Green Home Building

A building envelope is the physical separator between the conditioned and unconditioned environment of a building including the resistance to air, water, heat, light, and noise transfer. The building envelope is all of the elements of the outer shell that maintain a dry, heated, or cooled indoor environment and facilitate its climate control. Building envelope design is a specialized area of architectural and engineering practice that draws from all areas of building science and indoor climate control. The control function is at the core of good performance, and in practice focuses, in order of importance, on rain control, air control, heat control, and vapor control.

The many functions of the building envelope can be separated into three categories:

• Support (to resist and transfer structural loads)
• Control (the flow of matter and energy of all types)
• Finish (to meet human desires on the inside and outside)

Components of the green home building envelope are typically:

• Walls (advanced framing and spray foam insulation)
• Floors
• Roofs (standing seam metal roofs)
• Doors
• Fenestrations (any opening: windows, skylights, clerestories, etc)

Energy efficient windows provide superior performance and are available in an endless array of style and size options.

Whether you are looking to improve your existing home’s energy efficiency or wanting to build a new Build NATiVE home, high quality windows are critical element for a net-zero home. As an eco-friendly custom home builder, we utilize a product line of affordable, low-maintenance, energy efficient windows and doors in our Texas-built zero-energy homes and deep energy retrofits to existing homes. Available in rich exterior colors that won’t fade, flake, blister or peel, the windows we use are built to look and perform as beautifully in ten years as the day they were installed.

Build NATiVE customers have a lot to like about the energy efficient windows we use at a very economical price. The windows we use meet ENERGY STAR® qualifications in all climate zones. The materials they’re made from block thermal transfer nearly 700 times better than aluminum, and full-perimeter weatherstripping helps provide superior insulation. The field-proven composite material that make up the energy-efficient windows allows us to offer high-quality and low-maintenance products at a lower cost.

With their durable, environmentally friendly material construction, the windows Build NATiVE uses offer the strength of solid wood and twice the stability and rigidity of vinyl. The composition, which has more than 30 U.S. patents, ensures your windows will last for decades.

At a time when more people care about the environmental impact of their green home building choices, Build NATiVE homeowners can feel good about the products Build NATiVE uses to build their homes. The frame and sash of the windows we use contain 40% pre-consumer reclaimed wood fiber by weight, and the glass contains 12% reclaimed glass by weight.

The windows we use meet ENERGY STAR® qualifications in all climate zones. The materials they’re made from block thermal transfer nearly 700 times better than aluminum, and full-perimeter weatherstripping helps provide superior insulation. Build NATiVE windows meet or exceed Performance Grade 30 air, water and structural requirements, helping to keep the wind and weather outside. Traditional and commonly used vinyl windows in dark colors can become soft when exposed to the sun’s intense heat. Build NATiVE windows retain their rigidity and strength in temperatures exceeding 160 F.

All Build NATiVE windows feature intelligently engineered components and hardware known for their smooth, effortless and virtually maintenance-free operation.

Whether style, durability, value, or sustainability drives your buying decision, you’ll have it covered with the energy-efficient windows in a Build NATiVE home. They are easy on the eyes, easy to own, easier on the environment and — best of all — easy on the pocketbook.

Energy efficient windows offer the following options and benefits:

• Low cost
• Low maintenance
• Multiple exterior color options
• Beautiful matte finish options, inside and out
• Energy-efficient performance
• Resistant to air and water infiltration
• Designed to withstand Texas heat
• Smooth and reliable operation
• Strong and durable
• Owner-to-owner limited warranty
• Easy tax credit qualification
• Environmentally responsible

Water conservation and development of water supplies is crucial for meeting the growing demand for clean water. Rainwater collection (harvesting) is an innovative alternative water supply approach that captures, diverts, and stores rainwater for later use. This stored rainwater can be used as the primary potable water supply for a home after it passes through a filtration and purification process. Drinking water supplied from a rainwater harvesting system is typically a higher quality water than water supplied by municipality or water well due to the absence of fluoride, chemicals and a variety of hard minerals. We typically install residential rainwater harvesting systems that supply 100% of the home’s water demand.

In many areas, 30 to 50 percent of the total water is used for landscape irrigation. Capturing rainwater for use in landscape not only makes efficient use of such a valuable resource, but can greatly reduce water bills and reduce demand on local water supply.

A rainwater collection system consists of the supply (rainfall), the demand (water needed by humans, animals and plants), and a system for collecting water and moving it to the desired areas (pumps and piping).

Build NATiVE offers rainwater harvesting opportunities as a key element of green home building in Austin, San Antonio, and across Central Texas and the Texas Hill Country. Rainwater collection systems are a wise investment, good for you and your wallet. Coupled with a solar PV system, rainwater collection allows you to be free from renting your energy and water!