Show me the green Show me the green (October 21, 2005)

Sustainable building techniques are more affordable than ever before

By Patricia Bass

Is green building -- a way of constructing and adapting homes to conserve energy, reduce waste and improve air quality - really affordable?

Over the last few years, prices for such things as installing photovoltaic solar panels to the roof for pollution-free energy or using recycled materials and sustainably grown wood are getting close in cost to the conventional alternatives.

"As far as photovoltaic systems, prices have been coming down. ... Obviously the incentives that are in place are a big cost reducer, depending on where you are," said Jack West, photovoltaic consulting engineer at High Sun Engineering in Guerneville.

State and federal incentives can bring down installation costs by as much as 50 percent, he added. A recently passed federal energy law, for example, calls for a new 30 percent tax credit for residential solar installations for two years. The credit is capped at $2,000, and applies to installations done between Jan. 1, 2006 and Dec. 31, 2007. (For details, visit www.californiasolarcenter.org.)

Drew Maran, president of Drew Maran Construction/Design, Inc. in Palo Alto, said he often makes the case for green systems and materials that save money initially as well as in the long term.

"For example, radiant heating systems can save space and costly framing labor by not needing big chases and additional furnaces that might be needed using forced-air systems."

He ticks off other savings:

** While cellulose insulation (made from 90 percent recycled newspapers) is initially more expensive than fiberglass, the installation is less because there's no need to provide air spaces around the insulation.

** Using recycled or salvaged materials is frequently less expensive than new materials. "It's less expensive to salvage and recycle than to take everything to the dump," he said.

** Tax benefits are available for tear-downs or major demolitions when the old house is donated to a nonprofit. "The tax credits can easily exceed the cost of the demolition," he said.

Build It Green, a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to promoting environmentally friendly building in California, aids builders and tackles this problem of cost-effective green homes.

"It depends on whether you go light green or really heavy green," program manager Katy Hollbacher said. "Cotton insulation costs more than fiberglass, as do most environmental materials, however they all save on energy bills in the long run."

Hollbacher also stressed the qualitative benefits of green building, such as the comfort and health that come with decreased toxins in the indoor air, which are impossible to price.

In addition, the Palo Alto Smart Energy program provides rebates for energy-saving upgrades to the home, and PaloAltoGreen is an optional program that supports renewable energy generation for a small additional cost.

Green building practices are not only reserved for the city and those who have the ability to commit to a new green-built house. Although mildly more expensive, it is still possible to adapt an existing home to be less environmentally destructive.

One way to start is through "buying green" by investing in EnergyStar appliances, low-emissivity windows (often called low-E) that let heat out in the summer and don't during the winter, formaldehyde-free insulation, and other certified green products.

"The easiest and cheapest way to save on energy bills is to add insulation in attics and walls to avoid artificial heating," Hollbacher said. "If you are willing to buy a new appliance, replacing an old refrigerator is the most bang for the buck, because you keep it on all the time."

In the Bay Area, opportunities to build (and adapt) houses through green practices are growing exponentially.

In Menlo Park, a new community of eco-friendly housing is under construction in the Belle Haven neighborhood. Built by Palo Alto-based Clarum Homes, the development will have solar power and will send its excess energy back to power utilities, reducing energy bills for the new owners.

Clarum Homes has been working on bridging the gap between environmentalism and affordability, with homes already sold in East Palo Alto and Watsonville at different price points, including some below market rate.

In the past few years, the 39 homes built in East Palo Alto by Clarum were designed to save up to 90 percent of monthly utility costs, according to Nicole Gittleson, Clarum's vice president of marketing. These zero-energy homes are constructed with sustainable building products, generate their own electricity with photovoltaic systems, and reduce energy consumption through on-demand hot water heaters, radiant roof barriers, high-efficiency furnaces and appliances, tightly sealed ducts, extra insulation and low-E windows.
This story originally ran in the Palo Alto Weekly, the Voice's sister paper. Weekly editor Carol Blitzer contributed to this story.

E-mail a friend a link to this story.