Going Green

With recession coming into play, the economy has taken a huge hit. With it, the energy resources too, have decreased causing the prices to increase. This chain reaction has caused a lot of inconvenience.
Therefore, keeping in mind the multiple wraths of Mother Nature that we all are going to eventually face, “Green Buildings” were introduced. According to surveys conducted, this new trend, is catching up tremendously with an estimate of a 5-10% rise during 2010.A very interesting practice to take up and let’s face it-It doesn’t even make you feel guilty for being one of the leeches that’s the cause of earth’s depleting resources.
So, whilst there are scientists out there striving and slogging to invent technologies that save energy and cut out the hazardous pollutants, there are “Green Building” enthusiasts that are building houses that do not cause harm to land resources. Along with this, they also promote the efficient use of water resources, air and other energy resources that encourage healthy living.


“Green Building” practices include various forms of ideologies that keep construction of houses environment friendly
Low VOC Paint
These paints use water as a solvent instead of petroleum-based ones. These do not emit volatile organic compounds which have been proven to be bad for health if inhaled. These paints have been composed with latex and cost the same as regular paints. The up side is that it isn’t killing you and is promoting a healthy living. All non VOC paints are derived from natural resources like plant dyes, oils, resins etc.


Using Substitutes for Cement
One of the major reasons for our energy resources slowly reducing is the amount of energy that is being used to create cement! Cement, is one of the most important materials to create a building structure. There are by-products of cement that can be used in place of cement. Not only are the levels of toxins low, but they are also durable - Fly ash, slag, silica fume, and rice hull ash are being used in place of cement. Thus, instead of wasting these by-products, we can utilize them and save a lot of energy.

Plumbing Manifolds
These are the control centers which control the flow of hot and cold water. They lead to the supply lines of the main fixtures. Thus, these plastic plumbing manifolds save a lot of water by heating the water instantly and also delivering the flow of water faster.

Flooring
Bamboo flooring has gained popularity due to it being visually attractive and durable. Bamboo grows really fast and thus can be renewed easily. It also resists to moisture. Another kind of flooring that really caught my attention was recycled metal flooring. The look and feel it gives you is very different. This is for those who don’t care much for wooden flooring anymore and would rather set their house layout to something totally out of the box. Recycled glass tiles too, give a very playful look to the area.



Rainwater Harvesting
Collecting rain water (we seem to have been having a lot of it lately), and using it for personal and industrial purposes would save water.

Even though we might not adopt all the techniques possible to support the green movement, even the little that we do, would save the environment. If one looks at it from a more financial point of view, the industries that adopt “Green Buildings” are capitalizing and also looking at it as a majorly creative business trend.

Posted in: responsible living