Modern building science has taught us a lot over the past decade or so. We've learned how to build houses better/differently than how they were built in the 20th and early 21st century. The consensus among skilled engineers and architects is that there are several key components that make up an efficient and healthy home. You can apply the concepts below whether you are building new or remodeling. These concepts and recommended products employ new, high-tech, yet often natural materials to accomplish a better build. Here’s a short list of priorities that make a huge impact:
1) Air Sealing - sealing your home to make it a tighter envelope and reducing bulk heat transfer and moisture/water vapor transportation (through air leaks) is crucial. You can employ air sealing techniques many different ways, but we always recommend a smart vapor membrane like SIGA’s Majrex-200, with fully taped seams and penetrations sealed with their Rissan-60 tape. This is your primary air control layer and will do the bulk of your air sealing, which will eliminate drafts, reduce unwanted/uncontrolled air exchange between the interior conditioned space and the exterior unconditioned space. The benefit here is that it increases your efficiency by reducing air leaks and airflow between your home and the outside world, and in doing so reduces the risk of condensation occurring in your walls, which leads to mold and rot. This is a crucial first step to efficiency and having a healthy home.
2) In-cavity insulation is no longer sufficient to meet many building codes. Today, it is best practice to employ a dual insulation strategy on a modern home - meaning the use of in-cavity batt insulation (within your home's framing) AND continuous exterior rigid board insulation (which sits outboard of your exterior wall sheathing). Exterior rigid board insulation allows for a contentious exterior layer of insulation around your home - like putting an extra layer or jacket on to stay comfortable.
This is also important because as we build homes with tighter air sealing requirements (point 1 from above), we need additional insulation to optimize a wall's moisture management performance. Simply put - if you are looking to manage the air and water vapor aspect of a home, you also need to better manage the thermal aspect - and rigid exterior insulation allows us to do that - dramatically increase a home's efficiency and comfort, while maintaining its integrity. Simply, it's one of the most important things you can do to help your home perform better and last a long time.
The amount of insulation you need exterior compared to the in-cavity insulation depends on your climate zone. Go Green Home Supply can help you sort through what you need in your situation.
Here's what you need:
3) Healthy interior air is an often overlooked aspect of home building and renovation. For too long, many homes have been built with products that have used unregulated synthetic plastics, glues, finishes, etc., yet we surround our families with them everyday. Things like flooring, insulation, paints, etc. all have components that have been proven detrimental to indoor air quality, or even be proven to cause cancer. For this reason, we should avoid things that are known to be a problem and have a "simple swap" alternative. One easy place to start is with insulation because it is a big culprit for indoor air pollution.
When we can avoid spray foam, which off-gasses toxic blowing agents, or formaldehyde laiden fiberglass or mineral wool batts, we easily eliminate one potent source putting us at risk. The "simple swap" is to use a more natural alternative insulation made from hemp, straw, cellulose, or wood fibers. This provides a healthier interior air environment for you and your family. They are natural, low in embodied carbon, and oftentimes biodegradable, which reduces their future waste impact. Yet, they are still excellent insulators and are able to offer the high-performance required for a modern eco-friendly home.
Here is our suggestion for in-cavity batt insulation:
4) Let's finish our wall assembly with a high-performance, natural siding choice that will last a lifetime. In the past - too often builders or homeowners were coerced into using siding products considered to be more durable because they were "engineered" from cement or plastics. What homeowners quickly learned is that these non-natural products ended up being more finicky and not as durable as they claimed. Chipping, cracking, denting all still occurred and they just become more difficult to deal with or to find replacements after manufacturers discontinued styles, colors, etc.
The alternative is to go back to something more natural - but with(out) a twist! For instance, thermally modified wood from Arbor Wood is real timber, that is milled and put through a special heat-treatment process. This siding comes out of that process harder, more thermally and moisture resistant than raw timber, and will last decades without rot or damage. Thermal modification takes the best, most natural siding material, that never goes out of style, while making it better without chemicals. This also allows for recyclability, reuse, or composting at the end of it's life - unlike other manmade alternatives. Plus, it looks absolutely beautiful in whatever color or finish you choose (including a natural/raw look).
You can find this simple siding swap here:
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As homeowners, we don't have to choose to have a 100% eco-friendly, sustainable home, but as you move through your next project, think about employing one or two of these ideas to be well on your way to a better home. It's not about being perfect. It's about being better. If everyone joins this movement - as a community of homeowners, we'll be building healthier, longer lasting, more sustainable, less wasteful homes. That is something really wonderful to think about. After all - what Go Green Home Supply really hopes we can help you with is to:
Plan well. Build well. Be well.
