drawn to a 2D display. Because this process is executed by software run by the CPU, the developer has full control over what happens during the application stage and can modify it to improve performance.

Common processing operations performed by the application stage include speed-up techniques, collision detection, animation and force feedback, as well as the handling of user input. This application stage is also responsible for preparing graphics data for the next stage by way of geometry morphing, animation of 3D models, animation via transforms, and texture animations.

The most important part of the application stage, however, is the production of rendering primitives—or the simplest geometric shapes the system can handle (e.g. lines, points, and triangles) and that might eventually end up on screen—based on scene information and feeding said primitives into the subsequent geometry stage.

Geometry

The geometry stage of real-time rendering is the most complex and is responsible for computing what to draw, how to draw it, and where to draw it. Image courtesy of Enscape

The second stage of real-time rendering, the geometry stage, is responsible for manipulating polygons and vertices to compute what, how, and where to draw. This stage encompasses multiple sub-stages: model and view transform, vertex shading, projection, clipping, and screen mapping.

Model & View Transform

Before they can be sent to the screen models must first be transformed into several different coordinate systems or spaces. Once a model has been created it is said to exist within its own model space, which essentially means it has yet to be transformed. Each model is then associated with its own model transform, a process that allows the model to be positioned and oriented.

During model transform the vertices and normals of the model are transformed, which in turn moves the model from its model coordinates to world space. All models exist in the same world space once they have been transformed with their respective model transforms and it is in this world space that the second stage of transformation—the view transform—happens.

View transform is applied to the camera—which also has a location and direction in world space—as well as the models themselves. The purpose of the view transform is to place the camera at an origin and aim it in the direction of the negative z-axis, with this new space referred to as the camera or eye space. Only those models within the eye space at any given point in time are rendered.

Vertex Shading

Vertex shading is the second geometry substage and is responsible for rendering the actual appearance of objects, including their material, texture, and shading. Of these, shading—or the effect of light on an object’s appearance—is arguably the most important to producing a realistic scene and is accomplished by using the material data stored at each vertex on a model to compute shading equations.

Most of these shading computations are performed during the geometry stage in world space, but some may be performed later on during the final rasterization or ray tracing stage. All vertex shading results—including vectors, colors, texture coordinates, et cetera—are then sent to the rasterization or ray tracing stage to be interpolated.

Projection

Once shading is complete real-time rendering programs perform projection—a process that transforms the view volume into a unit cube referred to as the canonical view volume. This sub-stage is ultimately responsible for turning three-dimensional objects into two-dimensional projections. Two types of projection methods are used in real-time rendering: orthographic and perspective.

Orthographic projections transform the rectangular view volume characteristic of orthographic viewing into the unit cube via a combination of scaling and translation. Using this method, parallel lines remain parallel even after the transformation.

Perspective projection, on the other hand, more closely mimics human sight by ensuring that, as the distance between the camera and model increases, the model appears to grow smaller and smaller—in this way, parallel lines may actually converge at the horizon. Rather than a rectangular box, the view volume of perspective viewing appears as a truncated pyramid with a rectangular base.

Clipping

After projection real-time rendering systems use the canonical view volume to determine which primitives need to be passed on to the next stage, as only those primitives that exist wholly or partially within the view volume need to be rendered. Primitives that are already entirely within the view volume are passed on as is, but partial primitives require clipping before moving on to the final rasterization or ray tracing stage.

Any vertices outside of the view volume, for example, must be clipped against the view volume, which requires the old vertices be replaced by new ones that are located at the intersection of their respective primitives and the view volume. This process is made relatively simple by the projection matrix from the previous stage, as it ensures all transformed primitives will be clipped against the unit cube in a consistent manner.

Screen Mapping

Only those clipped primitives are passed on to the screen mapping sub-stage. Screen mapping is responsible for converting the still-3D coordinates of clipped primitives into 2D coordinates. Each primitive’s x- and y-coordinates are transformed to form screen coordinates, with the z-coordinate being unaffected by the screen mapping process. Once mapped, these new coordinates are moved along to the rasterization or ray tracing stage.

Rasterization or Ray Tracing

Enscape uses ray tracing to better simulate reflections, soft shadows, and other optical effects in its real-time renders. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

The last stage of conventional real-time rendering is rasterization—a process that applies color to the graphics elements and turns them into pixels that are then displayed on screen. Rasterization is an object-based approach to rendering scenes, which means that all objects are painted with color ahead of time, after which point logic is applied to only show those pixels that are closest to the eye or camera.

There is, however, a more modern alternative to rasterization referred to as ray tracing, which colors each pixel before identifying them with objects. Ray tracing is capable of simulating a variety of optical effects—refraction, reflections, soft shadows, depth of field, etc.—with extreme accuracy, making for a more realistic and immersive final render. The downside of ray tracing is that it is slower than rasterization and typically requires a more advanced graphics card than what most firms already use.

Benefits of Real-Time Rendering in Architecture

Real-time renderings are an extremely useful tool in the modern architect’s toolkit. Here are some benefits.

Better Client Understanding

KeurK used real-time rendering and virtual reality to help their client—the European Medicines Agency—better understand the design of their new headquarters. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

Blueprints and 3D models have their place in architecture but they aren’t always the best tools for conveying information to clients who may not have the same technical understanding of the process. Size and scale, for instance, can be difficult to grasp when looking at a drawing or a static model on a screen, but real-time rendering remedies this by letting the client move freely through a to-scale representation of the space.

This is especially true if firms use real-time visualization in conjunction with VR technology, as it allows clients to physically walk through a 1:1 representation of the finished product and get an intimate feel for the space itself. When French architectural firm KeurK designed the new headquarters for the European Medicines Agency, it was this very same line of thinking that led them to use real-time rendering and VR to present their ideas to the client

“Using VR allowed us to make an impression. It helped us show small details and helped people who weren’t versed in construction understand it better,” Olivier Riatuté, founder of KeurK, previously told gb&dPRO. “For instance, we could show just how monumental the staircase would look in the atrium.” Using real-time rendering to better a client’s understanding of the design ultimately makes them more confident in both their personal and the team’s choices.

Collaboration & Informed Decision-Making

Highly detailed, immersive, and accurate simulations rendered in real time help facilitate informed decision making. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

Highly detailed, realistic, and immersive real-time renders also make it easier for design teams and their clients to communicate and make informed decisions regarding certain design considerations—like layout, placement of daylighting solutions, furniture ergonomics, et cetera—that may not be possible from a 2D blueprint or 3D model alone.

When Viewport Studio, an award-winning architecture and design studio based in London and Singapore, was tasked with designing Spaceport America—the world’s first purpose-built commercial spaceport—they used real-time rendering to help make essential design decisions. Real-time visualization of lighting conditions, for example, were used to evaluate the sunlight that would reflect from windows and monitors in the control room, leading to the design team choosing to implement curtains and opaque glass in the space.

Saves Time & Resources

Real-time rendering helps save projects time and resources. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

Perhaps the most significant benefit of real-time rendering is that it helps save time and project resources. “Real-time visualization tools save time and resources in two ways: reducing the resources needed to develop a design on the front end while reducing time lost to design changes on the back end,” Dan Monaghan, business leader for Enscape’s American market, previously wrote for gb&dPRO. “This is since it is quick and easy to make design changes, create visualizations, and incorporate client feedback.”

Improved Cost Control

Real-time visualization programs can help improve cost control by reducing communication and coordination issues, leading to fewer changes throughout the construction process. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

Using real-time rendering to save time and resources has the added benefit of improving a project’s overall cost control. “Architectural visualizations can be a key aid throughout the design process for resolving coordination issues across the various disciplines, resulting in designs that are more accurate and refined, ultimately leading to fewer changes in the construction process, where the budget impact is the greatest,” Roderick Bates, head of integrated practice at Enscape, previously wrote for gb&dPRO.

Challenges of Real-Time Rendering

Real-time rendering can be difficult to master and often comes with expensive equipment requirements. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

Real-time rendering can be incredibly beneficial to architects and engineers, but it isn’t without its challenges.

Learning Curve

While it’s true that some real-time rendering programs are more intuitive and user-friendly than others, the technology nevertheless comes with a learning curve that some may find daunting. This is especially true of standalone real-time rendering programs, as it requires the user to learn entirely new software that they may not have any prior experience working with.

Even real-time rendering plugins like Enscape that are compatible with most modeling and design applications come with new features that may take time for some to get used to. Effectively mastering the software can sometimes mean additional training.

Expensive System Requirements

Initial cost is often the main criticism of real-time rendering programs. Real-time rendering requires extremely powerful hardware and optimized hardware to run, which can be costly to purchase if a firm isn’t already using such equipment. Emerging cloud-based real-time rendering solutions may offer a more affordable solution by reducing these equipment costs, but still require firms to pay a subscription for the service.

Real-time rendering programs that use ray tracing rather than rasterization also require a more advanced graphics card—such as the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 900 series or AMD Radeon RX 400 series—than what most BIM software requires, further adding to equipment expenses.

A Leader in Real-Time Rendering

Enscape is a real-time rendering plugin designed with architects and designers in mind. Rendering courtesy of Enscape

Architects and other AEC professionals looking to employ real-time rendering in their projects have a myriad of choices to choose from when it comes to software, programs, and plugins—so many, in fact, that it can be difficult to parse out which will be the most beneficial. Fortunately there’s one real-time rendering program designed especially for architects: Enscape.

Enscape is a real-time rendering and virtual reality tool that plugs directly into the modeling software an architectural firm already uses. Enscape is compatible with some of the most popular BIM and CAD programs, including ArchiCAD, Revit, Rhinoceros, SketchUp, and Vectorworks.

Some features offered by Enscape include:

• Real-time walkthroughs
• Virtual reality integration
• Collaborative annotations
• Material library with 392 materials
• Fine-tuned material editor
• Expansive 3D asset library
• Atmospheric settings
• Composition and lighting tools
• Variety of export options

Enscape is currently used by a wide range of architectural and design firms around the world and has helped improve projects of all kinds. When Intelligent City, a technology-enabled housing company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, created Platforms for Life—a technology platform that helps design and build sustainable mid-to-high-rise mixed-use urban housing developments—they turned to Enscape to help clients visualize their projects in 3D.

“We were looking for a way to visualize the buildings quickly. If we couldn’t keep up the iterations of the generated designs, then we wouldn’t be able to visualize them properly for our clients. We needed something fast, and Enscape met our requirements,” Timo Tsui, Intelligent City’s computational design architect, previously told gb&dPRO.

All in all, Enscape is one of the best real-time rendering programs currently available to architects, greatly streamlining the visualization process and reducing the learning curve by easily integrating into a firm’s existing BIM or CAD software. To learn more about Enscape, visit their website here.

10 Green Plumbing Solutions in 2024

25 Sustainable Building Materials—Natural, Recycled, and More

The post What is Real-Time Rendering? appeared first on gb&d magazine.

• Sustainable plumbing aims to reduce a building’s overall environmental impact through a combination of eco-friendly materials and water- and energy-efficient fixtures.
• Using green plumbing solutions helps to conserve water, reduce waste, prevent water shortages, and lower a building’s operating costs.
• Some strategies—like rainwater-fed systems and integrated gray water recycling—force us to reconsider how we design and think about plumbing.

Many green building strategies focus on clean energy retrofits or energy-efficient upgrades, but there’s another crucial piece of building systems we must not ignore—their plumbing networks.

The need for sustainable plumbing solutions—and specifically those that prioritize water conservation—is obvious when one considers the increasing frequency and severity of both droughts and heat waves. By the year 2025 it’s estimated that water shortages arising from these conditions will affect over half of the world’s population, putting billions at risk of death by dehydration and heatstroke.

Fortunately there is much that can be done to improve plumbing infrastructure and facilitate conscientious water use in the built environment. In this article we’ll cover the basics of sustainable plumbing, its benefits, and explore 10 popular sustainable plumbing solutions.

What is Sustainable Plumbing?

Photo courtesy of Oatey Co.

Sustainable plumbing describes those plumbing systems that use a combination of green building materials and improved technology to reduce a building’s overall environmental impact, chiefly by way of water conservation, reduced energy waste, and responsible material use.

Most sustainable plumbing solutions focus on improving the water and energy efficiency of conventional plumbing system components, while others—such as rainwater-fed systems and integrated gray water recycling—force us to reconsider how we think about plumbing design in general.

Plumbing System Anatomy

Before we start exploring sustainable plumbing solutions, let’s explore the basic anatomy of a conventional plumbing system, of which typically include the following elements:

• Pipes. Responsible for the movement of all water—both fresh and wastewater—throughout a building’s plumbing system.
• Valves. Control and regulate the flow of water in a plumbing system; valves can be shut off in the event of a leak or a burst pipe.
• Fixtures. The physical components that actually dispense or drain water (e.g. faucets, showerheads, drains).
• Water Heater. Responsible for heating the water that is then delivered to various fixtures and appliances.
• Water Meter. Measures the amount of water consumed by a building; used to calculate utility bills and monitor water efficiency.
• Water Pressure Regulator. A device used to regulate a plumbing system’s water pressure and prevent damage caused by high water pressure; typically located near the main water supply.
• Drainage System. Drainage systems remove wastewater from a building’s main plumbing system and carry it to a sewer or septic system; wastewater is transported through pipes while vents serve to equalize the drainage system’s air pressure.
• Sewer/Septic System. As the final component in a building’s plumbing, a sewer system is responsible for removing wastewater from the premises and transporting it via a network of pipes to a municipal treatment facility; a septic system, on the other hand, removes the wastewater and treats it on-site before releasing it back into the environment.

Some plumbing systems will also include a backflow preventer, which serves to prevent contaminated water from flowing back into the system.

Benefits of Sustainable Plumbing

Sustainable plumbing solutions help conserve water, reduce waste, prevent water shortages, and lower operating costs. Photo courtesy of Oatey Co.

Making sustainable plumbing decisions is not only beneficial from an environmental standpoint but also helps property owners save money by reducing their utility expenses.

Conserves Water & Reduces Waste

As a nation the United States consumes 322 billion gallons of water each day, with roughly 47 billion gallons going towards the operation of buildings. The vast majority of that water, however, is improperly managed, resulting in significant water waste. Iit’s estimated that approximately 25% of all water that enters residential and commercial buildings is wasted.

Sustainable plumbing solutions like water-efficient fixtures and appliances help to conserve water by using less to begin with, while other strategies—such as recirculating hot water pumps and gray water recycling—reuse water that would otherwise be wasted.

Helps Prevent Water Shortages

When implemented at scale sustainable plumbing solutions that conserve water ultimately reduce demand on reservoirs and aquifers, helping to prevent water shortages during times of drought. This is especially important considering the world’s ongoing and ever-worsening water crisis—spurred on by increasing planetary temperatures and shifting climatic conditions—has put one fourth of the globe’s largest cities under water stress, stretching water-related infrastructure to its limit.

Approximately 80% of all state water managers in the US expect to have water shortages in the next decade, according to the EPA, with many states in the southwest already experiencing water shortages during the hottest months of the year. Sustainable plumbing solutions help prevent excessive water waste and ensure that communities are able to meet their water needs throughout the year.

Lower Operating Costs

Another benefit of sustainable plumbing is that it reduces a building’s operating costs. The average US household spends $876 annually on water and pays upwards of $1,740 in electric bills, with roughly 18% of that going towards water heating. All in all, water-related expenses cost the average household over $1,000 each year.

Sustainable plumbing solutions help lower these expenses by either reducing a building’s overall water use requirements (e.g. low-flow fixtures and pressure-reducing valves), reducing energy consumption by using less hot water (e.g. tankless water heaters and recirculating hot water pumps), or some combination of the two.

10 Sustainable Plumbing Solutions

Now that we’ve a better understanding of sustainable plumbing and its importance, let’s take a look at 10 popular sustainable plumbing solutions.

1. Low-Flow Toilets

The type of toilet you choose contributes greatly to a project’s overall water efficiency. Photo courtesy of Niagara

Estimates suggest that toilets account for roughly 30% of a household’s daily water consumption, according to the EPA. To help your household conserve water consider replacing your toilet with a low-flow alternative, such as one produced by Niagara, a leading manufacturer of high-performance bathroom fixtures.

In compliance with plumbing standards set by the US government, low-flow toilets use no more than 1.6 gallons of water to flush. If your home was constructed after 1994, chances are you already have one installed. If you live in an older house with a toilet that was constructed before 1994, however, you may be using up to 7 gallons of water per flush, meaning an upgrade is in order.

Of course, not all low-flow toilets are as effective as others. If you’re serious about saving water, select a highly efficient toilet that consumes no more than 1.28 gallons per flush. Ultra-efficient low-flow toilets can be recognized by their WaterSense certification, which denotes that they have successfully completed stringent independent laboratory testing with regard to performance and efficiency.

2. High-Efficiency Faucets

According to the EPA the standard flow rate of most faucets is 2.2 gallons per minute (GPM), which is generally more water than most sinks require—and while sink faucets typically consume the least water out of all a building’s plumbing fixtures, there is still room for improvement in terms of their water usage.

High-efficiency WaterSense-certified faucets, for example, reduce a sink’s water flow by at least 30%, bumping the flow rate down to 1.5 GPM or lower without sacrificing performance (adequate water pressure) in the process. Faucet efficiency can also be improved through the addition of a WaterSense-labeled aerator, a type of screw-on faucet accessory that mixes air into the flow of water, thereby reducing the amount that actually passes through the tap.

3. Low-Flow Showerheads

A low-flow showerhead uses 2 gallons of water or less per minute, helping to save thousands of gallons each year. Photo courtesy of Oatey Co.

Standard shower heads typically use 2.5 gallons of water per minute, but you may be consuming far more depending on the kind of shower system you have installed (such as one with several showerheads).

Showerheads with the WaterSense low-flow seal of approval, however, use no more than 2 gallons of water per minute. Once installed it’s estimated that these fixtures can help household’s save 2,700 gallons annually. Furthermore, a low-flow showerhead will help reduce demand on your water heater, saving you money on energy bills.

4. PEX Pipes

Because of its flexibility, PEX can bend around corners with each change of direction instead of having to add a connection. This reduces materials inside a building, while also improving water flow and reducing pressure loss for better system efficiencies and performance. Photo courtesy of Uponor

Sustainable plumbing solutions typically focus on reducing water usage and improving energy efficiency, but it’s also important to make smart material choices when manufacturing plumbing system components themselves. This is especially true of the pipes used to move water throughout a building, as they make up the majority of the plumbing system in terms of actual surface area.

Today PVC and copper are the most common pipe materials used in residential and commercial plumbing systems, respectively, but they are by no means the most sustainable. A 2008 life cycle inventory research project conducted by the Plastic Pipe and Fittings Association found that cross-linked polyethylene, or PEX, pipes have a lower lifetime impact than ABS, CPVC, PVC, polyethylene, and copper pipes.

PEX piping is extremely durable, is rust- and corrosion-resistant, and has an operational lifespan of approximately 100 years, greatly reducing the need for costly resource-intensive repairs and replacement work. PEX pipes are also incredibly flexible, a trait that allows them to bend around corners without the aid of connector pieces. “This reduces materials inside a building while also improving water flow and reducing pressure loss for better system efficiency and performance,” Devin Abellon, business development manager for engineering services at Uponor North America, previously wrote for gb&dPRO.

Uponor is one of the leading providers of PEX and uses sustainable manufacturing methods to reduce their overall environmental impact. Approximately 99% of the scrap material generated by the company is recycled and repurposed as filler for other products or is transformed via a clean incineration process to extract stored energy for heating purposes.

5. Drainage Systems

QuickDrain ShowerLine linear shower drain is seen here in a beautiful curbless shower. Photo courtesy of Oatey

Drain fixtures and systems are another area where conscientious material choices can help improve plumbing system sustainability. QuickDrain USA—a brand innovation under Oatey Co.—for example, uses 100% post-consumer recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in all of their shower drain systems. “This environmentally friendly option is fabricated from recycled, plastic water and soda bottles,” Marlee Gannon, director of wholesale product and channel at Oatey, previously wrote for gb&d.

PET has a high strength and toughness as well as good heat and abrasion resistance, making it an ideal material for the conditions—that is, prolonged exposure to high temperatures and regular compression—shower drainage systems face on a day-to-day basis.

6. Tankless Water Heater

Switching to a tankless water heater eliminates the wait for hot water and helps reduce both water and energy waste. Photo courtesy of Oatey

A tankless water heater does not heat and store water in a tank but instead heats water as it is needed, either by way of an electric heating element or natural gas burner. Because they do not constantly heat water, tankless water heaters don’t generate the same standby energy losses that conventional storage water heaters do and are therefore much more energy-efficient.

The true efficiency of a tankless water heater depends on how much hot water a building uses in a day. A smaller household, for instance, or one that uses less than 41 gallons of hot water a day, can expect to use 24 to 34% less energy by switching to a tankless water heater. Larger households that use closer to 86 gallons of hot water a day, on the other hand, may only use 8 to 14% less energy—which still helps save money and energy in the long run.

This efficiency does, however, come at the trade off of a lower flow rate, which can make it difficult to supply hot water to multiple fixtures at once. Fortunately this can be mitigated by installing two or more tankless water heaters or by installing separate tankless heaters for certain appliances that require a large amount of hot water.

7. Recirculating Hot-Water Pump

Recirculating hot-water pumps help reduce water waste by circulating cooled, static water that would otherwise be wasted in the wait for hot water to the farthest fixture before recirculating it back to the water heater via the cool-water line. Photo courtesy of Oatey

In most non-commercial buildings with one-way plumbing, hot water is pumped from a hot water heater and delivered to the appropriate fixture. Once that fixture is shut off, any excess hot water already in the pipes stays in the pipes and cools down over time, resulting in a warm-up period—rather than instant hot water—the next time the fixture is turned on. All of this cool, static water is then wasted in the wait for hot water.

Installing a recirculating hot-water pump eliminates this wait time and prevents water/energy waste by circulating water through the cooled pipes from the heater to the farthest fixture before recirculating said water back to the heater via the cool-water line. Such a system delivers hot water instantly, eliminates static water waste, and uses less energy than operating a 25-watt light bulb.

8. Pressure-Reducing Valves

Pressure-reducing valves automatically reduce the high unregulated pressure of incoming water to a lower, constant pressure that is better suited to residential and commercial water distribution. Most regional plumbing codes require that pressure-reducing valves be installed whenever the city main’s water pressure exceeds 80 psi, but they are recommended regardless of local regulations as they help to reduce water consumption and save energy.

In reducing water pressure pressure-reducing valves lower the rate of flow, resulting in less water being used to accomplish the same tasks. Lowering incoming water pressure by as little as 10 to 20 psi can save the average building thousands of gallons each year, drastically reducing operation costs. A lower rate of flow also means less energy is required to effectively heat said water, further reducing a building’s utility expenses.

Another benefit of pressure-reducing valves is that they help protect pipes and plumbing fittings from being damaged by high water pressure. Most plumbing fixtures and appliances are only designed to handle water pressure between 50 to 80 psi, but some municipal water lines pump water as high as 150 psi. Installing pressure-reducing valves greatly lowers the risk of leaks or breakage and increases the operational lifespan of plumbing system components, resulting in lower plumbing maintenance/repair costs over the system’s life-cycle.

9. Rainwater Harvesting

The Rain Harvest Home project is made up of three buildings that each collect rainwater to integrate with an above- and below-ground reservoir system. Photo by Jaime Navarro

Most modern buildings source their water from one of two places: a well or a municipal water treatment facility. There is, however, a third option that has seen a steady resurgence over the last few decades: the age-old practice of rainwater harvesting.

There exists several different types of integrated rainwater harvesting-to-plumbing systems, including:

• Gravity-only. Functions purely through gravity and require no energy to operate, as there is no pump involved; in order for a gravity-only system to work, however, rainwater can only be collected in containers that are located below gutter-level and above the outlets they feed into.
• Indirect-gravity. Operates similarly to gravity-only systems, but relies on a pump to first transfer the collected water to a high-level header tank, where it is then allowed to free-flow by way of gravity alone; indirect gravity systems are more versatile than gravity-only systems, as the main rainwater collection container does not need to be in an elevated position.
• Direct-pumped. Uses pumps to transfer collected rainwater from an underground storage tank directly to the point of use; direct-pumped systems may use either a submersible or suction pump, with the former being the most efficient and most popular.
• Indirect-pumped. Works similarly to indirect-gravity systems in that water is pumped from the storage tank to an internal secondary tank, but uses a booster pump instead of gravity to pressurize the water and send it through pipes; as a result, indirect-pumped systems can be located at any level in a building.

It is possible for rainwater harvesting to fulfill all of a building’s plumbing needs—as evidenced by the Rain Harvest Home in Temascaltepec, Mexico or the Urban Frontier House in Billings, Montana—but it is much more common for rainwater to replace 40 to 50% of a building’s mains water usage. This not only saves the building owner a large sum in utilities but also helps mitigate stormwater runoff and prevent sewer system overflow.

One of the most efficient uses for harvested rainwater is filling and flushing toilet tanks, as these systems typically only require a basic sediment filter—rather than full treatment or purification—before the water can be used. Rainwater-to-flush systems are incredibly simple in design and pump rainwater directly from a storage tank to the toilets themselves. There are also more involved rainwater plumbing systems that filter, treat, and purify collected water to supply a building’s faucets, showers, and appliances with potable water.

10. Gray Water Recycling

The Urban Frontier House in Billings, Montana recycles all of its gray water for use in toilets, the dishwasher, washing machine, and irrigation. Photo by Clark Marten

Wastewater from commercial and residential buildings is divided into two categories: gray water (wastewater from bathroom sinks, showers, and certain appliances) and blackwater (wastewater from toilets). Most homes and buildings dispose of their wastewater via a municipal sewer system or, in more rural areas, a septic tank that drains into a leach field. Gray water, however, can easily be recycled on-site to serve a myriad of landscaping purposes and may even be reintegrated into a building’s plumbing system.

One of the most common uses for recycled gray water is landscape irrigation, in which case the water is filtered through a multi-stage filtration system to remove hair, lint, and other impurities before being diverted directly to landscaping features or into sprinklers and/or drip-line irrigation hoses. Recycled gray water can also be reused to flush toilets, a common practice in commercial buildings or multi-family residential buildings with minimal irrigation requirements. Gray water-to-flush systems are, however, much more complex and require regular maintenance in order to work properly.

Blackwater can also be treated and recycled onsite but requires more advanced, intensive systems than gray water recycling. Most municipalities and zoning boards, however, have very strict regulations for—or simply do not allow—onsite blackwater treatment and recycling, as it carries a higher risk of pathogen transmission that may cause sickness or harm to the environment.

What is Real-Time Rendering?

25 Sustainable Building Materials—Natural, Recycled, and More

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• Sustainable capitalism aims to balance long-term economic growth with human and environmental health.
• Proposed pathways include protecting natural capital, adopting circular economy principles, and increasing government regulations.
• Critics argue capitalism is inherently at odds with sustainability and cannot support long-term economic growth while protecting the environment.

Over the last three decades it has become increasingly clear that the extraction and consumption of fossil fuels is the largest contributing factor to climate change, with 100 companies responsible for more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed adoption of a sustainable-capitalist model is often touted by supporters as the solution to the impending climate crisis, thought to be capable of addressing the environmental problems of its predecessor while still facilitating long-term economic growth.

Here we covers the basics of the sustainable capitalist ideology, its proposed pathways to implementation, and criticisms.

Capitalism vs Sustainable Capitalism

Sustainable capitalism aims to rectify the wrongs of capitalism and balance environmental health with long-term economic growth. Photo courtesy of ICC, Getty Images

Before we can explore sustainable capitalism, we need to understand how capitalism functions as an economic model. Capitalism is best understood as an economic system built on the idea of privatized ownership of the means of production and the operation of these means for profit, characterized by wage labor, voluntary exchange, competitive markets, private property, and capital accumulation.

Modern capitalism is generally recognized as having emerged from 16th century agrarianism and the mercantilist practices conducted by European countries between the 16th and 18th centuries. It became the dominant mode of production following the Industrial Revolution and the rapid globalization of the 19th and 20th centuries.

In short, capitalism is all about, well, capital—how to manage it, how to generate more, and how to keep generating it. Economist Milton Friedman theorizes that it is, in fact, the social responsibility of businesses in a capitalist society to increase their profits by any legal means possible, regardless of how ethical, moral, or detrimental to the environment those methods may be. It is this idea of infinite growth and unscrupulous profitability that has historically put capitalism at odds with sustainability.

What is Sustainable Capitalism?

In 2022 Kingspan harvested 26.1 million liters of rainwater, progressing toward a target of 100 million liters of rainwater annually harvested by 2030. The IKON Global Innovation Center—Kingspan’s headquarters in Ireland, uses nearly every Kingspan product manufactured as a sort of showcase of possibility. Photo courtesy of Kingspan Light + Air

Sustainable capitalism—first proposed and defined by Al Gore and David Blood in their 2011 “A Manifesto for Sustainable Capitalism”—suggests businesses can be both profitable and sustainable by investing in environmentally friendly technologies and adopting ecologically responsible methods of operation.

At a base level sustainable capital can be defined as a conceptual economic model that seeks to implement and practice the core tenets of capitalism in a manner that supports long-term economic growth without jeopardizing human or planetary health in the process. This is done primarily by limiting environmental externalities by integrating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into the market’s risk-management strategies.

Gore and Blood identify the following economic measures and policy changes as inherent to the adoption of sustainable capitalism:

Proposed Pathways to Sustainable Capitalism

Here are a few proposed pathways for achieving sustainable capitalism at a meaningful scale.

Identify and incorporate risks from stranded assets.
Mandate integrated reporting.
End the default practice of issuing quarterly earnings guidance.
Align compensation structures with long-term sustainable performance.
Incentivize long-term investing with loyalty-driven securities.
Reinforce sustainability as a fiduciary issue.
Create advisory services for sustainable asset management.
Expand the range and depth of sustainable investment products.
Reconsider the appropriate definition for growth beyond GDP.
Integrate sustainability into business education at all levels.

Protection of Natural Capital

Sustainable capitalism treats natural resources and ecosystems like forests as capital rather than points of extraction, making their preservation a matter a fiduciary responsibility. Photo courtesy of Western Forest Products

As an economic model capitalism prioritizes capital and the protection of said capital above all else—at least, in theory. Financial, economic, and manufactured capital, for example, are all well-protected under capitalist doctrine, but the same cannot be said for natural capital.

Natural capital encompasses air, water, soil, living organisms, and all other organic ecosystem yields that form the backbone of society as we know it. Rather than protect these resources, modern capitalism often exploits them for immediate profit, resulting in over-extraction and pollution of crucial ecological systems—exemplified by the estimate that humans currently consume roughly 1.7 Earth’s worth of resources each year.

Under sustainable capitalism natural capital is managed as any other form of capital. Supporters of the sustainable-capitalist model argue that by treating natural resources and the stewardship of those resources as a form of capital, it incentives their protection. In this manner preserving the natural world becomes not just a moral responsibility, but a fiduciary responsibility—one that is crucial to a business’ risk-management planning.

Incentivize & Invest in Renewable Energy

Investing in renewable energy is central to a successful sustainable-capitalist society. Photo courtesy of Otovo

Carbon and other GHG emissions must be curbed as soon as possible to prevent climate catastrophe. Sustainable capitalism recognizes this and aims to encourage investment in renewable energy technologies while ensuring a just transition away from fossil fuels that creates jobs and provides new opportunities for employment.

Governments can incentivize decarbonization by offering subsidies for renewable energy, offering renewable energy tax credits, and creating clean energy assistance programs that make things like solar, wind, and geothermal power more accessible to businesses, regardless of their size.

Adoption of a Circular Economy

Amsterdam aims to achieve a full circular economy by 2050, at which point everything that the city produces will either be reused, repurposed, or recycled. Photo by Alan Jensen

Capitalism has historically utilized a linear “take, make, and throw away” model of production and consumption, one that puts profit above all else, even at the expense of increased waste generation. “Excessive waste is the unfortunate byproduct of a consumer culture that grew during a time when the world did not understand the perils of overconsumption,” Richard Skorpenske, head of sustainability and public affairs at Covestro, previously wrote for gb&dPRO. “Through a combination of market forces, design trends, and consumer demand, an ‘extract, use, discard’ cycle became the dominant mode of manufacturing and consumption.”

A circular economy, on the other hand, seeks to create a closed-loop system of production and consumption—that is, it emphasizes reusing, refurbishing, repairing, leasing, and recycling existing materials and products for as long as is feasible in order to greatly reduce resource extraction and waste generation.

In theory a sustainable capitalist society is not at odds with a circular economic model, as the recycling and reuse of resources, materials, and products can be made profitable through a variety of means. Recycling centers, for example, make money by selling recycled materials to companies and industries that need them, who can then manufacture and sell recycled-content products for a profit.

Internalize Environmental Externalities

Sustainable capitalism looks to end the externalization of pollution through practices like emissions trading. Photo by Kendall McCaugherty

One of the problems sustainable capitalism aims to remedy is traditional capitalism’s externalization of pollution, a practice that has allowed the market to drastically minimize environmental accountability with regard to the hazardous byproducts it generates in the pursuit of profit. In economics an externality refers to an indirect cost or benefit to an uninvolved third party that comes about as an effect of other parties’ activities.

Air pollution caused by fossil-fuel based energy production, for example, is considered a negative externality, as the cost of air pollution on society is not paid for by the manufacturers or users of that energy to the rest of society as a whole. All consumers in this example suffer as a result of said pollution, but none are compensated for it.

Rather than treat pollution as an acceptable byproduct of industrial production, sustainable capitalism looks to internalize the cost of negative environmental externalities. This is seen in practices like emissions trading, which forces companies to factor the costs of pollution into their expenses and sets a quota limit for the amount of emissions they can produce. Entities that exceed their quota are then forced to purchase the right to emit more, while entities with fewer emissions sell the right to emit more carbon to other entities.

Because carbon trading directly impacts the profitability of companies with high emissions, it theoretically incentivizes the adoption of cost-effective carbon reduction strategies and encourages investment in green energy solutions.

Regulated ESG Reporting

Under sustainable capitalism, mandated ESG reporting would make it easier for investors and stakeholders to support businesses that prioritize sustainability. Photo courtesy of Geneva Rock

Ending environmental externalities requires the ability to effectively identify and measure an entity’s emissions. This can be achieved through the mandated and regulated reporting of ESG factors, or those non-financial-related performance indicators used to evaluate the overall social impact and sustainability of a company.

Requiring companies to consistently and comprehensively report on their ESG performance—especially with regard to their resource use and emissions—is considered integral to the successful implementation of sustainable capitalism as it helps facilitate sustainable investment by improving transparency.

When ESG reports are made public and accessible, it makes it easier for investors, stakeholders, and financial institutions to support businesses that prioritize sustainability and whose actions align with sustainable development goals. This in turn incentivizes the adoption of green business practices and contributes to the development of a more sustainable global economy.

Extended Producer Responsibility Policies

Extended producer responsibility policies applied to fossil fuels would require the fossil fuel industry pursue carbon capture/storage solutions, such as those offered by Carbfix. Photo courtesy of Carbfix

Extended producer responsibility (EPR) is similar to the internalizing of environmental externalities in that it passes the responsibility of pollution and other environmental costs onto the polluters themselves—and not just for the pollution incurred as a result of manufacturing, but all pollution generated throughout a product’s life cycle.

The EPR concept was first defined by Thomas Lindhqvist in a 1992 report to the Swedish Ministry of the Environment and is best described as an environmental protection strategy that makes a product manufacturer responsible for the product’s entire life cycle, including its collection, recycling, and final disposal. Applying EPR policies to fossil fuels, for example, would require the fossil fuel industry pursue carbon capture/storage and nature-based solutions.

Expanding and mandating EPR laws can also help prevent greenwashing—or the process by which corporations use sustainability rhetoric in their marketing to deceive consumers without making a concerted effort to reduce their environmental impact—by instating stricter substantiation requirements and requiring greater transparency of business operations.

Is Sustainable Capitalism Possible?

Johnson Controls, a leading producer of efficient fire, HVAC, and security systems, practices sustainability by investing in green energy. Photo courtesy of Johnson Controls

If capitalism and sustainability are not inherently at odds, there is no reason some form of sustainable capitalism can’t exist, provided that, as outlined previously, x,y, and z conditions were met, such and such regulations were put in place, and all entities—both producers and consumers—do their part.

Supporters of sustainable capitalism will tell you such an economic model is realistic and entirely possible to implement successfully, but there are still some who are doubtful.

Criticisms of Sustainable Capitalism

Most critics of sustainable capitalism believe that modern capitalism is inherently at odds with sustainability. Image courtesy of Covestro

Sustainable capitalism (like capitalism itself, or any other economic model for that matter) is not without its critics. Most of these criticisms are founded on the belief that sustainable capitalism is, fundamentally, an oxymoron, and that capitalist growth is inherently unsustainable—a sentiment even John Fullerton of the Capital Institute shares.

These critics believe capitalism simply cannot be practiced in a manner that supports exponential economic growth while also protecting the environment, as modern capitalism is not designed for cooperation, conservation, or other sustainable practices. Critics suggest a systemic overhaul or replacement of the current model is required to achieve meaningful change, with proposed alternatives spanning a range of political ideologies.

There are also supporters of capitalism who argue the increased government regulation inherent to sustainable capitalism is counter to the very concept that makes capitalism so popular in the first place—that is, a largely unregulated, free-market economy controlled by companies and corporations rather than a central governing body.

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• Light pollution is defined as the presence of excessive, misdirected, or inappropriate artificial lighting.
• Light pollution manifests primarily in the form of either glare, clutter, light trespass, or sky glow.
• Nighttime light pollution obscures the sky, contributes significantly to energy waste, disrupts wildlife, and negatively impacts human health.

Anyone who has ever looked at a picture of Earth at night can tell you that light pollution is a global problem. Large splotches of concentrated, intense light illuminate huge swaths of North America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, while only the most remote places enjoy total darkness.

Unfortunately light pollution is rarely treated as the serious issue it is, largely because most people wrongly assume that it does not have as significant or as severe an impact on human and environmental health as air or water pollution.

Here we take an in-depth look at light pollution and its causes, the problems that stem from excess light production and exposure, and a few of the most effective methods for reducing light pollution.

What is Light Pollution?

Photo courtesy of Pixabay

Light pollution is an extremely prevalent type of manmade environmental pollution described as the presence of unwanted, inappropriate, misdirected, or excessive artificial lighting. It is estimated that the rate of light pollution is increasing at two times the rate of population growth, with approximately 83% of all humans—and 99% of all Americans—experiencing light-polluted night skies, according to DarkSky International.

Light pollution generally falls into one of four categories or types:

• Glare. Excessive brightness that causes visual discomfort and may pose a safety hazard (e.g. bright headlights while driving).
• Clutter. Extremely bright, excessive, and confusing groupings of multiple light sources (such as those found in cities and other dense urban areas).
• Light trespass. Any light that falls where it is not needed or intended (e.g. street lights that cast light upward).
• Sky glow. The phenomenon by which the night sky over cities, towns, and other inhabited areas appears to “glow” as a result of excessive glare, clutter, and light trespass.

Like all pollution light pollution is considered to be a side effect of industrial civilization and arose out of the rapid electrification of the early 1900s. Despite concerns regarding the effects of light pollution arising as early as the late 19th century, light pollution has only worsened in the years since—so much so that it is estimated that roughly two-thirds of Earth’s population have never seen a truly natural night sky.

What Causes Light Pollution?

It may be obvious that, well, light is the root cause of light pollution, but certain types of artificial lighting are more harmful than others.

Streetlights & Parking Lots

Street lights are responsible for roughly 20% of all light pollution. Photo courtesy of GGA+

With more than 4 million miles of roads in the US alone, streetlights account for a significant portion of light pollution. Estimated percentages have wavered significantly over the years, but a recent study suggests streetlights are responsible for approximately 20% of all light pollution.

Illuminated parking lots also contribute to light pollution, with many keeping their lights on all throughout the night—even when they’re empty.

Electronic Messaging Centers

Electronic messaging centers, or EMCs, are another major source of urban light pollution. Many modern electronic billboards are close to 10 times brighter at night than traditionally lit billboards—and because EMCs cannot be shielded without impeding their base function, they contribute significantly to light trespass and urban sky glow.

Residential, Landscaping & Other Outdoor Lights

It’s estimated that outdoor residential lights emit roughly 15 million tons of carbon dioxide per year. Photo by Jaime Navarro

Porch lights, flood lights, and other outdoor residential lights are rarely designed to limit light trespass and are estimated to emit approximately 15 million tons of carbon dioxide per year. In a similar vein, landscaping lights—such as those used to illuminate pathways, driveways, pools, stairs, et cetera—often rely on daylight sensors to turn on and off, meaning they stay on all night even when no one is around.

Other outdoor lights—be they illuminated signs/billboards, inground lights, post lights, et cetera—that do not feature proper shielding also contribute to light pollution by casting a portion of their light upwards instead of directly where it’s needed.

Greenhouses

Perhaps the most unexpected cause of light pollution, large industrial greenhouses account for a significant amount of light trespass and often contribute to sky glow in otherwise low-light areas.

Because industrial greenhouses are a relatively new phenomenon, most governments do not have regulations in place to limit the amount of light they can produce. This allows operators of large-scale greenhouses to keep their lights on for all or most of the night—often with little to no legal consequences—something many do to maximize crop yields and minimize grow times.

Stadium Lighting

Outdoor stadiums often employ extremely bright, high-intensity spotlights that worsen light pollution and contribute to urban sky glow. Photo courtesy of Covestro

Most outdoor stadiums, fields, and sports centers—even non-professional ones—are equipped with extremely high-intensity spotlights that are essentially designed to replace the sun once night falls. These lights do an excellent job at illuminating the field of play for both athletes and spectators but are often improperly shielded and so contribute to increased light pollution in the form of light trespass and glare.

Because of their high positioning and the relative proximity of many outdoor recreational facilities to parks and other green spaces, stadium lights are a prime contender for nearby habitat disruption.

Satellites

Another surprising source of light pollution is orbital satellites, which reflect light back to Earth—both during their operational lifespans and once they inevitably die, break up into small debris fragments, and join the cloud of “space junk” orbiting the planet.

A research study by the Slovak Academy of Sciences and Comenius University in Slovakia that was subsequently published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters found that satellites and other Earth-orbiting objects are responsible for brightening the night sky by at least 10% over natural light levels.

Interior Lighting

Buildings that keep all or most of their interior lights on at night are a major source of light pollution. Photos by Greg Benson

While the vast majority of light pollution is caused by outdoor light sources, a not-insignificant amount comes in the form of light trespass from interior lighting. Many commercial buildings, for example, keep all or a portion of their lights on throughout the night—typically justified as a safety precaution—with some of that light spilling out through large windows.

A number of buildings, like hospitals, operate on a 24-hour basis and require interior lights to be on throughout the night to provide essential services.

What’s the Problem With Light Pollution?

Like noise pollution, light pollution is often considered to be one of the more trivial forms of environmental pollution, one without significant detrimental effects. And while it’s true that light pollution doesn’t pose the same immediate health hazards as, say, air or water pollution, it is problematic for a number of reasons.

Obscures the Night Sky

Extreme light pollution prevents a large portion of the population from being able to see more than a handful of stars at night. Rendering courtesy of Hennebery Eddy Architects

Light pollution’s most obvious and immediate impact is that it obscures the night sky—and while the average person may not spend much time looking up at the stars, the work of astronomers is depends on being able to view the night sky unobstructed. Of course, there’s also something to be said for the average person’s ability to look up at the night sky and see stars without issue, as such an act is one the majority of humans throughout history have had the privilege of experiencing.

Evidence suggests stargazing is beneficial for one’s mental health, as it helps to increase attention span, reduces feelings of stress and anxiety, and fosters a sense of cosmic awe—which can lead to reduced feelings of confinement and a greater sense of well-being.

Energy Waste & Carbon Emissions

Street lights illuminate the space above them as well as below. Photo by Chase Daniel

On average outdoor lighting uses roughly 120 terawatt-hours of energy per year in the US, with most of that going toward illuminating streets and parking lots. According to estimates by DarkSky International, 30% of that light is wasted as a result of light trespass, costing the US approximately $3.3 billion dollars each year and producing roughly 21 million tons of carbon dioxide annually.

When you factor in other countries’ contributions to electric light waste and their subsequent emissions, it becomes apparent that light pollution is, in fact, a major contributor to anthropogenic climate change.

Disruption of Wildlife & Ecosystem Health

Trees that receive more artificial light as a result of nighttime light pollution are tricked into believing days are longer than they actually are, resulting in delayed dormancy during the fall and early emergence in the winter—both of which put them at higher risk of frost damage. Rendering courtesy of JZA Architecture

Perhaps the most distressing aspect of light pollution, however, is its detrimental impact on plant and animal life. For billions of years all life on Earth has relied on—and evolved alongside—the predictable day-night cycle, so much so that it is encoded in the very DNA of both plants and animals. Many species depend on this predictable rhythm of day and night to tell them when to sleep, when to hunt or forage, and when to reproduce.

Artificial light pollution has been shown to negatively impact various animal species in the following ways:

• Sleep-wake patterns. Artificial light is known to interrupt and unbalance the circadian rhythm of many animals, impacting a range of behaviors and biological processes; a German study on city-dwelling blackbirds, for example, found that light pollution and traffic noise caused them to become active as much as five hours earlier than birds in natural areas.
• Reproduction rates. Studies observing the impact of artificial light on wetland habitats have observed declining reproduction rates in frogs and toads, whose nightly croaking—an integral component of the mating process—is disrupted by excessive light.
• Migration patterns. Certain species of animals—such as sea turtles and some birds—that use moonlight as a guide during migration are often thrown off-course and die as a result of light pollution.
• Population numbers. Billions of nocturnal insects drawn to artificial light sources are instantly killed upon contact with these lights each night, drastically reducing their population numbers—a problem considering many birds, bats, amphibians, and other animals depend on these insects as a primary food source.

Light pollution is also known to have a detrimental effect on plant life. It’s no secret that the vast majority of plant species need light—be it sunlight or a strong enough electric light—to produce food via photosynthesis, but even weak artificial light can affect a plant’s biological processes. Potential disruptions stemming from light pollution include:

• Increased leaf size. Plants that grow near street lights tend to have larger leaves than normal, increasing their number of stomatal pores and causing these pores to remain open for much longer than plants growing under conventional unlit night conditions; this makes the plant significantly more susceptible to drought and air pollution.
• Delayed dormancy. Deciduous trees that grow close to street lights are tricked into believing that days are longer than they actually are and typically hold onto their leaves longer than trees growing under natural conditions, which makes them more susceptible to ice damage.
• Early emergence. Artificial light can also cause plants that depend on day length to time events—such as budding and flowering—to start these processes earlier than normal, putting them at higher risk for frost damage.
• Reduced biodiversity. Some plant species respond well to excess artificial light and as a result produce more biomass, send out more offshoots, and produce more seeds than normal, crowding out other species and reducing ecosystem biodiversity as a whole.

All in all, light pollution—like any other type of pollution—has a myriad of negative effects on plant and animal life and is partially responsible for the accelerated extinction rates observed within the past century.

Negative Impact on Human Health

Natural sunlight is integral to maintaining a healthy body, as it helps dictate circadian rhythm. “By exposing your body to daylight throughout the day, your healthy human circadian rhythm will have a significant role in regulating your sleep-wake cycle and have a positive impact on your eating habits and digestion, body temperature, hormone release, and other important bodily functions,” Neall Digert, vice president of innovation and market development at Kingspan Light + Air, wrote in a previous gb&dPRO article.

Light pollution, however, negatively impacts human health by disrupting the body’s circadian rhythm. This is largely due to the fact that melatonin—the hormone responsible for managing the sleep-wake cycle and synchronizing circadian rhythms—is almost exclusively released when it is dark. Exposure to light (particularly blue light) during nighttime hours impairs the pineal gland’s ability to secrete melatonin, which can in turn cause insomnia, lead to the development of anxiety and mood disorders, lower body temperature, and elevate the estrogen/progesterone ratio.

Recent scientific studies have even shown a possible connection between low melatonin levels and certain cancers, as severe melatonin deficiency can lead to suppression of the immune system.

How to Reduce Light Pollution

Photo courtesy of Archasol

Fortunately, light pollution is one of the very few forms of pollution that is almost entirely reversible. The following methods comprise the most effective strategies for reducing light pollution.

Turn Off Unnecessary Lights

Photo courtesy of Archasol

When it comes to reducing light pollution, the most obvious answer—turning off unnecessary lights—is also the simplest one. If a light doesn’t absolutely need to be on, it shouldn’t be.

Increase Awareness

While not the end-all-be-all of light pollution mitigation, increasing public awareness as to the causes and effects of light pollution is nevertheless an important step. Organizations like the International Dark Sky Association (IDA), for example, have made it their mission to take back the night sky by educating the public about light pollution, bringing awareness to the actionable steps one can take to reduce their own light emissions.

The IDA even certifies parks, reserves, and other places that have taken measures to preserve the dark night sky, recognizing their commitment to reducing light pollution at the source. Newport State Park in Washington and the Central Idaho Dark Sky Reserve in Idaho were the first places in the US to receive the IDA’s dark sky reserve designation.

Similar to the IDA, the National Park Service also considers preserving the night sky a priority, with many national parks hosting stargazing events to raise awareness as to how light pollution affects our health and the environment.

Design Better Light Fixtures

Photo courtesy of Archatrak

Some lights are necessary, but that doesn’t mean they can’t do a better job at reducing light pollution. Many outdoor light fixtures waste a significant amount of the light they produce by shining it in directions (namely upward) that don’t need to be illuminated.

“If you have an acorn-type fixture lighting a street, half of the energy consumed is shining upward, not going toward the task,” Pete Strasser, technical director at the International Dark Sky Association, told gb&d in a previous interview. “Why spend half a streetlight bill doing something it’s not supposed to do? A streetlight should light the street, not the undersides of airplanes.”

Designing and installing better light fixtures—that is, fixtures that shine light downward and feature shields to prevent unnecessary illumination—can drastically reduce light trespass and sky glow in both rural and urban areas. Full cutoff light fixtures are best at reducing light pollution, as they significantly reduce the chance for light to escape above the horizontal plane while also reducing the effects of glare.

Switch to Warm-Colored LEDs & Low Pressure Sodium Lights

Light pollution can also be reduced by adjusting the types of light sources we use. Most astronomers, for example, request urban areas switch to aluminum gallium indium phosphide LEDs or low-pressure sodium lights, as the principal wavelength they emit is relatively easy to work around or filter out entirely.

Both types emit a warm yellow or amber light that has a significantly lower impact on sky glow than traditional LEDs or metal halide lights, which are much whiter in comparison. When paired with proper shielding, these lights contribute very little to night sky light pollution.

Install Timed or Motion-Sensing Lights

Photo courtesy of Archatrak

Some lights that stay lit all night—such as street lights and security lights—don’t need to provide constant illumination, although they do need to be able to turn on at a moment’s notice. Motion/occupancy sensors can be extremely beneficial in reducing light pollution by only triggering lights when a vehicle or person is present.

Archasol is a trading division of Archatrak and leading supplier of solar-powered urban light products. Their SolarStreet light pole uses an infrared motion sensor to detect when a vehicle is approaching and temporarily raises the brightness of its LED lights before reverting back to lower light conditions after 10 seconds.

Alternatively, lights may be designed to operate on a timer to ensure they only turn on during periods of regular, anticipated traffic, occupation, et cetera. Timers are generally considered to be less effective at reducing light pollution than motion or occupancy sensors but are still a significant improvement over constant illumination

Keep Blinds & Curtains Closed

Residential light pollution can be kept to a minimum simply by keeping blinds and curtains closed during nighttime hours when interior lights are in use. Sufficient window coverings also have the additional benefit of preventing exterior light pollution from entering when occupants are asleep, which helps maintain a healthy circadian rhythm. This isn’t to say that every single window in the country needs to be covered with full black-out curtains, but reducing light loss from homes and apartments is a crucial step in mitigating light pollution.

Consult Lighting Designers

Photo courtesy of Archasol

To ensure new construction and development projects do not contribute as much to nighttime light pollution as they have in the past, developers should consult with professional lighting designers to take care of their lighting needs.

“You can have a well-lighted place that’s not dark but that’s also without any light pollution. It just takes the skill of a lighting designer—one of the least utilized experts in the field, they’re half engineer and half artist,” Strasser says. “They’re very careful with where they place lights. You know it’s going to be well done and certainly won’t pollute as much as someone putting in a lowest-bid installation of floodlights.”

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• Indoor air is frequently polluted by residential combustion, the circulation of small particulate matter, and VOC off-gassing.
• One of the most effective ways to improve indoor air quality is by investing in a HEPA air purifier.
• Exhaust fans, regular HVAC filter replacement, dehumidifiers, and routine cleaning can all help improve indoor air quality.

Clean air is something many of us take for granted. But is the air you’re breathing actually clean? Studies conducted by the EPA suggest indoor air can contain two to five times more pollutants than outdoor air—a serious issue given that the average American spends 90% of their time inside.

Poor indoor air quality costs the US economy close to $10 billion annually, either in the form of reduced worker productivity, sick days, or any of the other detrimental impacts arising from indoor pollution, according to the Indoor Air Hygiene Institute (IAHI).

Let’s explore some of the most common causes of interior air pollution and ways to improve indoor air quality (IAQ).

What Causes Indoor Air Pollution?

All Going Street Commons homes feature open floor plans, modern, Energy Star-certified appliances, abundant natural lighting, and building systems and finishes to help ensure healthy indoor air quality. Photo by Jillian Lancaster

Before we get into the methodology of how to improve indoor air quality, let’s talk about what causes indoor air pollution in the first place, as this helps us better understand why certain methods are more effective than others.

Some of the most common causes of indoor air pollution include:

Particulate Matter, Allergens & Mold

Particulate matter is sort of a catch-all term for the microscopic particles of solid or liquid matter suspended in the air. When referring to indoor air pollution, particulate matter typically encompasses dust, dirt, smoke, soot, and pollen, all of which can irritate the eyes, nose, and throat. Very fine particulate matter is even more detrimental, as it can penetrate the deepest parts of the lung and even enter the bloodstream.

In a similar vein, allergens—which includes pollen and dust as well as dust mites, pet dander, and mold—are also common indoor air pollutants that cause respiratory upset in occupants, albeit at varying levels of severity. Of these allergens, mold (and by extension, mildew), is perhaps the most universally damaging and can cause coughing, sneezing, wheezing, watery eyes, difficulty breathing, as well as other symptoms, even in people who do not suffer from allergies or existing respiratory conditions.

Volatile Organic Compounds

Volatile organic compounds, or VOCs, are chemicals that possess a high vapor pressure at room temperature and off-gas molecules into the surrounding air over time. Exposure to VOCs can cause eye, nose, and throat irritation, as well as nausea, dizziness, headaches, and difficulty breathing.

When present in high concentrations or for long periods of time, VOCs can cause or exacerbate respiratory illnesses, damage the central nervous system, and even cause certain cancers.

Residential Combustion

Indoor air also becomes polluted by way of residential combustion, or the burning of various substances in the home, particularly fuel. Two-thirds of US households burn some sort of fuel—be it wood, natural gas, propane, heating oil, etcetera—to heat their home and water, cook their food, or dry their clothes. At the micro level residential combustion also includes such activities as burning candles or incense and smoking.

Residential combustion produces harmful emissions—most notably carbon monoxide but also benzene, nitrogen dioxide, and others—that negatively impact both human and environmental health.

Radon & Carbon Monoxide

While it doesn’t affect all households, radon—a naturally occurring radioactive gas—can be a serious detriment to respiratory health when present. An odorless, colorless, tasteless gas, radon is naturally released from the earth and normally dissipates soon after, leaving zero negative impact on an area’s overall air quality.

Radon becomes a problem when enclosed structures are built atop sites where the gas is present, as it can enter buildings through foundations, basement floors, cracks in walls, etcetera and build up until it reaches dangerous levels. Long-term exposure to radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the United States.

Similarly carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas that isn’t found in high concentrations in every single building, but all buildings that rely on some form of fuel combustion for operating purposes are at risk of carbon monoxide pollution. Exposure to carbon monoxide can cause dizziness, fatigue, headaches, chest and muscle pain, shortness of breath, amongst other symptoms—and long-term exposure can even result in death.

15 Ways to Improve Indoor Air Quality

There are a variety of both low-cost and moderately expensive ways in which indoor air pollution can be addressed.

Here are 15 ways to improve the indoor air quality of your home or office.

1. Purchase a HEPA Air Purifier

Photo by Matthew Millman

One of the single most effective ways to improve indoor air quality is to invest in a high-quality, portable air purifier that uses a high efficiency particulate absorbing (HEPA) filter. HEPA filters have a MERV rating of at least 17 and are able to remove over 99% of particulates measuring 0.3 microns and larger from the air.

Air purifiers that use a HEPA filter are capable of capturing pollen, dust, dirt, moisture, as well as some bacteria, viruses, and submicron liquid aerosols greater than 0.3 microns in size. Particles smaller than 0.3 microns may still be captured by a HEPA filter via the process of diffusion, albeit with less efficacy.

Air purifiers are available in a range of operating capacities, with some designed to purify the air in a single room and others able to purify even a 3,000-square-foot home. Be sure to follow manufacturer recommendations with regard to how often the filter needs to be changed.

2. Invest in a Purifier that Neutralizes Pathogens

ActivePure purifiers transform ambient humidity into ActivePure molecules that neutralize pathogens, fungi, mold, bacteria, pollen, and VOCs. Photo courtesy of ActivePure

HEPA air purifiers are an excellent means of improving indoor air quality, but they aren’t infallible, either—especially when it comes to reducing the spread of airborne pathogens, which typically fall in the 0.1 to 0.2 micron range. To prevent the spread of mold, germs, and other disease-causing microorganisms, invest in an ActivePure purification unit.

ActivePure uses technology that was originally developed in conjunction with NASA as a means of recreating the natural photolysis process—that is, the decomposition of molecules by the action of light—indoors. “ActivePure works against the [molecule’s] outer coats punching holes in the protective shell and inactivates the pathogen in the same way sunlight does, enabling it to work against the whole spectrum of pathogens,” Dr. Deborah Birx, chief medical and science advisor at ActivePure and former White House Coronavirus Task Force coordinator, previously told gb&d.

In practice this technology transforms ambient humidity in indoor environments into ActivePure molecules that then circulate through the indoor space, neutralizing bacteria, fungi, mold, pollen, pathogens, and VOCs. Once switched on the ActivePure device fills a space with ActivePure molecules in seconds, removing harmful pollutants from the air without the need for chemicals or additional ventilation and using minimal energy.

3. Use Low-VOC Products

Valspar’s Signature paint is one of this brand’s low- and no-VOC offerings. Photo courtesy of Valspar

Using low-VOC products can help improve air quality and occupant health in the long run. Many household products emit VOCs, including paint, carpeting, cleaning agents, wood preservatives used in furniture, and even some hobby supplies.

Fortunately there are many low-VOC alternatives for most products, in which the amount of VOCs they emit is considered safe by the EPA. Paint, for example, is one of the largest and most common sources of VOCs in buildings. Many companies, like Valspar, offer low-VOC paint products. Non-flat paints are considered low-VOC if they contain fewer than 100 grams of VOCs per liter, while flat paints are deemed low-VOC if they contain fewer than 50 grams per liter.

Chemical cleaning agents are another common source of VOCs. Replacing strong, synthetic cleaners with non-toxic, natural cleaners that are low in VOCs can help improve indoor air quality and prevent the headaches, dizziness, eye and throat irritation, and vision problems associated with exposure to VOCs.

4. Open Your Windows

Sharp House was designed to be as economical as possible in construction, with exposed cast-in-place concrete and large glass exposures to the north and south to allow for solar gain and cross ventilation. Photo courtesy of Marc Thorpe Design

Indoor air often contains more pollutants than outdoor air, which means opening your windows—even for just 10 minutes a day—can help improve indoor air quality by allowing fresh air to replace stale air, removing or diluting airborne pollutants to a safe level. This is the core concept behind cross ventilation, or the process by which windows on either side of a building are opened to allow prevailing winds to enter, circulate throughout the interior, and then exit out the other side.

That said, opening your windows is not recommended if you live somewhere with poor air quality, like a dense urban center or near a busy roadway, nor is it wise to open windows on days where code orange or code red air quality alerts have been issued. Doing so will worsen indoor air quality and put occupants at a greater risk for developing respiratory problems.

5. Install & Use a Range Hood

The range hood over this stove helps remove indoor air pollutants produced during the cooking process. Photo by Nat Rea

Cooking is a common cause of indoor air pollution—one that produces everything from odors and steam to smoke and other combustion byproducts. Both electric and gas stoves emit varying levels of carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide during their operation.

Installing a high-performance, energy-efficient range hood—which is really just a type of exhaust fan—over the stove and using it while cooking is the most effective way to remove these pollutants from the air. When switched on a range hood draws in cooking-related pollutants and then exhausts them outside through a vent.

6. Vacuum & Dust Regularly

Central Vacuum Systems like those of BEAM make it easier than ever to clear the air. Photo courtesy of BEAM

Particulate matter is the most common category of pollutant found indoors and manifests primarily as dust. Most residential dust is a mixture of dead skin cells, dust mites, pollen, soil particles, hair, clothing fibers, microplastics, and other microscopic particles—all of which can irritate the respiratory system when inhaled.

Dust naturally accumulates over time, but some surfaces attract and hold onto dust better than others; carpeted floors and rugs, for example, easily collect dust and re-release small particulates into the air each time someone sets foot on them. Regular vacuuming and periodic deep-cleaning of carpets and rugs can help prevent dust buildup, as can regularly wiping down hard surfaces with a damp microfiber cloth.

Air ducts can also accumulate dust, dirt, dander, and even mold, reducing the efficiency and quality of interior air circulation, which is why the National Air Duct Cleaners Association recommends having a professional clean out air duct systems every few years.

7. Install an HVAC UV-C Lamp

The Charlotte of the Upper West Side housing and retail development in Manhattan is one of the first residential buildings in New York to UV-C light throughout its mechanical ventilation systems. Photo by Joshua McHugh

Installing an HVAC UV-C lamp is another way to prevent airborne viruses, fungi, bacteria, and other illness-causing microorganisms from circulating throughout an indoor space. Ultraviolet, or UV, light has gained popularity as a disinfectant, especially in the wake of the SARS-CoV-2 global pandemic.

“The advantages of disinfecting lighting are it is environmentally friendly, rapidly kills anti-microbials within seconds, and does not create any resistance,” Dianne Dunnell, director of interior design at Margulies Perruzzi, previously wrote for gb&dPRO.

Germicidal UV light is categorized by various intensities, with UV-C light being the strongest, emitting radiation at a level between 185 and 254 nm. UV-C lamps break down the DNA/RNA of germs, destroy the nucleic acid in bacteria, and functionally prevent cell replication in other microbes, rendering them harmless. Because direct exposure to UV-C light is harmful to humans, UV-C lamps are best installed in HVAC systems where they can sterilize the air before it is circulated throughout a building.

8. Invest in a Dehumidifier

Inside the Indiana Street House, designed by Studio 804. Photo by Gaffer Photography

High humidity levels in an interior space can negatively impact air quality as a result of excess moisture in the air. Eliminating humidity altogether isn’t ideal as some ambient moisture is needed to prevent nosebleeds, coughing, and dry skin, but too much moisture can exacerbate asthma, allergies, and other respiratory conditions, as well as lead to mold and mildew growth. When partnered with high temperatures, excessive humidity can also increase VOC off-gassing, which is why relative humidity levels should be kept between 30 and 50%, according to the EPA.

If you live in an exceptionally humid region or are dealing with moisture problems beyond your control, investing in a dehumidifier can help bring indoor humidity levels to that recommended level. Dehumidifiers work by drawing air in through a fan, passing said air over condenser coils to cool it down, contracting it, and then blowing warmer, dryer air back into the room.

Portable dehumidifiers collect the leftover condensation in a drawer that must be periodically emptied, while fixed dehumidifiers typically empty the leftover condensation through a hose leading outdoors. When choosing a dehumidifier, take care to consider just how much moisture it will need to contend with on a daily basis to ensure that it will operate effectively, as different models perform at different levels.

9. Change HVAC Filters Regularly

HEPA and ULPA filters are able to remove at least 99.97% of sub-2.5-micron particles. Photo courtesy of Filtration Group-HVAC

Another easy way to improve and maintain indoor air quality is to routinely change HVAC system air filters. Most HVAC companies and air filter manufacturers recommend changing your HVAC unit’s air filter every 30 to 90 days, but very few people actually adhere to this schedule, resulting in excessive filter buildup that ultimately weakens the filter’s ability to trap small particulate matter.

Changing your HVAC filters at the manufacturer’s recommended intervals is an incredibly simple, low-cost way to improve indoor air quality and ultimately helps your HVAC system run more efficiently. It’s also a good idea to use high-efficiency filters in your HVAC system, with most experts recommending filters with at least a MERV 13 rating.

10. Keep Indoor Burning to a Minimum

Fireplaces, gas stoves, and other fuel-burning appliances or systems are a common source of indoor air pollution. Photo courtesy of The Industrialist

Indoor burning, or residential combustion, removes oxygen from the air and replaces it with gasses and particles like carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and other harmful compounds. When inhaled in high concentrations and/or for long periods of time, the airborne byproducts of residential combustion activities can lead to the development of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.

Keeping these activities—e.g. lighting candles or incense, smoking, using the fireplace, gas stoves, or any other fuel-burning systems—to a minimum, or eliminating them altogether, will help improve indoor air quality.

Reducing indoor burning may not be as feasible in buildings that rely on a furnace for their heating purposes, but steps can be taken to decrease the amount of indoor pollutants they emit. Using MERV 13 rated furnace filters, for example, will help trap at least 85% of all particles sized 1.0 micron and larger—and at least 50% of particles in the 0.3 to 1.0 micron range—without restricting airflow. Changing these filters every three to six months will help ensure efficient operation.

11. Seal Leaks & Gaps

Photo courtesy of Aeroseal

Leaks and gaps in a building’s envelope are a major source of energy waste, but also allow moisture and particulates like dust and pollen to enter, adding to interior air pollution. Locating and sealing up these areas of intrusion—such as around windows and doors, in attics and basements, around outlets and plumbing, et cetera—can significantly increase indoor air quality by reducing the risk of hidden mold growth while also reducing stress on existing ventilation systems.

Aeroseal offers comprehensive air sealing solutions for existing buildings that are both convenient and non-invasive. “Aeroseal employs a fog-like aerosol substance that, when introduced into ductwork and pressurized, effectively seals leaks from the inside without the need for external interventions,” Bob Swilik, vice president of product strategy at Aeroseal, told gb&d in a previous interview.

12. Install & Use Exhaust Fans

Using exhaust fans while bathing or showering can help remove excess moisture and prevent mold and mildew growth. Photo courtesy of Oatey

An easy way to avoid mold and mildew growth in high-moisture areas—bathrooms, for example—is to install and use an exhaust fan. Most residential homes already have exhaust fans inside their bathroom(s), which serve to expel humid air produced when bathing or showering.

In order to ensure maximum moisture removal, the American Lung Association recommends running exhaust fans for 30 to 45 minutes after bathing. Installing a new exhaust fan or replacing an old fan with an energy-efficient alternative—such as those bearing the ENERGY STAR label—will not only help improve indoor air quality, but will also help reduce energy consumption as well.

13. Test for Radon

The View Plus air quality monitor includes a built-in display and sensors for radon, particulate matter (PM), carbon dioxide (CO2), humidity, temp, airborne chemicals (VOCs), and air pressure. Photo courtesy of Airthings

As previously mentioned, radon is a rarer—but no less serious—source of indoor air pollution that can have severe health implications if left unchecked. If you’re worried about the possibility of being exposed to radon without knowing it, you can order a low-cost radon test kit from the American Lung Association to verify whether radon is present or not.

If the test fails to detect radon, you don’t need to worry about contracting radon poisoning—but should the test show that radon is present, however, you’ll want to look into having a radon mitigation system installed. There’s no way to get rid of the gas entirely, but a properly-installed radon mitigation system will lower the amount of radon to EPA acceptable levels (below 4.0 pCi/L) and reduce the chance of developing radon poisoning to near zero.

Airthings carries an all-in-one product called the View Plus which features a built-in display and sensors for measuring radon levels, as well as carbon dioxide, VOCs, air pressure, humidity, temperature, and particulate matter.

14. Install & Maintain Carbon Monoxide Detectors

While you may not think about them as such, carbon monoxide detectors are just as much a means of maintaining indoor air quality as they are means of ensuring occupant safety. Like radon, carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that, if inhaled in large amounts or for a prolonged period of time, can result in carbon monoxide poisoning that may lead to severe injury or even death.

Carbon monoxide is produced as a result of incomplete combustion and can accumulate in buildings as a result of poorly ventilated or incorrectly installed appliances—namely stoves and hot water heaters—or due to poorly ventilated fireplaces and other fuel-burning systems. Installing carbon monoxide detectors and keeping them in proper working order is one of the simplest ways to verify whether CO is present in large quantities, after which steps may be taken to remedy the issue.

15. Incorporate Plant Life

Plants can help improve indoor air quality by producing oxygen and raising a room’s relative humidity. Photo courtesy of Ambius

Properly implemented vegetation can also help improve indoor air quality. This is largely due to plants’ ability to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen as well as their ability to raise the relative humidity of a space.

“In addition to enhancing moods, reducing stress and fatigue, and improving one’s overall well-being, a high number of larger plants that are actively growing can help raise the relative humidity level in certain environments,” Matthew Kostelnick, senior horticulturist for Ambius, previously told gb&d. “By increasing the relative humidity level, plants can have a relaxing effect on people, reduce dust, and remove allergy-inducing particles. Specifically, larger plants that are actively growing—like dracaenas, palms, ficus, ferns, et cetera—can help raise humidity levels and help with air quality due to a high level of metabolism and photosynthesis.”

Plants can be integrated into interior spaces via pots or using more involved solutions like living walls, like those offered by Ambius. Ambius is a global leader in providing innovative indoor vegetation solutions, especially when it comes to vertical planting surfaces and living walls.

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• Passive design includes buildings with extremely airtight envelopes that prevent infiltration of outside air.
• Solar orientation, insulation, and high-performance windows all add up to meet Passive House standards.
• Passive House–certified homes use an estimated 80% less energy for heating and cooling than conventional buildings.

A natural breeze, operable windows, airtight enclosure—these are just a few things to consider when looking for passive design strategies for any project.

Passive House Institute US (PHIUS) defines a “passive” building as being designed and built in accordance with five building-science principles. Passive buildings must have proper solar orientation, optimal insulation, high-performance windows and doors, an airtight enclosure, and balanced ventilation.

Passive House–certified homes use 80% less energy for heating and cooling than conventional buildings and are significantly healthier and more comfortable than traditionally built homes.

These are just a handful of passive design strategies design teams may consider in their next project.

1. Emphasize Cross Ventilation

Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects designed Nike Icon Studios LA. Photo by Iwan Baan

Lorcan O’Herlihy Architects designed Nike Icon Studios LA as a space where artistry meets efficiency.

The interiors are focused on passive design with an emphasis on cross ventilation.

The architects took advantage of existing operable windows and skylights and bifold exterior doors to promote natural ventilation throughout.

Sharp House was designed to be as economical as possible in construction, with exposed cast-in-place concrete and large glass exposures to the north and south to allow for solar gain and cross ventilation. Photo courtesy of Marc Thorpe Design

There are two distinct types of wind-driven ventilation: cross and single-sided. Buildings using cross ventilation are oriented to allow air to enter through an opening (usually a window), flow unobstructed through the interior space, and then exit through an opening on the building’s opposite side.

Cross ventilation works because of the differences in pressure between the windward (high pressure) and leeward (low pressure) sides of a building. Whenever possible the windward wall should be positioned perpendicular to the direction of a region’s prevailing summer winds in order to make the most effective use of cross ventilation.

2. Keep Spaces Open

The system for the house’s exposed steel framing was also inspired by simple metal structures on local horse ranches. Photo by Lance Gerber

Inside the Cowboy Modern Desert Retreat in Pioneertown, Jeremy Levine Design kept the main living space free of walls and any other barriers to allow wind to passively ventilate the house.

The design team had three main goals for this project: Capture natural breezes, frame the views so every room has a slightly different vantage point, and orient the house to minimize solar heat gain.

3. Rethink Mechanical Design

This prefabricated passive house is the brainchild of Plant Prefab and Richard Pedranti Architect. Courtesy of Plant Prefab

Plant Prefab launched its Passive House LivingHomes program in partnership with Richard Pedranti Architect.

“Passive House is another major environmental certification program and it integrates uncompromising standards for occupant health, comfort, and energy performance,” said Plant Prefab Founder and CEO Steve Glenn, in a previous article for gb&d.

Glenn says the biggest challenge so far had been accommodating the mechanical system using an efficient prefab approach that minimizes the amount of mod/panel crossovers. “With the Plant Building System accommodating the design to prefab was not a significant challenge; we were able to translate Richard’s designs into a simple combination of Plant Panels and Plant Modules,” he says. “Air distribution was collocated and restricted to the minimal number of modules and crossovers to allow for efficient and seamless installation.”

Plant Prefab’s Plant Building System is a hybrid solution combining a new kind of panel with highly specialized modules, driven by advanced engineering. The system delivers far greater design flexibility, transportation efficiency, and time savings than any other method of prefabricated construction.

4. Control Heat

Photo by Ryan Gamma Photography

Hive Architects designed the LS1 House in Sarasota using a clever breezeway and wooden shutters, among other passive design strategies.

Large overhangs and trellises prevent intense heat in summer but still allow the sun to filter in when warmth is needed. These features are both essential and visually compelling—particularly the massive slatted wood shutters across the guest wing, which operate on a rotation.

The brise-soleil over the entryway serves as a wayfinder to the back of the property and also introduces mesmerizing shadows.

5. Have Optimal Insulation

Greenfiber’s wall insulation starts as a plant material, is made into paper, and reused as insulation. Photo courtesy of Greenfiber

Densely packed insulation excels at providing equalizing temperatures both in conventional built assemblies as well as in deeper walls found in net-zero and passive house homes, according to an article written by Jason Todd for gb&d.

“Not only do such walls increase comfort and indoor temperature stability, but they can also be installed cost effectively. Deeper, high-mass walls work well in heating climates and excel in cooling climates as well. They also future-proof our homes with a very low environmental impact,” said Todd, of Greenfiber.

Greenfiber says densely packed insulation also helps to address unwanted air flow. “New construction often features a high level of detail when it comes to controlling air flow, and insulation that adds a second line of defense can aid in that,” Todd wrote.

6. Use High-Performance Windows and Doors

The Second + Delaware Apartments project in Kansas City, Missouri is being called the world’s largest multifamily Passive House development. Photo courtesy of Arnold Development Group

One of the world’s largest passive house projects recently opened in Kansas City, Missouri.

The 330,000-square-foot Second + Delaware Apartments has 276 units and 750 windows. The project was developed by Arnold Development Group and designed by Jeffrey M. White in the popular River Market neighborhood.

The design team installed triple-glazed windows, some of which are as large as 9-by-10-feet, and chose building materials precisely to meet Passive House standards for energy efficiency.

7. Have Proper Solar Orientation

Photo by Trent Bell Photography

Whitten Architects’ fundamental principle for sustainable building—site-specific design—strategically places homes to maximize solar exposure, provide protection from prevailing winds, and take advantage of the site’s natural features. This approach, quite literally, built the foundation for the Binnacle Hill Residence.

“Our site-specific design angled the house just east of south for ideal solar exposure, while the primary living space was situated toward a sunny lawn space against a wooded edge,” said Jessie Carroll, associate principal and project architect at Whitten Architects, in a previous article for gb&d.

The architects also designed an exterior soffit to protect the south-facing door systems from the weather. The large soffit promotes shade in the summer months and passive solar gain in the winter months.

8. Design an Airtight Envelope

With two separate entrances, Middle Village can be divided or used for extended family as each floor has a full kitchen, living room, bedrooms, and bathrooms. Photo by Brian Berkowitz

Deep window insets at Middle Village in Queens—designed by NODE Architecture, Engineering, and Consulting—reveal the thickness of the insulated concrete forms that help to create an airtight environment.

“A hallmark to Passive House design is building with solar orientation, seasonal insulation levels, and sun path in mind. It’s most favorable to have the southernmost facing part of the building include large windows to allow the low winter sun in the house to provide heat. However, the Middle Village site’s narrowest point is at the southernmost point of the property, which greatly reduced sunlight exposure at that end,” wrote Jakov Saric, in a previous article for gb&d.

Saric said NODE placed large opening lift and slide glass patio doors with krypton-filled, triple-insulated glazing at the southern facade. “These airtight, high-performance windows and doors are positioned strategically to use the sun’s southern exposure while the balconies provide proper shade from the roof overhang. Furthermore, NODE used appropriately angled rooftop solar panels to capture the sun’s rays (per the southern exposure) to allow for maximum winter sun.” The largest solar panels sit atop the structure above an airtight, super insulated roof.

NODE also designed Charlotte Gardens in the Bronx using passive strategies. The seven-story structure has a high-performance envelope, a continuous solar panel above the roof level, and several smaller solar panels along the exterior. The window system is airtight to help reduce heat gain and loss, and the upper levels boast a covered terrace with photovoltaic paneling. Airtight Passive House–certified windows and doors are used throughout the building, providing thermal comfort through the year, and the ERV system will create superior air quality throughout the indoor spaces.

9. Build High-Performing Walls

Thornton Tomasetti and SGA designed the first Passive House–certified residence hall in Massachusetts. Photo courtesy of Wheaton College

Pine Hall at Wheaton College was the first student residence hall to achieve Passive House certification in Massachusetts and the largest such project in the New England region, according to international engineering firm Thornton Tomasetti.

The 45,000-square-foot, L-shaped building was a collaboration between Thornton Tomasetti and SGA, a Boston- and New York City–based architecture and interior design firm. Thornton Tomasetti provided Passive House consulting and whole building energy modeling, as well as building envelope and structural design services, to SGA.

To achieve Passive House, the design and engineering team used highly insulated airtight construction methods, including high-performing walls (R-32), roofing materials (R-50), and triple-glazed windows. They also optimized exterior shading and employed high-efficiency heating, cooling, and lighting systems.

The building design uses 50% less energy than a building built to current codes and is targeting a site Energy Use Intensity of 20 kBtu/st/yr.

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• On average energy-efficient homes use 20 to 30% less energy than comparable homes without energy-efficient ratings.
• A home can be designed from the start with energy efficiency in mind or be made more energy-efficient with upgrades.
• Roofs, walls, floors, windows, appliances, and even landscaping can all be made energy-efficient.

In today’s housing market few things are more desirable than energy efficiency. Energy-efficient homes produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions, have lower operating costs, and are often more comfortable than their non-efficient counterparts.

When designed from the ground up energy-efficient homes typically make use of passive design strategies and are largely influenced by the local micro-climate, reducing their dependency on electrical systems for heating and cooling.

Existing homes can also be made more efficient through the installation of low-energy appliances and features like cool roofs or energy-efficient windows. Energy-efficient windows can help reduce a building’s heating and cooling energy usage by as much as 30%.

What is an Energy-Efficient Home?

Candela residences feature eco-friendly materials, energy-efficient walls and windows, and a structured layout to maintain a light carbon footprint. Photo by César Bejar

When most people think about energy efficiency they tend to think small—that is, they focus largely on energy-efficient appliances and systems. And while those features are part of the equation, they only scratch the surface of true energy efficiency.

In reality everything from the location, orientation of the home, layout, materials used, and, yes, the systems and appliances installed are taken into account when designing for energy efficiency.

The Casa Candela Villa in Mexico, designed by Macías Peredo Architecture Studio, for example, utilizes natural shading from nearby trees, adequate ventilation, three-layered windows, and thick walls to help regulate interior temperatures without the excessive use of mechanical heating and cooling systems.

Over the last couple of decades energy-efficient homes have become more and more popular, in large part due to their lower operating costs, higher property values, and decreased environmental impact.

Why is an Energy-Efficient Home Important?

Designed by Whitten Architects, the Binnacle Hill Residence is strategically oriented to make efficient use of natural sunlight and solar energy. Photo by Trent Bell Photography

Aside from the fact that energy-efficient homes help homeowners save money, energy-efficient homes provide a wide range of additional benefits, including increased comfort, higher property values, energy security and resiliency, and more.

But the real reason energy-efficient homes are important lies in that they have a smaller environmental impact than conventional homes; they use less energy and generate fewer greenhouse gas emissions, resulting in fewer airborne pollutants. On average energy-efficient homes use 20 to 30% less energy than traditional homes, with some even producing a portion of their own energy by way of renewable sources.

Common Areas to Make Your Home More Energy-Efficient

Regardless of whether you’re constructing a new home or renovating an old one, there are numerous areas that can be made more energy-efficient, including in your:

• Roofing
• Insulation
• Windows and doors
• HVAC system
• Water heater
• Appliances
• Lighting
• Electronics
• Home design
• Landscaping
• Solar panels
• Water conservation features

Benefits of an Energy-Efficient Home

The Silver Rock residence on Bainbridge Island is an energy-efficient Living Building designed by McLennan Design. Photo by Emily Hagopian

When it comes to home-buying and homebuilding, energy efficiency has become an increasingly desirable feature, in large part thanks to the wide range of benefits it entails.

Reduced Energy Costs

Predictably the most significant benefit of an energy-efficient home is the reduction in energy-related expenses. The average energy-efficient home saves up to 25% on utilities compared to similar homes that weren’t designed with efficiency in mind, according to the US Department of Energy.

Increased Comfort

Photo courtesy of Aeroseal

Most energy-efficient homes are designed to naturally regulate interior temperatures throughout the year, making them more comfortable to live in during the hottest and coldest months. What’s more, energy-efficient homes are also typically much better than their non-efficient counterparts at maintaining a uniform indoor climate, reducing the likelihood of cold-spots, drafts, and the like. Making a building electrification-ready with solutions like Aeroseal, which reduce leakage in a home’s duct system by 90%, also make homes more comfortable and energy-efficient.

Sustainable & Lower Environmental Impact

As it stands nearly 40% of the world’s carbon emissions are produced by the real estate sector. Making our homes and buildings more energy-efficient helps reduce their carbon footprint and limits the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere, which in turn helps reduce air pollution.

Energy-efficient homes are also more sustainable because they typically incorporate some form of renewable energy—i.e. solar power—or, at the very least, greatly reduce the amount of non-renewable energy consumed during their life-cycles.

Improved Health & Indoor Air Quality

Despite the inclusion of filters in conventional HVAC systems, frequent usage of heating and cooling systems can aid in the circulation of dust, mold spores, and other small particulate matter that can cause or exacerbate respiratory problems. Energy-efficient homes, on the other hand, seek to reduce dependency on HVAC systems, thereby lessening the spread of airborne allergens and irritants.

Due to the fact that they emphasize airtight seals, which limit water and air leaks, energy-efficient homes are also less likely to develop moisture problems. This then decreases the likelihood of mold and mildew growth, both of which can lead to the development of respiratory illnesses.

Increased Home Value

Homes rated as energy-efficient sell for 2.7% more than comparable unrated homes, according to studies conducted by the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. If that’s not beneficial enough, energy-efficient homes also tend to sell faster than their non-efficient counterparts. This really shouldn’t come as a surprise. After all, energy efficiency saves a homeowner money in the long run, which means prospective buyers are willing to pay more upfront in anticipation of future savings.

Greater Energy Security

Energy-efficient homes that incorporate some form of onsite renewable energy—typically solar—provide homeowners with greater energy security than those homes wholly dependent on national power grids. By producing a portion of their own energy, energy-efficient homes are less affected by changes in the price of electricity and may even be able to sell excess power back to the grid.

Of course, even energy-efficient homes that don’t feature on-site renewable energy sources have greater energy security than non-efficient homes, as they simply don’t require as much energy to operate, making it easier to ride out fluctuations in the cost of electricity.

Less Maintenance

Energy-efficient homes that make extensive use of passive solar design elements and natural ventilation systems typically require less maintenance than non-energy-efficient homes, as they generally feature fewer mechanical/moving parts that wear down over time.

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This isn’t to say that energy-efficient homes don’t require any maintenance. Preventative maintenance is integral to keeping an energy-efficient home running at peak efficiency. Overall, however, the type of maintenance energy-efficient homes require is typically less labor-intensive and cheaper than it is for non-efficient homes.

Resilience in Power Outages

Due to the fact that energy-efficient homes are designed to regulate temperatures naturally, with as little aid from mechanical heating and cooling systems as possible, they tend to have better resiliency in the face of power outages, particularly those that occur during the cold winter months.

This is especially true of energy-efficient homes equipped with on-site renewable energy features—e.g. solar panels—which can help supply power to the most crucial systems.

Common Materials That Make a Home Energy-Efficient

There are countless building materials that can aid in a home’s overall energy efficiency, either due to their high thermal mass or natural insulating properties—some of the most sustainable include:

Cork

Lustrous flooring made largely of cork creates a cozy feeling. The cork is not only a more sustainable option, but a natural insulator as well. Photo by Ivo Tavares Studio

Similar to wood, cork is a natural insulator with low thermal conductivity. This makes it an excellent material for creating energy-efficient flooring and insulation. When used as flooring, cork has an R-value of 1.12, which is higher than that of vinyl, linoleum, bamboo, and virtually all soft- and hard-woods.

Cork can also be shredded and compressed into sheets to be used as insulation panels. With a thermal resistance of R-3.6 to R-4.2 per inch, cork insulation panels offer a better value range than traditional fiberglass batts, thereby reducing the need for mechanical heating and cooling systems.

Cork is highly sustainable, as it only requires the bark from cork oak trees be harvested, rather than the tree itself. When done correctly harvesting cork bark does not harm the tree and regrows to sufficient levels every nine years.

Recycled Steel

While recycled steel itself doesn’t offer much when it comes to temperature regulation—it doesn’t conduct heat very well and isn’t a good insulator—it is incredibly strong. When used as a housing framework, recycled steel can support heavier amounts of insulation (be it wool, cellulose, stone wool, etc.), which makes it easier to maintain comfortable interior temperatures without the aid of mechanical heating and cooling.

Recycled steel sheets can also be painted with a reflective coating and used to construct cool roofs, or roofs that reflect more solar heat than conventional roofs, which typically absorb heat—and even unpainted metal roofs reflect solar energy better than asphalt shingles. Studies have shown that cool roofs can help reduce a home’s energy usage by anywhere from 7 to 15%.

Straw Bales

Straw bales have been used in US construction since the late 1800s and feature prominently in Nebraska architecture. This is largely due to that, when compacted into tight bales, straw is both fire-resistant and acts as an excellent thermal insulator.

It is straw’s insulative properties that make it an energy-efficient material, as it helps hold heat for longer periods of time during the winter months.

Insulated Concrete Forms

ICF walls provide improved insulation over traditional wood-frame buildings, thereby reducing heating and cooling loads. Photo courtesy of ICFMA

While concrete may not be everyone’s preferred aesthetic when it comes to home design, insulated concrete forms (ICFs) are extremely energy-efficient and can drastically reduce a household’s monthly energy expenses.

Strong, quick to manufacture, and relatively simple to put in place, ICFs are created by pouring concrete into insulated polystyrene foam forms. Once the concrete sets, the forms are left in place rather than removed, giving the wall improved insulating qualities over traditional wood-frame walls.

“You can have a structural wall that delivers between an R-45 and R-55 with no more investment in materials and less investment in labor,” Brian Corder, marketing chair for the ICFMA and president of BuildBlock, previously wrote for gb&d. “If you want to design a building that will deliver extremely high energy performance, ICFs offer all of this and more.”

On average, ICF walls reduce a home’s heating needs by 44% and cooling needs by 32%.

Rammed Earth

There’s a reason rammed earth has been used to construct dwellings for thousands of years in a variety of environments; its thickness and high thermal mass make it excellent at regulating interior temperatures without the need for excessive HVAC usage.

This isn’t to say rammed earth constructs don’t benefit from insulation. Insulation is generally recommended for rammed earth walls, as it helps provide an added layer of regulation during long stretches of hot or cold temperatures.

The Silver Rock Living Building Home, designed by McLennan Design, utilized insulated rammed earth walls in its construction. “The rammed earth wall utilized SIREWALL technology that features insulation in between two steel-reinforced wall sections, creating an energy-efficient and durable construction that is beautiful and creates a feeling of solidity and permanence,” Jason McLennan, principal at McLennan Design, previously wrote for gb&d.

Rammed earth is also extremely compacted when used for home-building, which means air won’t leak through the walls and force your HVAC system to work harder.

How to Make Your Home More Energy-Efficient

Now that we’ve explored the basics of energy efficiency, let’s take a look at a few of the ways you can make your home more energy-efficient.

Install Energy-Efficient Appliances

All Going Street Commons homes feature open floor plans, modern, Energy Star-certified appliances, abundant natural lighting, and building systems and finishes to help ensure healthy indoor air quality. Photo by Jillian Lancaster, courtesy of Green Hammer

One of the simplest ways to improve your home’s energy efficiency is to install energy-efficient appliances, or any appliance that uses less energy than its traditional counterpart. Nowadays, energy-efficient alternatives exist for just about any major appliance you can think of: dishwashers, washing machines, dryers, refrigerators, ovens, stoves, etc.

In the US appliances with an ENERGY STAR label have been deemed energy-efficient according to standards set by the US Department of Energy or the EPA.

Upgrade Your Insulation

Greenfiber’s wall insulation starts as a plant material, is made into paper, and reused as insulation. Photo courtesy of Greenfiber

Most new homes are insulated with fiberglass insulation—and while fiberglass insulation has a fairly high R-value (2.2 – 2.7 per inch), there are better insulators out there. Stone wool insulation, for example, has an R-value between 3.0 and 3.3 per inch, while cellulose insulation has an R-value of 3.2 – 3.8 per inch—and both are more sustainable than fiberglass, too.

“Greenfiber uses a low-energy manufacturing process that results in materials with the least-embodied energy of most major insulation products. The production process generates little no waste or byproducts because we leverage recovered material to start with,” Jason Todd, the director of market development and building science at Greenfiber, previously told gb&d.

By upgrading your insulation, you reduce the amount of heat loss and gain throughout the year, which in turn minimizes the energy spent on heating and cooling your home.

Seal Air Leaks

Air leaks account for roughly 25% to 40% of the energy used to heat and cool a home, according to Energy Star. They can also drastically reduce the effectiveness of other energy-saving features. By ensuring all seals around windows, doors, and other potential openings are airtight you’ll minimize the amount of heat lost during the winter and heat gained during the summer.

Use Programmable or Smart Thermostats

Photo courtesy of Nest

Instead of constantly turning your thermostat up or down or leaving it on while you’re not home, it’s in your best interest to install either a programmable or smart thermostat. When properly used, programmable thermostats—or those thermostats that can be set to a schedule—can save homeowners up to 10% on their heating and cooling costs.

Similarly, smart thermostats like those offered by Nest help save an average of approximately 12% on heating and cooling costs by using machine-learning to adjust to your household’s temperature preferences. “It’s always optimizing itself to meet your comfort demands and run the most efficient cycles,” Gene LaNois, general manager of the Professional Channel at Nest, previously told gb&d.

Replace Your Light Bulbs

This Gluck+ California house features all LED lighting. Photo by Paul Vu Photography

One of the simplest ways to make your home more energy-efficient is to replace any existing incandescent light bulbs with energy-saving LED light bulbs. When lit, traditional incandescent bulbs waste a large portion of the energy they receive by generating heat as well as light—LEDs, on the other hand, produce very little heat and use approximately 90% less energy than incandescent lightbulbs.

Most LED light bulbs last considerably longer than incandescent bulbs, too—25 times longer, to be exact.

Use Energy-Efficient Windows

Large floor-to-ceiling windows at 28&7 flood the interiors with natural light, with corners that are fully glazed. For exceptional energy efficiency, the windows are triple-glazed and incorporate a low-e coating. Photo by Dave Burk, courtesy of SOM

Generally speaking, the heat gained and lost through conventional windows throughout the year is responsible for approximately 25% – 30% of a home’s heating and cooling energy. To minimize the amount of energy lost through windows, homeowner’s should install energy-efficient windows, or those windows with an ENERGY STAR label.

Windows can be made energy-efficient through the use of low-e glazes and coatings that block UV rays and solar heat gain while still allowing natural light to filter through.

Install Solar Panels

Q Cells considers its Q.PEAK DUO the BMW of solar. It is highly efficient yet cost-effective. Photo courtesy of Q Cells

While solar panels—or any other forms of renewable energy, for that matter—aren’t required for your home to be considered energy-efficient, they do provide improved energy security and reduce your home’s dependency on the energy supplied by power companies. The effectiveness of solar panels, however, depends on a number of factors.

“To get the most out of solar panels you need proper planning, design, and installation. The property needs to be inspected to determine the sun’s path and potential shade structures,” Ralph Alvarado, manager for PV Products at Q Cells—one of the leading producers of highly-efficient solar panels—previously wrote for gb&d. “The roof needs to be properly configured for optimal energy collection.”

Depending on how much power your solar panels are capable of generating—along with how much of that power you actually use—you may even be able to sell a portion of it back to the grid.

Plant Trees Strategically

An easy way to passively reduce the amount of solar heat your house receives in the summer—while still allowing for maximum solar heat in winter—is to strategically plant trees near the home.

Planting deciduous trees alongside all west- and east-facing windows, for example, can help provide shade during the warmer months while still allowing solar energy during the winter months once the leaves have all fallen.  Well-placed trees can save up to 25% of the energy used to heat and cool typical households.

Use a Tankless Water Heater

Another way to reduce your home’s energy consumption is to install a tankless water heater rather than the traditional storage tank heater. On average tankless water heaters—which provide hot water on demand—use 24 to 34% less energy than storage tank water heaters in households that use less than 42 gallons of hot water per day.

If your household uses a large amount of hot water each day, the difference in efficiency between tankless and storage water heaters decreases, but tankless water heaters still remain the most energy efficient of the two.

Install Energy Recovery Ventilators

ERVs help recover some of the heat energy from outgoing air that has already been warmed or redirect heat energy from incoming air back outside. Photo courtesy of Fantech

Contrary to popular belief, HVAC systems don’t draw in air from outside; an energy recovery ventilator (ERV), on the other hand, does. Designed to work in conjunction with your HVAC system, an ERV unit pulls fresh air in from outside and sends stale interior air outside via vents.

During this process ERVs do one of two things, depending on the season. In summer ERVs recover heat from the incoming air and flush it back outside, whereas in winter, ERVs recover heat from the outgoing air and use it to warm the incoming air.

What this ultimately does is decrease the amount of energy needed for your HVAC system to heat or cool the air to the desired temperature. All in all, an ERV unit can help reduce your HVAC system’s energy use by about 50%.

Use Blinds and Curtains

If you aren’t able to strategically plant trees or install louvers to limit the amount of solar energy that comes through your home’s windows, blinds or curtains are your next best option. Blinds can help reduce indoor heat gain during the summer by as much as 40%, whereas curtains can help reduce heat gain by approximately at least 33%, according to the DOE.

In the winter curtains drawn at dusk can help reduce heat loss by roughly 10% and blinds help prevent heat loss to a marginal degree.

Install Ceiling Fans

Ceiling fans use much less energy than air conditioning. Photo courtesy of Hunter Fan

As a general rule ceiling fans use significantly less energy than traditional air conditioning units. On average they use 99% less energy than a central AC system. Until outside temperatures crest 95℉, ceiling fans are capable of keeping interior temperatures at a comfortable level.

Most ceiling fans are reversible and are capable of drawing air upwards as well as pushing air downwards—by reversing your ceiling fans during the winter, it can actually help to disperse warm air (which rises) more evenly throughout a room.

Regular Maintenance of HVAC System

Like any mechanical system, your home’s HVAC is subject to routine wear and tear—coils build up grime, connections loosen, air filters get clogged, etc. If these things go unchecked, it can result in your HVAC system having to work harder to provide cool or warm air, which ultimately requires more energy.

To ensure your HVAC system is operating at peak efficiency, it should be inspected and serviced regularly. Most professionals recommend performing regular maintenance checks at least twice per year, towards the end of spring and autumn.

Energy-Efficient Home Tax Credits

Aside from lower utility bills, energy-efficient homes can also help you save money in the form of tax credits. If you make certain upgrades—such as those defined above—after January 1, 2023, you may qualify for a tax credit up to $3,200, claimable for improvements made through 2032.

The credit equals 30% of certain qualified expenses, including energy efficiency improvements, residential energy property expenses, and home energy audits.

The maximum credit you can claim each year is $1,200 for energy property costs and certain energy-efficient home improvements, and $2,000 per year for qualified heat pumps, biomass stoves, or biomass boilers.

This credit has no lifetime dollar limit and you can claim the maximum annual credit every year that you make eligible improvements until 2033. It should be noted, however, that this credit is only applicable to your main home—that is, where you live most of the time—and not to rental or other properties.

Conclusion

When it comes down to it, the increased demand for energy-efficient homes isn’t particularly surprising. Between the reduced greenhouse gas emissions, lower operating costs, and increased comfort they provide, energy-efficient homes come with a wide range of benefits and very few disadvantages.

The post Energy-Efficient Homes—Everything You Should Know in 2024 appeared first on gb&d magazine.

• Prefab homes are built using pieces manufactured offsite before being assembled and transported to the actual build site.
• There are four types of prefab homes: mobile/manufactured, modular and panelized, pod, and kit.

Prefab homes in the United States date all the way back to the late 1800s, though the prefab homes of 2024 look much different. The demand for prefabricated homes has skyrocketed in recent decades, with more and more options, styles, and features being offered.

The term “prefab” is often used as a catch-all for a variety of unique pre-manufactured home types. This article aims to demystify the world of prefab and provide examples as to some of the most sustainable options.

What are Prefab Homes?

This prefabricated passive house is the brainchild of Plant Prefab and Richard Pedranti Architect. Rendering courtesy of Plant Prefab

A prefab or prefabricated home is a type of house whose pieces are all (or mostly) manufactured in an offsite factory in advance before they are assembled on the building site. This is in contrast to the traditional “stick-built” home, or those homes constructed onsite from the ground up.

Types of Prefab Homes

Photo courtesy of Phoenix Haus

There are four commonly recognized types of prefab homes—mobile/manufactured, modular/panelized, pods, and kits. All share certain similarities but vary somewhat in terms of their actual design and the construction methods they employ.

Mobile & Manufactured Homes

There is no inherent difference between mobile and manufactured homes other than when they were built. According to HUD, a factory-built home constructed prior to June 15th, 1976 is a mobile home, whereas all factory-built homes constructed after June 15th, 1976 are considered manufactured homes.

Federal law regulates the definition of this category of prefab home and describes them as such: “Manufactured homes are built as dwelling units of at least 320 square feet in size with a permanent chassis to assure the initial and continued transportability of the home.” Manufactured prefab homes are built in accordance with HUD building codes, feature wheels, and may be hitched to, and subsequently transported by, another vehicle.

Because they have wheels and are built on a chassis, manufactured homes are technically considered vehicles and thus fall under the DMV’s jurisdiction. These homes are licensed by the DMV and as such must also be built to the DMV code.

Manufactured homes can, however, be converted to “real property,” after which point they become subject to conventional real estate law. This process is usually fairly straightforward but ultimately varies slightly from state-to-state.

Modular & Panelized Homes

The Bella Bella Passive House on Campbell Island is constructed from multiple 32 x 14 foot prefabricated modules. Photo courtesy of Vancouver Coastal Health

Modular and panelized prefab homes, on the other hand, are not designed with mobility in mind and typically resemble the traditional “stick-built” home in both their size and features. Most modular homes are not fully assembled before delivery but instead arrive in two or more sections (i.e. “modules”) and then assembled on the build site.

Panelized prefab homes are similar to modular homes in that they are constructed offsite and transported in sections to the build site for final assembly. Rather than arrive as modules, however, panelized homes arrive as prefabricated wall panels, roof trusses, and I-joist or truss floor systems.

A prefab home may be built entirely from modules, panels, or a combination of the two. As long as the structure consists of at least 70% pre-manufactured elements, it qualifies as prefab.

Unlike manufactured homes, modular and panelized prefab homes are built in accordance with the International Residence Code (IRC) rather than HUD building codes. In most cases modular and panelized prefabs fall under the IRC’s Off-Site Construction category.

Pod Homes

A subset of tiny houses, prefab pod homes are somewhat of a combination between manufactured and modular homes. Like manufactured homes, pods are almost always built and assembled entirely offsite before being transported to the homeowner’s property. But unlike manufactured homes, prefab pods (usually) aren’t designed with wheels and thus necessitate the use of a crane to lower them onto a permanent foundation, similar to modular homes.

Because they are designed as a single unit, prefab pod homes are typically much more compact in design compared to any other subcategory of prefab homes. Like modular and panelized homes, prefab pod homes must comply with the IRC.

Kit Homes

While still technically considered prefabs, kit homes require considerably more on-site construction than any other type of prefab home. Instead of arriving entirely assembled or in a few pre-manufactured sections, kit homes arrive flat-packed with their components already cut but not put together.

Because they are ready-cut and require little-to-no further alteration, kit homes are still much easier to assemble than a conventional stick-built home and are much more user friendly, allowing homeowners to assemble the house themselves if desired.

Benefits of Prefab Homes

Three days is all it took for Plant Prefab to install custom-designed townhomes by Metro Architects. Photo courtesy of Plant Prefab

Prefab homes have seen a resurgence in popularity over the last few decades, in large part thanks to the range of benefits they offer.

Energy-Efficient & Low Waste

Because all of their pieces are designed and manufactured in a controlled environment to high quality standards, prefab homes tend to be extremely airtight and thus very energy-efficient constructs once assembled. There are also a growing number of prefab home manufacturers who are designing and building to LEED and Passive House standards—both of which prioritize energy efficiency and reduced carbon emissions.

The controlled environment in which prefab homes are designed and constructed also means that they produce far less waste than the average stick-built home. This is especially true of those prefab home manufacturers who use nesting software to cut and prepare building components, as these programs help lay out cutting patterns in a highly efficient manner that minimizes the amount of wasted material.

Shorter Build Times

One of the most significant benefits of prefab homes is that, because the majority of their components are assembled off site (and are therefore not affected by weather conditions), they have drastically reduced build times when compared to conventional stick-built homes. Most stick-built homes take months to construct in the field, but prefabricated homes can be built and assembled in a few weeks—and the most expertly crafted prefabs take just days to install.

Often Less Expensive

Because prefab homes waste very little material and require fewer workers to install, they tend to be less expensive overall when compared to their stick-built counterparts—in some cases as much as 20% less expensive. This ultimately depends on the design and style of the home itself, the manufacturer, and a few other factors.

Manufactured homes, for example, can be purchased for an average of $128,000—much lower than the national average for conventional stick-built homes. Modular and panelized prefab homes tend to be more costly, but still typically cost less per square foot than a standard home.

Disadvantages of Prefab Homes

Despite their numerous benefits, prefab homes aren’t without their disadvantages, either. Most prefabs offer less design flexibility, for example, than their stick-built counterparts. Photo courtesy of Plant Prefab

Prefabricated homes have no shortage of benefits, but just like any home, they come with their fair share of disadvantages, too.

Necessitate Land Ownership

Because they are constructed offsite and transported to the build site for assembly and installation, prefab homes necessitate complete ownership of the land they sit on. If you don’t already own that land, you’ll need to purchase it before any other work can begin.

More Upfront Costs

While prefab houses tend to be more affordable in the long run than their stick-built counterparts, they often come with more upfront costs. If you buy an existing home, for example, you can generally expect to make a 20 to 25% down payment and pay off the rest as mortgage over time. Prefab homes, however, typically require you pay for the home’s construction in installments before you move in.

You’ll also need to pay for the land before building the home, as well any inspections, soil testing, and permits required by your zoning area’s applicable building codes and regulations.

Less Design Flexibility

Despite the increasing customizability of prefab homes in recent years, they still offer less design flexibility than constructing a custom-built home from the ground up, especially when it comes the materials used and overall architectural style of the home. Of course, this varies depending on the company you’re purchasing the prefab from.

8 Prefab Home Examples

Here are a few examples and the companies that offer them.

1. Plant Prefab

Plant Prefab installed a four-unit townhome development in Los Gatos, California in three days in July. The custom-designed residences by Metro Architects are a prime example of how Plant Prefab’s building system allows for faster construction that’s also more efficient than traditional methods. Rendering courtesy of Metro Architects

Based in Rialto, California, Plant Prefab is committed to providing sustainable, high-quality modular and panelized prefab homes. “We use the USGBC’s LEED for Homes program as well as our own stringent health and sustainability program, Z6, to create some of the world’s healthiest homes with the lowest possible impact on the planet,” Plant Prefab Founder and CEO Steve Glenn previously told gb&d.

Founded in 2016 Plant Prefab seeks to provide consumers with the best in prefab construction, with a major focus on achieving efficiency throughout all phases of preplanning, prefabrication, and installation. This is perhaps best exemplified by their installation of a four-unit, 11,054-square-foot modular townhouse development—custom-designed by Metro Architects—in Los Gatos, California over the span of just three days in 2020.

Because Plant Prefab’s building system takes place in a quality-controlled, offsite factory rather than onsite, the development project had a much lower impact on the existing neighborhood and allowed site and structure work to occur simultaneously. Plant’s rigorous sustainability program also helped minimize the negative environmental impact of the townhouses themselves.

Once prefabrication was complete Plant delivered each of the custom residences as four fully volumetric Plant Modules—complete with all fixtures, finishes, and appliances in place. This, combined with Plant’s use of smart utility connections, helped facilitate the 72-hour installation.

2. RPA LivingHomes

Prefabricated passive houses in three styles are the latest from Plant Prefab and Richard Pedranti Architect. Rendering courtesy of Plant Prefab

A collaboration between Richard Pedranti Architect (RPA) and Plant Prefab, RPA LivingHomes are an impressive union between Pedranti’s sustainable designs and Plant’s innovative Plant Building System, a hybrid prefab solution that utilizes a new kind of panel in combination with highly specialized modules.

“With the Plant Building System accommodating the design to prefab was not a significant challenge; we were able to translate Richard’s designs into a simple combination of Plant Panels and Plant Modules,” Glenn says. “Air distribution was collocated and restricted to the minimal number of modules and crossovers to allow for efficient and seamless installation.”

RPA LivingHomes 1 and 2 are characterized by their pitched roofs—optimized for PV panel installation—whereas RPA LivingHome 3 is distinctly Californian in design. Each home features an open floor plan and is designed to meet both Passive House and net-zero energy standards.

All RPA LivingHomes feature airtight construction, heat recovery ventilation systems, high-performance windows and doors, highly efficient mechanical systems, a dedicated fresh air system, and high value insulation. Plant Prefab’s Plant Building System allows each home to accommodate greater design flexibility, time savings, and transportation efficiency than any other prefabrication method.

3. Phoenix Haus

A typical Phoenix Haus prefab home is 1,200 to 3,000 square feet. Photo courtesy of Phoenix Haus

Founded in 2011 and based in Detroit, Phoenix Haus seeks to create innovative, environmentally conscious buildings and provides efficient, low-cost prefabricated homes built to the Passive House standard.

Working out of a renovated 1900s factory, Phoenix Haus’ large factory features an overhead crane, semi-automated equipment, and a loading bay designed for specialized vertical trailering. This allows the company to prefabricate both custom and pre-drawn template designs to meet the ever-growing consumer demand for passive homes.

By building to Passive House standards, homes prefabricated by Phoenix Haus tend to be more expensive than your average prefab—but the improved energy-efficiency they provide makes the investment worthwhile. “Currently, there is a 10 to 15 percent cost premium to building to the Passive House standard using prefab,” Kate McDonald, project manager at Phoenix Haus, previously told gb&d. “However, when a cost analysis is performed and this premium is amortized over the life of the structure, it turns out to be a marginal increase in the investment that starts paying you back the minute you start living in the structure.”

Phoenix Haus currently offers eight off-the-shelf yet customizable prefab home designs ranging from 1,200 to 3,000 square feet and spanning a range of architectural styles. Their H7 | 30 model also includes a 1,000-square-foot carport with a 1,000-square-foot roof-deck.

4. Square Root Architecture + Design

The second iteration of C3, Chicago’s first green prefab house, by Jeffrey Sommers of Square Root Architecture + Design. Photo courtesy of Square Root Architecture + Design

After designing C3, one of Chicago’s first sustainable modular prefab homes, Square Root Architecture + Design’s Jeffrey Sommers created C3 1.1, an improved version that drew upon the best parts of prefab and on-site construction.

Rather than relying strictly on prefabricated modules, C3 1.1 utilizes structural insulated panels (SIPS), a kind of flat-pack prefab system used to construct a highly insulated, thermally broken building envelope that provides improved protection against air and water infiltration.

This form of panelized prefab requires more onsite construction than, say, a modular prefab might, but it allowed Square Root to take full advantage of both offsite and onsite construction, greatly reducing the project’s overall expenses. “It allowed for lower shipping costs, lower craning costs, and the ability to work within the city’s requirements for on-site inspections,” Jeffrey Sommers of Square Root Architecture + Design previously told gb&d.

Once assembled C3 received both Indoor AirPlus and EnergyStar certifications and was third-party tested for a Home Energy Rating System (HERS) score of 43.

5. Ecocor

Ecocor has sustainability in mind as they build their projects by focusing on using 80-90% less waste. Photo courtesy of Ecocor

Since the company’s founding in 2010 Ecocor has been committed to designing, manufacturing, and assembling high-performance Passive House-certified buildings, cutting construction waste, drastically reducing energy consumption, and shortening time-to-occupation. It wasn’t until 2013, however, that Ecocor’s owner and technical director, Christian Corson, began experimenting with prefabrication.

Since then Ecocor has gone on to partner with Richard Pedranti to create SOLSKEN, a line of highly-sustainable, energy-efficient prefab homes built to Passive House standards and that utilize locally-manufactured materials, FSC-certified lumber, as well as zero-VOC insulations and chemical sealers—all of which Corson believes should be common practice in the industry.

“It makes no sense to ask our clients to raise their families and children in a home built out of toxic materials,” Corson told gb&d in a previous article. “At the same time, not using these materials means the people working for us, on the floor of the factory day-to-day, they stay healthy, too.”

Ecocor’s facility uses the latest technology to prefabricate panelized walls, floors, and other building components in a highly-controlled, low-waste environment—and what little waste the factory does produce is almost always reused in other projects.

6. Outward Bound Dorms

Besides being crafted to handle its snowy environs, the micro dorms were also built with materials selected for their durability and low maintenance. They were designed by Rick Sommerfeld and his design students at University of Colorado Denver. Photo by Jesse Kuroiwa

Designed by Rick Sommerfeld, founder and director of Colorado Building Workshop (the University of Colorado Denver’s design build program) and his graduate students, these 14 micro-dorms are a prime example of prefab home ingenuity.

Built for staff members of Outward Bound—an organization that delivers supervised educational expeditions in the wilderness for a variety of ages—these innovative dorms offer a sustainable, more inviting alternative to the conventional cabin. “We were looking at existing cabins, and saw that needs weren’t being met,” Sommerfeld previously told gb&d. “This type of housing didn’t provide a front porch or any type of social space for gathering.”

To remedy this each dorm features a quaint wraparound porch that faces its neighboring cabins, creating small community clusters and encouraging communal interaction. These porches are an extension of the exterior frame surrounding each cabin’s interior box, a feature that provides each dorm with greater resilience to precipitation and snow buildup.

To maximize the project’s efficiency and reduce construction time, all of the hot rolled steel and birch plywood wall pieces for the dormitories were prefabricated in Denver and then flat-packed to the build site. Nesting software was also implemented in designing the dorms’ prefab cabinetry, greatly reducing the amount of lumber waste.

7. Bella Bella Passive House

The Bella Bella house for staff of a remote hospital was built to Passive House standards, quickly and efficiently, using prefab techniques. Photo courtesy of Vancouver Coastal Health

Designed for Vancouver Coastal Health’s (VCH) R.W. Large Memorial Hospital by Mobius Architecture, the Bella Bella Passive House showcases just how beneficial prefabs can be when building in remote locations.

After a fire destroyed R.W. Large Memorial Hospital’s staff housing, it was imperative that VCH build a replacement as soon as possible—but because of the hospital’s remote location on British Columbia’s Campbell Island, a place where it might take over a year to construct a building from the ground up, doing so proved easier said than done. The island is only accessible by boat or plane, which made getting materials and a construction team to the site incredibly challenging.

To expedite the process VCH commissioned six two-story attached prefab townhouses from Mobius Architecture to be shipped in from the mainland after prefabrication. “A prefab structure taken up by barge presented a very quick and cost effective way to efficiently meet what would be needed in Bella Bella,” Glen Garrick, sustainability manager, transformation and innovation for VCH, told gb&d in a previous article. “In the end the project was completed at a cost of $2.6 million—about $500,000 less than it would have cost to construct the development onsite.”

Designed by Mobius Architecture and constructed in a Britco facility in the province, each of the project’s approximately 32 x 14 foot modules—12 in total—were carefully built and tested to Passive House standards in a closed, quality-controlled environment. Features like mineral wool, fiberglass insulation, airtight windows, heat and energy recovery ventilation units, and split-system heat pumps helped each module achieve maximum energy-efficiency.

While the modules were being prefabricated, prep work started at the actual build site—a common prefab practice that can help shorten the construction period by as much as 30%. All in all it took just nine months to complete the entire process.

8. Liv-Connected

Liv-Connected manufactures design-focused homes that can be rapidly deployed and endlessly customized. Photo courtesy of Liv-Connected

Started as a disaster relief project, Liv-Connected was founded on the premise of creating a sustainable alternative to the standard FEMA trailer and providing affordable housing for thousands of people in a very short amount of time. It has since become a leading designer of rapidly-deployable prefab modular homes marketed towards the general public, with the Conexus and Via being the company’s two base options.

Conexus is designed as a modular prefab home and utilizes Liv-Connected’s proprietary Component Linked Construction (CLiC) system that allows the home to fold up extremely tightly and reconfigured into a variety of floorplans. The CLiC system also allows for additional elements—like health care technologies to be added to the home over time. “We love the idea that the house is a more permanent thing that can change over time, and that includes the health equipment,” Jordan Rogove, COO and director of architecture and design at Liv-Connected, previously told gb&d. “If you don’t want to buy it right off the bat you can add it later when you get a little older.”

Via, on the other hand, is a traditional manufactured home and is designed for a life in motion. As of 2023, the Via home is available in three semi-customizable models—Standard, Modern, and Farmhouse—all of which support a variety of different layouts.

All Liv-Connected modular units are designed with sustainability in mind and only generate 10% of the waste that a conventional stick-built construction project would create. Each modular unit comes solar ready, meaning photovoltaic panels may be purchased and installed at a later date if desired.

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The post What are Prefab Homes? appeared first on gb&d magazine.

• Some of the most popular home styles architecturally are bungalows, cape cods, and Victorians.
• Many of today’s popular home architectural styles borrow from forms from the early 1900s.
• We explore the pros and cons of some of today’s sought-after styles.

Modern, farmhouse, industrial, Mediterranean—there’s a seemingly endless list of residential architecture styles to choose from when buying, designing, or building a home. While trends like tiny homes come and go, some of the top 2024 home trends are focused on bold colors and organic forms. These are just some of the most popular home styles in 2024.

The Most Popular Home Styles in 2024

Contemporary House Style

A contemporary three-bedroom house designed by LG Squared uses continuous stone wool insulation to keep the home a comfortable temperature while keeping energy demand low. Photo courtesy of LG Squared

Often recognizable by their large, tall windows and lack of ornamentation, contemporary style homes often have an unusual mix of materials—like stone, brick, wood, and glass. This mix allows homeowners to reap the benefits of some of the best building materials while still feeling like they live in a traditional house.

Architects designed Contemporary-style homes between 1950 and 1970 with flat-roof and gabled roof types. The latter is often characterized by exposed beams. Both tend to be designed to incorporate the surrounding landscape.

Advantages

• Natural light
• Spaciousness
• Often surrounded by nature
• Sustainable building materials

Disadvantages

• Can be bland
• Prone to damage (broken glass, etc.)
• Expensive
• Trendy

Neoclassical House Style

This neoclassical private residence in Vancouver was built with Polycor’s SAINT CLAIR Fleuri Marble from Oklahoma, fabricated and installed by Red Leaf Stone. Photo courtesy of Polycor

Emerging in the late 1800s as a response to the excess of the Rococo style, Neoclassical-style homes take inspiration from the relative simplicity of classical Greek and Roman designs. Homes constructed in the Neoclassical style are typically built from brick and stone and are characterized by grandeur of scale, simple geometries, symmetry of form and fenestration, as well as austere, unadorned exteriors.

Neoclassical-style houses might be one or two stories tall and often sport a temple front facade featuring dramatic, evenly-spaced Ionic, Doric, or Corinthian columns capped by either a pediment, portico, or dome. The interior of a Neoclassical-style house typically features built-in furniture, large rooms, tile or stone flooring, and decorative designs above and around doorways.

Advantages

• Symmetrical design
• Large rooms
• Durable and long-lasting
• Ideal for families

Disadvantages

• Expensive to build or buy
• Can be difficult to clean and maintain
• May appear imposing to some
• Not as conducive to a relaxed or casual lifestyle

Cottage

An old cottage gets quite the addition at the University of Pennsylvania. Photo by Greg Benson

A cottage is easiest understood as a small home for a single family. Cottage-style architecture is celebrated for its simple design, coziness, and ability to stand the test of time. Cottages can be designed in a number of styles, including English, Nordic, Canadian, American and South African.

Advantages

• Coziness
• Longevity
• Location
• Simple design
• Encourages togetherness

Disadvantages

• Small floorplan
• Maintenance
• Location
• Can feel cramped
• Resale value

Farmhouse Style

Cedar Street Builders owner Dan Porzel built this modern, energy-efficient farmhouse in Indiana, designed by David Rausch, with a simple, clean design that didn’t waste space. Photo by Kelsey Johnston

The modern farmhouse style emphasizes a cozy feel with a modern-yet-rustic look. Among the farmhouse style, farmhouse modular homes are on the rise. Here, elements of warm minimalism also come into play, with farmhouse modular homes embracing simplicity and comfort. Modern farmhouses emphasize function, natural materials, organic color palettes, and a variety of textures, to name a few more characteristics.

Advantages

• Flexible design
• Inexpensive
• Low maintenance
• Often in nature

Disadvantages

• Can be isolating
• Difficult to personalize
• Finding fixtures that match the style
• Could look dated

Townhouse Style

Modern townhouses at Red Barn. Photo by Timothy Hursley

In the United States a Townhouse-style home may refer to two types of housing, separated chiefly by time period. The earliest townhouses, or those dating back to the 18th century, were city dwellings with a very small footprint that spanned multiple floors, often as many as six or more. This iteration of the townhouse was typically owned by a wealthy family, often included servants’ quarters, and allowed the home to be within walking distance of necessary amenities.

These original townhouses were usually constructed from brick and still exist in many dense cities—most notably New York City—to this day, though it’s rare for new ones of this nature to be built.

Modern townhouses—or row houses, as they’re often called—are a bit different in that they can be found not just in cities but almost any urban or suburban area. No longer reserved solely for the wealthy, the contemporary townhouse is an affordable alternative to the detached single-family residence and may be built in a variety of styles, using a variety of materials. They are generally characterized, however, by a continuous roof and foundation with a single wall dividing each adjacent unit from the next.

Advantages

• Affordable
• Low maintenance
• Often close to amenities
• Greater security

Disadvantages

• Minimal outdoor space
• Less privacy
• Reduced square footage
• Typically overseen by a HOA

Ranch House Style

Nestled amongst neighboring houses and mature trees, this Los Altos residence is a modern interpretation of a ranch style home that maintains a sense of privacy and offers its clients, a young family, reprieve from the bustle of daily activities. Photo by Nic Lehoux

The Ranch style house can be traced back to the 1930s in California, where it emerged as one of the most popular American styles in the 1950s and ’60s, according to the NAR. The style harkens back to Spanish Colonial and Prairie and Craftsman homes and is known for its one-story, pitched-roof construction, built-in garage, wood or brick exterior walls, sliding and picture windows, and sliding doors leading to patios. These homes are typically one story.

Advantages

• Low maintenance
• Affordable
• Easy to design
• Easy to evacuate

Disadvantages

• Requires more property
• Limited design flexibility
• Can feel cramped
• Smaller yard

Italianate House Style

Localized primarily in San Francisco, the Midwest, and along the East Coast, Italianate-style homes rose to prominence in the mid-1800s and derived inspiration from traditional Italian architecture. Unlike most styles, Italianate homes are not defined by their form but exclusively by their ornamentation—as such, one might find Italianate-style homes in a variety of shapes and sporting any number of floors, though a square footprint is most common.

Italianate-style homes were usually constructed from brick, stone, and stucco. These homes may be identified by their small, irregularly-set chimneys; towers and belvederes; overhanging eaves supported by decorative brackets; tall, narrow bay windows; elaborate supports, columns, and door frames; cast-iron embellishments; and entryway porticoes.

Advantages

• Excellent curb appeal
• Ideal for large families
• Durable and long-lasting
• High ceilings

Disadvantages

• High maintenance
• Can be expensive to repair
• Not as accessible to those with mobility issues
• Often require more involved landscaping

Cape Cod House Style

Photo courtesy of APV Engineered Coatings

Cape Cods are some of the earliest houses built in the US—dating back to the 17th century in New England when the first colonial style Cape Cods were shingle-sided, one-story cottages with no dormers. During the mid-20th century the small, simple style was prevalent in suburban developments. The style evolved into a square or rectangular structure with one- or one-and-a-half stories, accompanied by steeply pitched, gabled roofs. It may have dormers and shutters. The siding on cape cod style houses is usually clapboard or brick.

Advantages

• Inexpensive to build
• Flexible design options
• Curb appeal
• Built to last

Disadvantages

• Relatively small floorplan
• Frequently have low ceilings
• Difficult to expand
• Hot second floor

Dutch Colonial House Style

As the name suggests, the Dutch Colonial-style house originated with Dutch (Netherlands and German) settlers in the Pennsylvania Colony sometime during the early 1600s. These early iterations typically possessed only a single room, though it gradually became commonplace to add additions on either end of the house, resulting in a very distinct, linear floor plan that persists to this day.

Dutch Colonial-style homes are most commonly identified by their distinct gambrel—or hipped—roofs with sloped, flared eaves, but there are versions which implement non-hipped roofs as well. Most Dutch Colonial-style houses featured stone and brick or clapboard walls set on a stone foundation and were built to either one-and-a-half to two stories high.

Notable characteristics of the Dutch Colonial-style home include double-hung sash windows, an offset double Dutch door, large rooms, and a porch along both of the home’s long sides.

Advantages

• High resale value
• Large square footage
• Simple layout
• Ideal for families

Disadvantages

• Can be inaccessible to those with mobility issues
• Feature distinct rooms rather than an open floor plan
• Can be expensive
• Costly maintenance and repairs

Spanish Colonial House Style

Casa Zero is a prime example of the Spanish Colonial-style home. Photo courtesy of CarbonShack

First appearing in North America during the 1600s with the arrival of Spanish settlers, Spanish Colonial-style homes would remain popular until the mid-1800s before gradually falling out of style—for a time, that is. Influenced by the traditional architecture of Spain, Spanish Colonial-style homes are designed with warm, dry climates in mind and can be found primarily throughout the Southwest, California, and Florida.

Key characteristics of the Spanish Colonial-style home include red clay roof tiles, thick adobe walls covered in white stucco, small windows, wooden support beams (like those found in Pueblo-style homes), arched doorways, extensive use of terra-cotta tiles, wrought iron grillwork, and a central or rear courtyard.

Spanish Colonial-style homes would later go on to influence the Spanish Revival and Spanish Eclectic styles, both of which share many of the same features and characteristics. The Spanish Colonial-style house is also considered the ancestor of our modern Ranch-style house.

Advantages

• Designed for easy cooling
• Rich, aesthetically-pleasing character
• Indoor-outdoor living
• Use of natural, sustainable materials

Disadvantages

• Often susceptible to water damage
• Not suitable for all climates
• Can be high maintenance
• Expensive to build or buy

Greek Revival House Style

Archaeological findings of the early 1800s—combined with growing support for Greece’s 1820s war for independence—reignited an interest in classical Greek architecture amongst the American populace, out of which the Greek Revival-style home was born. These homes quickly grew in popularity and are found in New England, the Midwest, the South, and even parts of California.

Characterized by a return to Classical features and ornamentation, Greek Revival-style homes may be identified by their gabled or hipped roofs, wide-trimmed roof cornices, full-height or full-width porches, dramatic entryway columns, elaborate door surrounds, pilasters, and a front door surrounded by narrow windows.

Inside, a Greek Revival-style home typically featured a simple and relatively open floor plan, wide plank floors, plain and unadorned plaster walls, ornate plasterwork ceilings and ceiling mantels, as well as tall windows and doors.

Advantages

• High curb appeal
• Symmetrical design
• Relatively easy to maintain
• Large, spacious rooms

Disadvantages

• Can be expensive to maintain
• Costly to repair
• May appear imposing
• Difficult to heat and cool

Georgian House Style

Named after England’s four King Georges, the Georgian-style home draws influence from the elaborate home designs of England and rose to popularity in the US during the 18th century.

Traditional Georgian-style homes were typically constructed from brick or stone that was then covered in stucco and are characterized by symmetry—both in form and window placement—paired chimneys, side-gabled roofs, Doric columns, a pediment above the front entryway, and a transom window over a paneled front door.

Inside, Georgian-style homes often feature spacious rooms, high ceilings, and timber paneling, as well as decorative plaster cornicing, ceiling roses, ironwork, and pared-down Romanesque detailing. Rooms might make use of either wooden or tile flooring and typically featured a pastel color scheme or delicately-patterned wallpaper.

Advantages

• High curb appeal
• Symmetrical design
• Ideal for families
• Large, well-proportioned rooms

Disadvantages

• Rarely have front porches
• Higher maintenance costs
• Renovations require specialists
• Expensive to buy or build

Tuscan House Style

Inspired by the traditional architecture of the northern Italian region of Tuscany, Tuscan-style homes share certain elements with both the Italianate and Spanish Colonial styles of home. Tuscan-style homes are characterized by the use of rough-cut stone, terra-cotta barrel tile roofs, stucco and plaster walls, wrought-iron railings and detailing, as well as an irregular footprint with additive forms.

Tuscan home interiors typically feature high, vaulted ceilings, arched doorways, exposed wooden beams, and wood and tile flooring. Most Tuscan-style homes have multiple fireplaces with prominent chimneys and often include a rear or side courtyard.

Advantages

• Rustic charm
• High curb appeal
• Large, sprawling layout
• Ideal for families

Disadvantages

• Can be difficult to heat evenly
• Very expensive to build or buy
• Often require more intensive landscaping
• Maintenance can be costly

Shotgun House Style

It’s said that if you fire a shotgun through the front doorway of a Shotgun-style house, the slug will exit directly out the back door—and while that’s certainly not something we advise, it should give you a pretty good idea of the layout of this particular style of home.

Identifiable by their long, narrow appearance, Shotgun-style homes are usually single-story, rectangular buildings whose rooms are arranged in linear fashion, one behind the other—a typical layout placed the living room first, followed by two bedrooms in succession, and a kitchen at the back. A bathroom might be included before the last room or as a side addition to the kitchen.

Most Shotgun-style houses are capped by a gabled roof that overhangs the front entry to create a full front porch supported by decorative brackets and ornamentation. Rooms in a Shotgun-style house are fairly spacious and typically feature high ceilings, as well as some form of decoration such as elaborate woodwork or molding.

Advantages

• Easy to heat and cool
• Extremely low build cost
• Possess a large front porch
• Ideal for cross ventilation

Disadvantages

• Small and narrow
• Less privacy
• No central hallway
• Little-to-no yard space

Classic Cottage House Style

Popular in New England during the mid-19th century, the Classic Cottage-style home is considered to be an evolution of the traditional Cape Cod-style home. Classic Cottages keep the one-and-a-half story, eaves-front form characteristic of the Cape Cod, but incorporates certain elements of Greek Revival-style homes, such as flat corner columns, a wide cornice band beneath the eaves, flat entablature and pilasters around the front door (which may or may not be centered), sidelights alongside the door, and six-over-six windows.

Advantages

• Large and spacious
• Ideal for families
• Simple but elegant details
• Energy-efficient

Disadvantages

• Small, almost non-existent front porch
• Can be high maintenance
• Considered boxy and unattractive by some
• Can be expensive to build or buy

Craftsman House Style

First popularized by architect and furniture designer Gustav Stickley in his magazine, The Craftsman, at the turn of the 20th century, Craftsman-style homes are similar to the conventional bungalow but lack any sort of real ornamentation. According to Stickley, the incredible simplicity of the Craftsman home was meant to evoke a natural, almost organic character that allowed the home to blend in with any landscape.

Some of the most common materials used in Craftsman house design include rough-hewn wood, natural stone, and stucco. Identifying exterior features typically include a low-slung gabled roof, overhanging eaves, and very wide front porches, of which were often framed by squat tapered columns on elevated pedestals.

Craftsman-style homes are generally designed around an open floor plan and might include interior elements like exposed roof rafters or beamed ceilings, handcrafted furniture, and dark wooden molding and wainscoting.

Advantages

• Typically have large porches
• Handcrafted aesthetic
• Lower build cost
• Sustainable building materials

Disadvantages

• Some may find them plain
• Low square footage and smaller room size
• Susceptible to termite damage
• Upkeep can be expensive

Mediterranean House Style

Mediterranean-style houses may be identified by their red-tiled roofs. Photo courtesy of Quarrix

Mediterranean style houses are known for their low-pitched red-tiled roofs—often clad in terra-cotta—as well as an exterior that incorporates brick or stucco, often painted white. They often offer sprawling layouts with arched windows and doorways and even wrought-iron balconies and beautiful gardens.

Advantages

• Large floorplan
• High ceilings
• Natural ventilation
• Durable

Disadvantages

• Expensive to maintain
• Not suited for colder climates
• More prone to pests
• Utility bills

Victorian House Style

Two Victorian style houses in Ocean Grove, New Jersey. Photo by Paul VanDerWerf

You’ll know it’s a Victorian when you see Gothic influences and intricate woodwork. Victorian style houses often have pitched roofs, wraparound front porches, cylindrical turrets, and roof towers. Victorian architecture dates from the second half of the 19th century, when America was exploring new approaches to building and design, the NAR says. The last true Victorians were built in the early 1900s, but contemporary builders often borrow Victorian ideas, combining modern materials with 19th century details like curved towers and spindled porches.

Advantages

• Curb appeal
• Design flexibility
• History
• Many rooms

Disadvantages

• Higher maintenance
• More energy to heat/cool
• Smaller rooms
• Less storage

Bungalow House Style

A concrete bungalow is connected to the bay through a covered terrace on this property. This bungalow houses the TV room and an additional bedroom with its own bathroom, responding to the need for a more private space for possible visitors. Photo by Rafael Gamo

A bungalow is considered to be a fairly narrow, rectangular one-and-one-half-story house, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The beloved style originated in California in the late 19th century in response to the elaborate decoration of Victorian homes.

Bungalows are known by their low-pitched gabled or hipped roofs and small covered porches at the entry. The style was so popular in the early 1900s that “bungalow kits” were even sold in the Sears and Roebuck catalog. In 1918 some of the most popular house kits, including bungalows, cost roughly $3,600 to $4,600, according to an article from Forbes.

Advantages

• Accessibility
• Affordability
• Open floor plans
• Low maintenance
• Considered a good investment

Disadvantages

• Higher cost per square foot than two-story home
• Limited storage
• Smaller bedrooms
• Some consider outdated

Tudor House Style

Tudor style house. Photo by Daryl Mitchell

When you think of a storybook house, there’s a good chance you imagine a Tudor style home. This architecture popular in the 1920s and ’30s continues to be a favorite in suburbs across the US, according to the NAR. Tudors are known for their half-timbering on bay windows and upper floors and facades dominated by one or more steeply pitched cross gables. Patterned brick or stone walls are common, as are rounded doorways, multi-paned casement windows, and large stone chimneys.

Advantages

• Curb appeal
• Interior design flexibility
• Durable roofing
• Large floorplan

Disadvantages

• Lack of natural light
• Upfront expense
• Higher maintenance
• Heavy architectural proportions

Adam House Style

Adam-style homes—named after the brothers who popularized the design in Britain—are localized almost exclusively along the East Coast and rose to prominence in the late 1700s before falling out of style in the early-to-mid 1800s.

The Adam-style is synonymous with the Federal-style of architecture and is characterized by a reintegration of Greek and Roman elements. Resembling the Georgian style in form, Adam-style homes often possess a square or rectangular footprint, run two rooms deep, and rise two to three stories off the ground. They are usually built from brick, feature an extremely flat facade, and are capped by a side-gabled roof.

Adam-style houses may be distinguished from their Georgian predecessors by their dramatic front door with sidelights and semicircular fan light, a central arched Palladian window, carved white columns, molding, and garlands with delicate detailing.

Advantages

• Highly symmetrical
• Incredibly durable
• Possess a historic charm
• High square footage

Disadvantages

• Can be difficult to modernize
• Repairs and maintenance are likely to be costly
• Multiple levels pose accessibility challenges
• Exterior can appear imposing or lifeless

Barn House Style

Rather than imitate the traditional farmhouse, Barn-style homes seek to mimic barns themselves—and as such, may be built in a variety of designs. One of the most well-known barn designs utilizes a gambrel roof, or a symmetrical two-side roof that features two distinct slopes at different pitches. Hip-roofed and gable-roofed Barn-style homes are also popular.

Regardless of their design, Barn-style homes typically make use of either a timber frame or post-and-beam frame, both of which support an open floor plan that allows for a spacious interior. Almost all Barn-style homes are clad in some form of wood plank siding, with the most common being vertical plank, board-and-batten, and shiplap.

Predictably, Barn-style houses are characterized by a rustic aesthetic and prominently feature exposed wood, handcrafted furniture, and sliding barn doors in their designs.

Advantages

• Rustic charm
• High ceilings
• Open floor plan
• Use of sustainable materials

Disadvantages

• Susceptible to water damage
• May run into permit or building code issues
• Can be harder to sell
• Require frequent maintenance

Pueblo House Style

Also referred to as Pueblo Revival and Santa Fe, the Pueblo-style of home is heavily influenced by both the traditional architecture of the Pueblo people—who inhabited what is now known as the Southwestern United States—and Spanish Colonial style. Modern Pueblo-style homes originated in the early 20th century and are localized primarily within the Southwestern states, particularly New Mexico and Arizona.

Like the original Pueblo buildings, Pueblo-style homes typically make at least minor use of adobe in their construction, though brick and concrete often make up the majority, if not the entirety, of the structure itself. Walls are then covered in stucco and painted over using desert earth tones. Because they are built from materials with a high thermal mass and are designed for use in hot, dry climates, Pueblo-style homes are incredibly energy-efficient.

Pueblo-style homes are identifiable by their thick, sloping walls, rounded corners, irregular parapets, and flat roofs. Projecting wooden roof beams or vigas—which may or may not serve a structural purpose—and curved corbel beam supports are common characteristics in Pueblo house design.

Advantages

• Energy-efficient in hot, dry climates
• Traditionally built from sustainable materials
• Ideal design for natural ventilation
• Aesthetically-appealing

Disadvantages

• Can be high maintenance
• Vulnerable to water damage
• May not comply with modern building codes
• Require a stronger foundation

Queen Anne House Style

Emerging in the United States during the late-Victorian and early-Edwardian periods (1880 – 1910), the Queen Anne-style of home is not as strictly defined as some other styles and covers a wide range of distinct architectural elements.

Typically sporting an asymmetrical facade that utilizes different wall textures, Queen Anne-style houses often feature a prominent front-facing gable, overhanging eaves, pyramidal/hipped slate or wooden roofs, oriel and bay windows, bands of leaded windows, classical columns, elaborate trim, latticework, and pedimented porches. Traditional Queen Anne-style homes span at least two floors (or at least a finished attic) and may incorporate round, square, or polygonal towers as well as second-story balconies or porches.

Wainscoting, window surrounds, door surrounds, and other detailing can be found throughout the interior and rooms are usually asymmetrical in design—as such, Queen Anne-style homes generally lack a central hallway.

Of all the characteristics of the Queen Anne-style, however, the wrap-around, L-shaped front porch is perhaps the most significant and remained a staple even in the simplified Queen Anne cottages and unadorned Shingle style-homes—offshoots of the Queen Anne-style that became popular in rural areas during the early 1900s.

Advantages

• Charming and unique
• Extremely photogenic
• Large wrap-around front porch
• Potential tax incentives/benefits for restoration

Disadvantages

• Can be difficult to heat and cool
• Often costly to build or restore
• Lack a central hallway
• May be difficult to find a suitable contractor

Split-Level House Style

Split-level house. Photo by Kyle Sanguin Photography

As the name suggests, Split-level homes are a style of house characterized by split or staggered floor levels. Emerging in the years following World War II, split-level style homes became increasingly commonplace with the proliferation and expansion of post-war suburbs and remain a popular housing style to this day.

There are five widely recognized variations of the split-level home, including:

• Side-split. The most popular type of split-level home in which all three levels are staggered and visible from the front elevation; bedrooms are typically housed above the garage while the main living area is positioned off to the side part-way above and part-way below the bedroom level and garage level, respectively.
• Backsplit. Appears as a single-story home from the front elevation and a two-story home from the back; ideal for building on an incline.
• Split-entry. Consists of a one-level improvement with a basement and two short sets of stairs; the entry is considered to be “between” the floors and the basement is often only partially constructed below-grade.
• Stacked split. Typically features five to six floors instead of three or four, with the additional floors (usually bedrooms) stacked on top of the secondary living area; contains four to five sets of stairs.
• Bi-level. The front door in a bi-level home opens to a landing with a set of stairs leading up and a set leading down; the lower floor is often partially below ground but may also be at-grade, in which case an outdoor staircase is needed to reach the front door.

Regardless of how the home is split, a typical split-level house appears as a lowered Colonial on one side and a Ranch on the other side. All contain at least two sets of short stairs and typically span either three (tri-level) or four (quad) distinct levels.

Advantages

• Affordable
• Ideal for families
• High square footage
• Distinct living spaces

Disadvantages

• Inaccessible for those with restricted mobility
• Sometimes considered unattractive
• Can be difficult to sell
• Harder to remodel

Neo-Eclectic House Style

A Neo-Eclectic home. Photo courtesy of Westlake Royal Building Products

Considered an outgrowth of postmodern architecture, the Neo-Eclectic house style can be best described as an amalgamation of different architectural elements found in a variety of revival-type home styles. Many Neo-Eclectic homes combine design elements from multiple architectural styles in the same building.

Architects in different regions often draw upon various styles when designing these homes, with the Mediterranean Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival styles being incredibly influential on the West Coast and the Georgian Revival, Colonial Revival, Tudor Revival, and Cape Cod styles greatly influencing the design of Neo-Eclectic homes along the East Coast.

Regardless of region the stylistic elements of Neo-Eclectic homes are almost always superficial, existing only for decorative purposes. Surface-level claddings like architectural stone or stucco veneer are often used in place of their structural counterparts and many Neo-Eclectic homes take advantage of external insulation and finish systems (EIFS), which may be shaped, textured, and colored to mimic a variety of materials.

Advantages

• Large and spacious
• Ideal for families
• Built-in garages
• Have a modern feel

Disadvantages

• Considered unoriginal and pretentious
• Often make use of cheaper materials
• Require frequent maintenance and repairs
• Harder to heat and cool efficiently

Colonial House Style

Inside and outside Bajío 307, Talavera-inspired tiles decorate the walls—a nod to the colonial property’s original decor. Photo by Onnis Luque

The NAR considers the Colonial style as including any house that is rectangular and symmetrical with bedrooms on the second floor. The double-hung windows usually have many small, equally sized square panes. From the late 1800s throughout the 20th century builders made Colonial Revival homes with elegant central hallways and elaborate cornices, according to the NAR. Unlike the original Colonials, Colonial Revival homes are often sided in white clapboard and trimmed with black or green shutters.

Advantages

• Curb appeal
• Privacy (distinct rooms)
• Large floorplan
• Grand front entrance

Disadvantages

• Mobility
• Isolated rooms
• Standard ceiling heights
• Limited light fixture options

Industrial House Style

The house’s materiality—including concrete, stone, and Corten steel—connects the project to the existing home through a large courtyard. The courtyard acts as storm water retention and is defined by gabion walls, which are seen throughout the project to define indoor/outdoor courtyard spaces. Photo by Casey Dunn

An industrial style house typically refers to a home with a simple aesthetic that emphasizes materials like concrete or exposed ductwork.

The industrial style has become increasingly popular in the US in recent decades. Industrial interior design may appear cold to some, but when paired with rich textures and the warm whites and woods often seen in Scandinavian style homes, it has a cozy effect.

Advantages

• Simple, raw materials
• Open space
• Flexible design
• Cost

Disadvantages

• Noise control
• Aesthetics
• Skilled labor
• Upfront cost

Most Popular Home Styles of Last Five Years

In the US four house styles have repeatedly dominated the housing market over the last five years, according to data gathered by American Home Shield. Those are the Ranch, Traditional, Colonial, and Contemporary.

These styles, especially the Ranch home, have remained popular in large part thanks to their affordability and overall practicality, qualities that make them ideal for families.

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The post The Most Popular Home Architecture Styles in 2024 appeared first on gb&d magazine.

• Climate responsive architecture is designed with local weather patterns in mind to reduce energy needs.
• Most climate responsive buildings implement elements of passive solar design and utilize passive ventilation strategies.
• Implementing climate responsive architecture on a large scale is key to mitigating the effects of climate change.

In 2022 the built environment was responsible for producing 14.6 gigatons of carbon dioxide, making it one of the largest contributors of greenhouse gas emissions and a driving force of climate change. With severe, climate change–induced weather events increasing in frequency each year, the need for resilient, energy-efficient architecture has never been more apparent.

To achieve this some of today’s common architectural designs have to be adapted in favor of designs that reflect for the changing world of weather conditions. To reduce energy demands from heating, cooling, and powering built structures, architects must utilize passive design strategies informed by a project site’s unique environmental characteristics. In short, we must prioritize climate responsive architecture.

What is Climate Responsive Architecture?

The Exploratorium’s move to Pier 15 provides a prime waterfront location for this internationally acclaimed museum of science and perception. The complexity of the program was matched by the challenge of rehabilitating an existing historic structure in the most energy-efficient manner possible. To that end, the building takes advantage of the original pier building’s natural lighting and the water of the Bay for cooling and uses materials that are both sustainable and durable enough to withstand a harsh maritime climate. The result is the country’s largest Net Zero Energy museum. Photo by Bruce Damonte

In the fundamental sense climate responsive architecture is the architectural approach that focuses on designing energy-efficient buildings uniquely suited to the climate in which they are constructed. These buildings’ designs are informed by, and reflective of, local weather conditions.

By taking into account things like seasonality, solar pathing, natural shading, ambient humidity, and annual rainfall patterns, climate responsive buildings and infrastructure work with, rather than against, the local climate to provide maximum occupant comfort using the least amount of energy possible. This is achieved in large part through the careful and strategic implementation of passive design strategies.

This approach is also crucial in preparing towns and cities for the increasing frequency of severe weather events linked to climate change. It was only within the last century or so that many traditional architectural practices were abandoned in favor of universal architectural designs that typically fail to take into account local climate factors—something many architects are beginning to see the pitfalls of.

“Increasingly architects and designers are realizing that building designs need to reflect the conditions of the area in which they are located,” Prasoon Shrivastava, CEO and founder of Prasoon Design Studio, previously wrote for gb&d. “For example, buildings in warm climates should utilize tinted windows to cool off the space, rather than air conditioning units.” In designing with local climatic factors in mind, architects are able to both reduce their projects’ carbon emissions and create healthier spaces for their clients, Shrivastava says.

Why is Climate Responsive Architecture Important?

HMTX Industries’ new world headquarters is set to become Connecticut’s greenest building when it opens in Norwalk in 2022. Photo courtesy of HMTX Industries

As our world continues to suffer the consequences of advanced climate change, we must radically rethink the way in which the built environment is designed. New construction projects should be designed to withstand extreme weather events while also contributing as little as possible to the very factors responsible for changing climate patterns—namely the burning of fossil fuels and destruction of carbon-sequestering natural resources.

Emphasizing climate responsive architecture is important because it addresses both of these concerns. As one of its core principles, climate responsive design prioritizes passive heating, cooling, and ventilation strategies—all of which reduce a building’s energy consumption and carbon emissions. Climate responsive architecture also seeks to construct buildings that are capable of surviving the natural disasters endemic to a region, as this reduces the amount of energy, money, and resources spent on repairs or rebuilding entirely.

All in all, climate responsive design is important because it ultimately helps reduce carbon emissions, limits waste production, and creates safe, long-lasting structures.

Benefits of Climate Responsive Architecture

Inspired by the Pacific Ocean, the Tom Bradley International Terminal’s site-responsive roofline optimizes building performance by reducing solar glare and heat from the ocean from the west and bathes the terminal in natural light from the northeast. Photo by Nick Merrick

Designing climate responsive buildings is beneficial for a variety of reasons, for both the individual and the planet at large.

Environmental Sustainability

One of the main benefits of climate responsive architecture is that it helps facilitate environmental sustainability. Climate responsive buildings achieve this by improving energy-efficiency, conserving water, reducing carbon emissions, and protecting natural resources through the prioritization of low-carbon and low-impact materials.

Because they are built to respond to and withstand local climatic conditions, climate responsive structures also have a longer operational lifespan, which helps reduce material waste and prevents further resource extraction.

Reduced Operating Costs

One of the hallmarks of climate responsive building design is the use of natural, passive systems—e.g. natural ventilation, daylighting, and passive solar heating—in place of active, mechanical ones. These passive systems rely on natural phenomena rather than electricity to function and therefore significantly reduce a building’s energy consumption, resulting in greatly reduced energy-related operating costs.

Extensive implementation of passive systems in climate responsive buildings can reduce energy consumption by as much as 90%.

Enhanced Occupant Comfort & Productivity

When passive systems are implemented correctly with regard to local climatic conditions, climate responsive buildings provide improved occupant comfort—and even enhance productivity—compared to those buildings reliant solely on active systems. Through the use of elements like proper insulation, passive solar design, daylighting, and natural airflow, climate responsive buildings create a pleasant, thermally regulated indoor environment all year round.

Natural daylight, for example, is crucial to maintaining the body’s circadian rhythm and has a host of both psychological and physiological benefits. “By exposing your body to daylight throughout the day, your healthy human circadian rhythm will have a significant role in regulating your sleep-wake cycle and have a positive impact on your eating habits and digestion, body temperature, hormone release, and other important bodily functions,” Neall Digert, vice president of innovation and market development at Kingspan Light + Air, wrote in a previous gb&dPRO article.

Similarly, natural ventilation provides occupants with constant fresh air, something studies have shown helps improve oxygen flow to the brain, resulting in enhanced cognitive function, concentration, and memory retention.

Improved Resiliency

I stands to reason that buildings designed in accordance with local climatic conditions boast improved resiliency over those built and constructed in a universal style without regard to the region’s environmental factors. Climate responsive buildings are better prepared to withstand both a region’s regular weather and its most frequent natural disasters, resulting in increased safety for occupants and fewer damages incurred as a result of severe weather events.

Challenges of Climate Responsive Architecture

When designing their new headquarters Studio Ma wanted to include a blackwater-to-potable water recycling system, but local regulations prevented them from doing so. Photo by Bill Timmerman

Despite the numerous benefits associated with climate responsive design, this particular field of architecture is not without its challenges.

Upfront Costs

While it’s true that the cost of building sustainable, climate-ready structures has significantly decreased over the last several decades, the fact remains that the upfront costs associated with climate responsive architectural projects are still marginally higher than conventional construction projects. Climate responsive buildings are comparable in cost to those built to Passive House standards and typically cost 3 to 5% more to build on average.

This is partially due to the cost of using sustainable materials—of which there is greater competition for compared to traditional building materials—but more directly linked to the fact that climate responsive building projects typically take longer and are more complex to plan as a result of their site-specific optimization.

Regulatory Roadblocks

Building codes and regulations have come a long way with regard to HVAC energy efficiency and thermal insulation minimum requirements, but there’s still a noticeable lack of regulations in support of or incentivizing climate responsive design principles.

This is largely because most code development adoption processes operate on a three-year schedule and require all proposed changes to pass a cost-effectiveness test in isolation before they are integrated into the new code—a practice that can hinder the adoption of highly interconnected, holistic climate responsive principles that work in conjunction with one another.

To make matters worse, many decision makers in the code adoption process—or the politicians and lobbyists who have influence over a state’s building code council—do not support the updating of energy-efficiency code standards due to the misconstrued belief that such changes would drastically increase building and housing costs.

Regulatory challenges can be remedied in part by involving more sustainability professionals experienced in climate responsive design in the committees that oversee building code reevaluations.

Lack of Education & Experience

Despite being a centuries-old practice, climate responsive design in the modern era has been largely absent from the curriculums of up-and-coming architects, leaving them ill-prepared to address the growing demand for sustainable, climate-ready buildings.

This is in large part thanks to the development and proliferation of a “universal” style of architecture, of whose associated technologies (e.g. interior climate control), materials (e.g. concrete and steel), and design elements have largely supplanted many local vernacular architectural styles around the world.

Even those architects who do have an interest in pursuing climate responsive projects often find themselves facing a steep learning curve. Modern climate responsive design relies heavily on the use of various planning and preconstruction software programs, many of which require additional training before they can be mastered.

Climate responsive design also relies heavily on the integration of passive systems and use of sometimes unconventional building materials or strategies—of which construction companies, contractors, engineers, and other AEC professionals may not have adequate experience working with.

Core Elements of Climate Responsive Design

Climate responsive design may be realized in a wide variety of ways, but it is these key elements that truly tie the field of climate responsive architecture together.

Site Analysis & Integration

Designed by Whitten Architects, the Binnacle Hill Residence is strategically oriented to make efficient use of natural sunlight and solar energy. Photo by Trent Bell Photography

Climate responsive design starts with a thorough site analysis—that is, a detailed examination of a proposed project site’s geographical and climatic characteristics. In conducting a site analysis, architects are able to collect data on the natural topography, average annual rainfall, high and low temperatures, humidity patterns, sunlight exposure throughout the year, and more.

In knowing how these factors impact a project site, architects can make more informed design decisions as to the building’s orientation, layout, ventilation, and heating/cooling needs while also providing insight as to the types of weather events and disasters it must be able to withstand.

An in-depth understanding of the site and local environmental factors also makes it easier to integrate the building into the landscape rather than simply impose the building on top of it. In this regard climate responsive design shares some similarities with regenerative architecture.

Passive Solar Design & Energy Efficiency

Westcoat offers both solar reflective waterproofing and concrete coating systems. These systems help combat the urban heat island effect and cooling loads by lowering surface temperatures. Photo by Westcoat

To reduce a building’s electric heating and cooling loads, climate responsive architecture employs a design strategy known as passive solar design. Passive solar design seeks to use the building’s basic features—that is, windows, floors, and walls—to reflect, store, and redistribute solar heat as a means of controlling interior temperatures without the aid of mechanical systems.

By taking into account the sun’s position throughout the year, windows and sun-shades can be effectively placed so as to allow high solar heat admittance during the colder months and low solar heat during warm months.

In urban areas where shade is scarce, climate responsive architecture may make use of solar-reflective or cooling coatings—such as those offered by APV or Westcoat—on concrete and paved surfaces. When applied, these coatings help redirect sunlight (instead of absorbing it) and reduce surface temperatures, which in turn reduces energy needed for air conditioning and combats the urban heat island effect.

Passive solar design also prioritizes the use of high thermal mass flooring materials—such as stone, concrete, brick, or dirt—as these materials collect and store heat during the day and release it gradually throughout the night. When paired with proper insulation and ventilation, this heat can either be trapped during the winter or directed back outside during the summer.

Optimizing Natural Airflow & Ventilation

An energy-efficient envelope, passive ventilation strategies, and shading from the roof reduce energy consumption. Photo by Hufton+Crow Photography

Similarly, climate responsive architecture seeks to utilize natural airflow as much as possible while still maintaining adequate ventilation, as this too helps reduce the need for electric cooling.

Generally speaking, there are two types of natural ventilation methods: wind-driven and buoyancy-driven. Predictably, wind-based ventilation—which may or may not be paired with evaporative cooling techniques—uses natural air currents to move cool air throughout a building, whereas buoyancy-driven ventilation utilizes the differences in density between warm and cool air to create an upward airstream.

Wind-driven ventilation has a long history in traditional climate responsive architectural styles, with perhaps the most well-known being the wind towers, or badgir, of Iran, which feature openings at the top that capture prevailing winds and redirect them through ducts into a building’s interior. Similar styles of towers and wind-driven ventilation systems exist in many dry, arid climates, providing plenty of design inspiration and knowledge to draw from.

Carbon Reduction & Use of Sustainable Materials

Sustainable, low-carbon building materials were used in abundance to construct the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Center. Photo courtesy of Cushing Terrell

Climate responsive architecture aims to reduce carbon emissions by reducing the amount of energy required to heat and cool a building. In-use carbon emissions, however, only account for a portion of a building’s overall carbon footprint, as carbon is also produced to create the building materials used during construction.

For this reason climate responsive architecture attempts to use naturally sustainable building materials—e.g. earth, timber, stone, bamboo, etcetera—wherever possible, as these products typically have lower embodied carbon. Climate responsive design does not, however, seek to elevate a single or several materials to a new universal standard but emphasizes that material selection should always be influenced by local climatic conditions.

“A ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to construction, shaped by globalized, market-driven development, often creates a mismatch between material selection and place-specific climatic requirements” Elizabeth Golden, architect and founder of Elizabeth Golden Architecture, previously wrote for gb&d.

“As a result we might find massive concrete homes in tropical climates or wood frame construction in areas prone to extreme heat and fire. This disconnect between material systems and the local environment can cause poor building performance, increase energy consumption for things like air conditioning, or contribute to a structure’s vulnerability to extreme weather events like fire or hurricanes.”

Green Features & Biophilia

Green walls and roofs featuring indigenous plant species can help absorb carbon, cool buildings, and retain rainwater. Photo by greenscreen

Plants and overall biophilic design also plays an important role in climate responsive architecture. Green roofs and walls incorporating indigenous flora, for example, are a popular design element in regions with heavy rainfall, as they help absorb water that might otherwise contribute to flooding.

Green features also help dampen sound, absorb carbon dioxide, and regulate both interior and exterior temperatures, making for more energy efficient buildings.

“Nature based solutions such as planting trees, adding green roofs and walls, maintaining natural river systems, and implementing coastal-based storm surge protection like mangroves and wetlands to combat storm surges can have a significant effect on cities,” Charlene Mortale, division vice president of project management at greenscreen, previously wrote for gb&d. “At the same time these additions provide other benefits such as cooling the street level, adding pleasurable biophilic elements to our hardscapes, and making our cities livable.”

Companies like Greenscreen make it easier for architects to incorporate green features into their climate responsive projects, especially those in urban areas where natural greenery is scarce.

Disaster Resilience

As wildfires and other severe climate events become more frequent, it becomes increasingly important to design with disaster resiliency in mind. Photo by ROCKWOOL North America

The number of weather-related disasters—be it tropical storms, tornadoes, flooding, prolonged drought, wildfires, etc.—has increased by a factor of five over the last 50 years, largely due to the effects of climate change, according to a 2021 press-release issued by the World Meteorological Organization.

Fortunately disaster resiliency is something climate responsive architecture prioritizes, as a building that can withstand severe weather events and disasters while sustaining only minimal damage is a building that requires less energy and resources to repair or rebuild.

In areas prone to wildfires, for example, climate responsive buildings should be constructed from the ground up with fire-resistance in mind. This includes obvious features like fireproof or fire-retardant wall and roof materials, but also things like fire-resistant insulation. ROCKWOOL stone insulation, for example, is naturally non-combustible and capable of withstanding temperatures up to 2,150°F—qualities that help it drastically slow the spread of fires.

“Selecting stone wool insulation is an ideal solution for the challenges of building a high-performance home in a WUI [Wildland Urban Interface] zone,” Brendan Knapman, head of product management for ROCKWOOL, previously wrote for gb&d. “It makes it possible to achieve aggressive goals for energy efficiency as well as fire resilience.”

ROCKWOOL stone insulation has an R-value that falls between 3 and 3.3 per inch, making it more efficient than most fiberglass insulations, thereby reducing a building’s HVAC energy requirements.

Climate Responsive Design Resources

HGA designed the Westwood Hills Nature Center in St. Louis Park, Minnesota to be zero energy. Photo by Pete Sieger

Knowing which design features are best suited to a particular region’s climatic conditions is often easier said than done, especially when you factor climate change into the equation. Fortunately there are a plethora of resources available to architects, engineers, and urban planners that can help make designing climate responsive structures much simpler.

1. 2030 Palette

Created and curated by Architecture 2030, the 2030 Palette is an easily browsed, all-in-one database full of relevant sustainable design principles, strategies, tools, and resources that helps architects design responsive, zero-carbon buildings capable of adapting to changing climatic conditions.

2030 Palette provides insight into how climate-responsive design principles can be implemented at the regional, city/town, district, site, and building level. All five headings are subdivided into categories of a narrower, more detailed focus; the “building” subcategory, for example, is divided into earth shading, cool roof, cross ventilation, shading devices, and so on.

These subcategories direct the user to relevant resources, websites, and tools that provide more information as to how sustainable, climate-ready development may be realized in the selected area.

2030 Palette also highlights several climate and energy analysis tools—including Sefaira, Pathfinder, SUNREL, FenestraPro, Autodesk Insight, and EDGE—that can be used in conjunction with their principles to aid in the design process.

2. cove.tools

cove.tools is a cloud-based building design software network that offers a variety of program tools that make it easier for architects and engineers to design responsive, low-carbon buildings. Of the programs they offer, two are particularly relevant to AEC professionals: the analysis.tool and loadmodeling.tool.

Cove’s analysis.tool is a state-of-the-art 3D building performance analysis and energy modeling program that helps architects optimize their projects for energy use, carbon, and cost. Features include accurate daylight simulations informed by the sDA metric, sun-hour analysis and radiation studies for passive solar design, automated energy modeling based on project location, automated embodied carbon metric calculations and estimates, and more.

The loadmodeling.tool is a whole-building energy modeling program that lets engineers precisely size, coordinate, and optimize HVAC system design for peak energy efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. Engineers can use this tool to accurately estimate a building’s monthly, daily, and hourly energy consumption as well as run energy load simulations and perform sizing calculations.

3. CLIMATESCOUT

Developed by global architecture, planning, and design firm CallisonRTKL, CLIMATESCOUT lets AEC professionals easily determine which climate responsive design principles are most suited to the particular climate zone their project resides in. CLIMATESCOUT uses the Köppen-Geiger climate classification system, which recognizes a total of 31 unique climate zones around the world based on differences in seasonal temperatures, precipitation levels, and vegetation types.

This climate map allows users to choose the location of their project, after which point CLIMATESCOUT will identify the most readily applicable building design strategies outlined in Architecture 2030’s Palette, as well as a multi-layered diagram of those strategies in action.

CLIMATESCOUT is most useful in the early pre-construction stages as it provides architects with a general baseline as to which climate responsive design strategies are most feasible. While the program is not intended to completely bypass the need for a thorough site analysis, CLIMATESCOUT does provide an overview as to the current and future environmental factors that a project must be made to withstand and respond to.

4. US Climate Resilience Toolkit

Developed by NOAA in collaboration with several other departments in the US Global Change Research Program, the US Climate Resilience Toolkit functions as both a knowledge-sharing platform and an educational hub for architects, engineers, urban planners, and the general public alike.

As the name suggests the US Climate Resilience Toolkit provides access to a variety of tools, programs, portals, and software that can be used to manage climate-related risks and enhance the design of adaptable, responsive development projects. The toolkit also gives users access to a broad assortment of case studies as well as region-specific data on climate hazards, cultural responses, and best practices for facilitating climate resilience.

The US Climate Resilience Toolkit is also host to the National Environmental Modeling and Analysis Center’s Climate Explorer, a novel program that offers maps, graphs, and data downloads of both observed and projected climate variables for every county in the United States.

5. Climate Change World Weather File Generator

Developed by the University of South Hampton’s Energy and Climate Change Group, the Climate Change World Weather File Generator—or CCWorldWeatherGen—is an online resource that gives architects and engineers the ability to generate climate change weather files for virtually any location on earth.

CCWorldWeatherGen uses model summary data pulled from the IPCC’s Third Assessment Report’s HadCM3 A2 experiment ensemble to transform contemporary or ‘present day’ EnergyPlus Weather (EPW) files into climate change TMY2 or EPW files.

Once converted these files are compatible with most building performance simulation programs and allow architects to glean a better understanding of how local climatic conditions might impact or otherwise influence the overall efficiency and operation of the buildings they design.

Examples of Climate Responsive Architecture

Here are a few global examples of climate responsive architecture.

Niamey 2000, Niamey, Niger

The Niamey 2000 housing project used compressed earth blocks as the primary building material. Photo by T. Seidel

Designed by United4Design in collaboration with Elizabeth Golden, AIA, the Niamey 2000 building in Niamey, Niger expertly showcases how local, easily sourced materials can be used to construct resilient and efficient climate responsive buildings.

Niger’s modern urban housing projects are heavily influenced by the low-density styles of Western architecture and make use of materials like cinder blocks, concrete, and metal fixtures. Because these materials often need to be imported, housing costs become inflated as a result.

In an effort to remedy this affordable housing crisis, United4Design cofounder and Niamey native Mariam Kamara turned to a simpler, more efficient solution—unfired earth bricks. Sourced and produced locally, these earthen bricks are cheaper to manufacture, provide work for skilled laborers, and possess inherent thermal properties that help passively regulate interior temperatures.

“Earth-based construction provides a buffer against outdoor temperature fluctuations, slowing the transmission of sub-Saharan heat, which is a distinct advantage over other contemporary systems currently in use in Niger,” Golden previously told gb&d. Niamey 2000 also employs several other passive cooling techniques, including breezeways and wind-driven ventilation inlets/outlets, to help circulate air without the aid of mechanical air conditioning.

Urban Frontier House, Billings, MT

The LEED Platinum Urban Frontier House is a customized solution built by integrating existing systems in a new way to create a home that is scalable, replicable, and affordable. Photo by Clark Marten

Designed by High Plains Architects (HPA), the Urban Frontier House in Billings, Montana strives to be an affordable, replicable, and scalable model for climate responsive housing projects around the country.

Powered exclusively by wind and solar energy, the Urban Frontier House leverages the site’s natural phenomena to its full advantage, producing more energy that it uses in a year’s time and relying solely on harvested rainwater and snowmelt for its plumbing. To reduce the home’s embodied carbon footprint, locally-sourced, reclaimed, and renewable materials were used wherever possible.

One of the biggest challenges in designing the Urban Frontier House was ensuring that it was prepared to handle Montana’s extreme temperature fluctuations, which range between -36 and 108°F. Despite these extremes the home features no active heating or cooling but instead relies on abundant daylighting, blinds, natural ventilation, and a super insulated envelope made up of overlapping structural insulated panels to regulate heat gain/loss throughout the year.

“During Montana’s frigid winters, fresh air is circulated through the house using sun-warmed air from the garden room with the help of a 95% efficient Zehnder heat recovery ventilator,” Alex Tyler, marketing manager and project designer at HPA, wrote in a previous gb&d article. “To minimize the risk of freezing (a genuine concern during Montana’s winters), small radiant panels were installed as a last line of defense in key locations in some of the interior rooms.”

Cowboy Modern Desert Eco-Retreat, Pioneertown, CA

Designed by Jeremy Levine, the Cowboy Modern Desert Eco-Retreat uses passive solar design and wind-driven ventilation to reduce energy needs. Photo by Lance Gerber

Designed by Jeremy Levine Design, the Cowboy Modern Desert Eco-Retreat in Pioneertown, California is an excellent example of how climate responsive architecture can be implemented in hot, dry regions.

Deep in the Mojave desert, the retreat makes use of an open floor-plan and sliding glass doors to allow canyon winds to passively ventilate the building without the need for air conditioning. Other passive design features include the recycling of greywater for irrigation purposes.

The house itself takes the form of a simple rectangle and features a roof with a large overhang to provide ample shading while still allowing natural sunlight to filter in, eliminating the need for electric lighting during daytime hours. All wood used in the building’s construction was reclaimed from local demolition sites. Considering that reclaimed lumber typically has a lower moisture content than freshly cut wood, it is stronger and is less susceptible to damage caused by fluctuations in desert temperatures.

121 Seaport, Boston, MA

121 Seaport, designed by CBT. Photo by Chuck Choi

But climate responsive architecture isn’t limited to small-scale residences. It can also be realized in the form of skyscrapers and high-rises.

In Boston 121 Seaport is a 17-story office building designed by CBT that prioritizes sustainability and resilience in the face of adverse climatic events. Recognizable by its unique elliptical design, 121 Seaport is intentionally aligned so as to passively minimize solar heat gain—thereby reducing the need for electric air conditioning—and decrease stress from high winds.

“This building orientation also aligns with the prevailing wind direction, and its aerodynamic design reduces lateral wind force, decreasing the amount of structural reinforcement needed for the building by 30% and lowering the overall construction costs of the project,” David Nagahiro, principal architect at CBT, told gb&d in a previous interview.

121 Seaport also utilizes an energy-efficient chilled-beam system to circulate water—as opposed to air—to regulate temperatures when necessary and collects/recycles rainwater, reducing the building’s water consumption by 30%.

Binnacle Hill Residence, Kennebunkport, ME

Whitten Architects’ site-specific approach for the Binnacle Hill Residence in Kennebunkport, Maine maximizes solar exposure and forms a connection with the surrounding wooded landscape. Photo by Trent Bell Photography

Completed in 2019 and designed by Whitten Architects, the Binnacle Hill Residence in Kennebunkport, Maine is a private family residence designed with the local climate in mind.

Located in a heavily wooded area, the Binnacle Hill House makes extensive use of passive solar design strategies to reduce heating and cooling loads. “Our site-specific design angled the house just east of south for ideal solar exposure, while the primary living space was situated toward a sunny lawn space against a wooded edge,” Jessie Carroll, associate principal and project architect at Whitten Architects, previously told gb&d.

South-facing windows were installed to allow natural daylight to illuminate the interior and an exterior soffit helps protect south-facing doors from the elements. The positioning of these features, combined with a high thermal mass polished concrete floor, promote passive solar gains during winter while limiting admittance of solar energy in summer.

Conclusion

Reducing the built environment’s production of carbon emissions is crucial to slowing (and eventually reversing) the detrimental effects of climate change. At the same time the structures we build must be capable of withstanding the increasingly frequent climate disasters we find ourselves facing—and climate responsive architecture is a convenient means of doing both at the same time.

Rather than perpetuate increasingly inefficient and ill-prepared universal architectural designs, climate responsive architecture recognizes that the local climatic and geographic characteristics of a region must be considered when designing efficient, resilient structures.

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