Certification programs like LEED for Homes can be wonderful things, but they’re sure not easy! (Not that we’re saying they should be!) It’s easy for builders to fail certain elements of it — there’s a lot to remember. EcoHome has a wonderfully informative article that runs us through the potential pitfalls. Let’s take a look, [...]

If you’re considering adding solar panels to a clients’ home, part of that consideration is surely the matter of cost: Are solar panels with the investment the homeowner would have to make? To be sure, solar panels can be a great way to reduce or perhaps even eliminate a household’s electricity costs, while also making [...]

What exactly makes a home green? Consumers and builders alike are torn. According to a recent survey from the Whirlpool Corporation and Habitat for Humanity International, the most common definition for a green home among builders and consumer was one that reduces energy and water consumption. About one-third of respondents from both groups agreed. Twenty-three [...]

In February, President Barack Obama introduced an energy security proposal that could have vast implications for the building industry. The Better Buildings Initiative aims to improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings by 20 percent by 2020, reduce energy bills by $40 billion per year through energy efficient improvements and create a series of new tax [...]

After several years as a senior editor at Hanley Wood, Leah Thayer founded Daily 5 Remodel in 2010 to provide a daily resource for building professionals interested in industry news, trends and best practices. She’s fostered an ever-growing online community, leading to a constant conversation about the happenings of the remodeling industry. For this week’s [...]

Chat with Michael Matson for a few minutes and you’ll learn his philosophies about green building balance passion, practicality and wit. For this week’s BuildChat, Matson advises builders to take steps toward greener construction, but only within your client’s budget and comfort zone. What’s the biggest misconception about green building? In my particular market: That [...]

With so many factors to consider, from training and certification to use of location and materials, building green can be complicated. We caught up with green-building expert Carl Seville — @GreenCurmudgeon on Twitter — to find out where builders should start when breaking into the brave new world of green building. “Green expert” may be [...]

The 2011 NHBA International Builder’s Show is just a week away, and we’re expecting to see a lot of green — green products, green builders, green experts. Green may be on the mind at IBS, but a recent study by Calvert Investments shows many of today’s homes are still light on green features. This conclusion comes from a [...]

A few weeks ago, Daily5Remodel reported on a McGraw-Hill Construction study that showed green building soaring as a segment of the building industry while total construction starts plummeted by more than a quarter in the past two years. Of course, new construction isn’t the only realm in which energy efficiency and sustainability are important players. [...]

As consumers rush to meet the Dec. 31 deadline for the  tax credit on energy efficient home improvements, builders are finishing off a flurry of end-of-the-year projects. When things slow in January, builders should cast their gaze to clean technology, which benefits from a tax credit that won’t expire until Dec. 31, 2016. Just like the [...]