What is Green Built Home?
How is a home certified?
Where can I find information on landscaping?
Where can I find information on energy conservation?
Can I remodel a home to Green Built Home standards and have it certified?
What are the benefits to Green Built homeowners?
How can a Green Built Home lower your energy bills?
What is the Energy Guide?
What are ENERGY STARŪ labeled appliances?
How can a Green Built Home lower your water bills?
How can Green Built Homes maintain improved indoor air quality?
How can green building practices conserve materials and natural resources?
Does the program "certify" building materials?
Are recycled content building materials as durable a conventional building materials?
Are engineered wood products necessarily better for the environment than regular lumber?
What is Forest Stewardship Council Certified lumber?

What is Green Built Home?
Green Built Home, a program of Wisconsin Environmental Initiative in partnership with the Madison Area Builders Association, promotes green building practices by certifying new homes and remodeling projects that meet sustainable building and energy standards. By promoting building practices and products that reduce the ecological footprint of new home construction we hope to encourage sustainable community development. Support for Green Built Home comes from organizations that promote green building and energy efficiency for Wisconsin.
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How is a home certified?
Home buyers and builders work together to select home features from the Green Built Home Checklist. In addition to a wide variety of features that conserve energy and natural resources, the Checklist outlines basic requirements that each home must meet, including energy, indoor air quality and erosion control standards. Each Checklist feature is given a point value, and new homes must earn at least 60 points to be certified. Remodeling projects must earn 10-60 points depending on the time of project.
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Where can I find information on landscaping?
To learn more about native plants, click here to read info from The Bruce Company.
Click here to read "Rethinking Yard Care" by UW Extension.

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Where can I find information on energy conservation?
For easy & low-cost energy-saving tips from Madison Gas & Electric, click here.
For Madison Gas & Electric's energy-saving tips for homeowners, click here.
For Madison Gas & Electric's energy-saving tips for renters, click here.
For energy-saving fact sheets from Focus on Energy, click here.
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Can I remodel a home to Green Built Home standards and have it certified?
Yes! Green Built Home has developed a Remodeling Checklist and formally launched the Green Built Remodeled Home program in January 2006. Ask your remodeling contractor! Remodeling contractors are invited to enroll in the program and be among the first to certify their remodeling projects.
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What are the benefits to Green Built homeowners?
Green Built Homes are superior products: they save money on monthly utility bills and maintenance expenses, provide better indoor air quality and give homeowners and their families a sense of pride and well-being in knowing that their home has a reduced impact on our environment. In addition, Green Built Homes are more comfortable, durable, healthier, and safer.
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How can a Green Built Home lower your energy bills?
All certified homes must either comply with Wisconsin ENERGY STAR Home standards or exceed Wisconsin residential energy codes by 15%. Either option offers homeowners considerable energy savings. In addition to many other features builders and home buyers may select for each home, all installed appliances must either be ENERGY STAR labeled or score in the top 50% of the Energy Guide.
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What is the Energy Guide?
The bright yellow Energy Guide label that appears on all appliances provides an estimate of how much energy each particular appliance will use in one year. The label also shows how each appliance's energy usage compares with that of similar models.
Visit the Department of Energy Web site for more information.
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What are ENERGY STARŪ labeled appliances?
ENERGY STAR appliances exceed federal energy efficiency requirements and can reduce appliance energy usage by 10-50%. This can result in considerable savings when considering that some appliances (like refrigerators) are on all the time.
Each Green Built Home may offer other energy-saving options in addition to the ones listed above, including:

• Energy efficient lighting
  A typical household spends approximately 10% of its energy budget on lighting. A standard incandescent light bulb uses only 10% of the power it draws to produce light-the remaining 90% is used in heat production. Compact fluorescent light bulbs use 50-75% less energy and last approximately 10 times longer than standard incandescent bulbs. Using dimmers, motion detectors and solar powered outdoor lighting will allow you to use your lighting dollars more effectively. Intelligent design of a home that takes maximum advantage of natural lighting, whether it be through siting, light colored interiors or the installation of skylights, can also help reduce energy costs dramatically.
• Energy efficient windows and window placement
  Windows typically cover 10-25% of the exterior walls of new homes, and poorly insulated or installed windows can contribute significantly to heating and cooling costs. Installation of ENERGY STAR windows with proper attention to sealing around the windows can greatly reduce air leakage that causes rooms to gain or lose excessive heat. Shading south and west facing windows in the summer can further reduce heat gain. These measures reduce energy consumption associated with heating and cooling.
• HVAC, insulation, and sealing
  Ongoing energy use is probably the single greatest environmental impact of a home. On average, half of a household's energy budget is dedicated to heating and cooling. ENERGY STAR labeled air conditioners and furnaces are more efficient than standard HVAC components. Programmable thermostats also help homeowners maximize heating and cooling efficiency while minimizing the expense of utility bills. Ceiling fans help circulate heated and conditioned air while locating ducts in interior walls reduces the amount of heated or cooled air lost. Thorough insulation and sealing techniques can also significantly reduce heating and cooling costs.

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How can a Green Built Home lower your water bills?
During warm summer months, a household can expend as much as 50% of its water budget on watering landscape plantings. The program recommends the use of site-appropriate native plants in a large portion of the landscape planting. Native plants are adapted to Wisconsin's climate and generally require less water and maintenance than some of the commonly used ornamental plants. Large native plantings are encouraged, though if any of the yard is to be planted with turf grasses, seed mixes such as the 'low-mow' and 'no-mow' varieties are recommended. The program also recommends the use of low-flow water fixtures in bathrooms and kitchens and water-efficient appliances, such as horizontal-axis clothes washers.
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How can Green Built Homes maintain improved indoor air quality?
Poor indoor air quality can affect the health of a home's inhabitants, potentially aggravating existing health conditions such as asthma and allergies. Indoor air quality is influenced by a variety of factors including moisture, ventilation, off-gassing building materials and high volumes of airborne particles.

• Moisture - Excessive moisture can lead to mold growth, which has been making many headlines lately. The best way to prevent excessive moisture is to ensure that a building's envelope is properly sealed and to provide adequate ventilation. Proper installation and maintenance is of utmost importance. It may also be necessary to regulate the humidity in a home with a humidifier or dehumidifier. The EPA recommends that the indoor humidity be maintained in the range of 30-50%.
• Ventilation - Proper ventilation means a controlled, regular introduction of fresh air into a home and the exhausting of stale moist air from the home. Drafty windows and electrical sockets are not adequate modes of ventilation! When properly designed natural ventilation is not sufficient, mechanical ventilation is a must. There are a variety of potentially dangerous gasses commonly found in a home. Carbon monoxide can enter a home through the door to the garage, and measures should be taken to weather seal or otherwise close the garage off from the living space. Radon is a naturally-occurring carcinogenic gas that can enter a home through the foundation. Radon mitigation measures can be taken when foundation drainage is installed. Ventilation can prevent these health hazards from accumulating in your living space.
• Building materials: Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) - These solvents are found in many building materials such as paints and finishes, adhesives and carpets. These building materials release VOCs into the air throughout their lifetime, though the most noticeable off-gassing occurs when the materials are new (VOCs are responsible for "new house" smell and "new car" smell.) Exposures to VOCs can result in anything from headaches and nausea to aggravation of medical conditions such as asthma and allergies. To avoid these problems, look for paints, adhesives and finishes that are low to non-toxic or at the very least labeled "low VOC." Also look for carpets that meet the Carpet and Rug Institute's Indoor Air Quality standards.
• Formaldehyde - These compounds are commonly found in fiberglass insulation and pressed wood products used in cabinetry and trim. These building products can emit formaldehyde gas during their lifetime, though the strongest emission occurs when the products are new. Formaldehyde is carcinogenic and strong-smelling. Constant exposure can cause eye, nose and throat irritation and nausea. Elevated levels can trigger asthma attacks, and some people can develop sensitivity to the gas. Fortunately, many formaldehyde-free building products are entering the market. Some studies also suggest that sealing pressed-wood products with a polyurethane coating can reduce formaldehyde emissions.
• Airborne particles - Dust, mold, lint, pet dander and other particles circulate through HVAC systems despite regular house-cleaning and vacuuming. These particles are small enough to inhale and can irritate the respiratory system and trigger allergies and asthma. There are several ways to reduce the number of airborne particles in a home. One way is to utilize hard surface floors wherever possible, as carpets and rugs trap these particles and are more difficult to clean completely. Furnace and duct mounted air cleaners can help trap airborne particles as well, and prevent them from being continuously re-circulated through vents and ducts. Radiant heat (such as hydronic or in-floor heat) eliminates ducts and their associated problems entirely. Central vacuum systems have stronger suction then standard vacuum cleaners, and typically trap all vacuumed particles in a canister mounted outside the living space.

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How can green building practices conserve materials and natural resources?
The immediate impact of using green building materials may be readily apparent-your energy and water bills may be lower, you home may not smell strongly of paints and adhesives and may be less dusty. However, the impacts of construction reach much farther than the walls of your home when we consider how and where the materials were made, what they were made from, and how they got here. Outlined below are some the basic principles behind choosing "green" building materials.

• Reducing materials use - The pool of natural resources used in home construction is not bottomless, and fewer materials used in a home means more materials left for future uses. Patios require fewer materials than deck construction. Smaller homes use fewer materials than larger homes.
• Salvaged materials - Many high quality building materials can be salvaged from buildings slated for demolition. A good example is wood taken from old barns, which can be used to make beautiful hardwood floors with lots of character, without contributing to the over-harvest of large-diameter old-growth trees. Using salvaged materials also reduces the number of building materials sent to the landfills. The EPA estimates that approximately 136 million tons of construction and demolition debris are landfilled each year.
• Recycled-content materials - Recycled-content materials reduce the need to extract new materials and often make use of material that might otherwise be sent to the landfill. Some examples of currently available recycled-content materials include some fiberglass and all cellulose insulation, ceramic and glass tiles, roofing, decking materials and siding and trim.
• Local materials - Locally produced materials cut down on the financial and environmental costs of materials transportation.
• Durable materials - A key characteristic of green building materials is that they are durable. This means they will need less maintenance and less frequent replacement. Increased durability results in greater resource conservation.
• Landscaping techniques - What homeowners do with the landscape around their homes can have significant impact on the environment as a whole. As Wisconsin residents we are well aware of the problems caused by excessive fertilizer runoff and weed growth in our lakes. As homeowners we are poised to affect the number of pollutants running into our lakes and streams by managing stormwater with landscape elements such as raingardens, and reducing our contribution to fertilizer runoff by being having chemical-free lawns. Landscaping techniques that utilize native plants will also save you money on your water bills.

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Does the program "certify" building materials?
No, the Green Built Home program does not explicitly certify building materials nor does it endorse any company, product, or material. Instead, the Green Built Home program acts to grow the market for products and materials that offer distinct advantages for health, safety, environmental protection, and energy efficiency. Similarly, the Green Built Home program works to offer its builder and sponsor members market distinction by highlighting the benefits of their products while remaining neutral on the company and product itself.
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Are recycled content building materials as durable a conventional building materials?
Yes. In many cases, recycled-content building materials are more durable. A good example is composite decking material, which is commonly made of recycled plastic and wood fiber. Composite decking requires no painting or staining and is available with a 20 year warranty.
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Are engineered wood products necessarily better for the environment than regular lumber?
In most cases, yes. Engineered wood products such as floor joists and beams utilize fast-growth lumber rather than old-growth trees. In the case of insulated headers, using these products can make your home more energy efficient. Often, engineered wood products are stronger than using regular lumber and are a more efficient use of forest resources.
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What is Forest Stewardship Council Certified lumber?
The Trademark of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) indicates that the wood used to make the product comes from a forest which is well managed according to strict environmental, social and economic standards. The forest of origin has been independently inspected and evaluated according to the principles and criteria for forest management agreed and approved by the Forest Stewardship Council. FSC is an international, non-profit association whose membership comprises environmental and social groups and progressive forestry and wood retail companies working in partnership to improve forest management worldwide.
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