Envelope first / Green Building & Sustainable Home Renovation Information & Advice

...Envelope first building concept: A homeowner's & pro's guide to high-performance home design Sign up now and reap the benefits of a free Ecohome Network Membership!  

...First go get your LED bulbs and Energy Star appliances, then think about solar panels. The same logic applies to heating and hot water consumption, the two biggest draws in any home. The most cost-effective way to manage energy is to not need it in the first place. By combining an envelope-first design philosophy of su...

...first step before investing in a solar array is reducing demand. That is of course easiest when you first focus on the envelope first building philosophy of minimizing heat loss in a home.  Designing a home that will only meet the minimal requirements of building code looks cheaper on paper at the time, but will actual...