Live Green, Live Smart’s The Sustainable House TM is a participant in Minnesota GreenStar’s Remodeling pilot program and the LEED for Homes Pilot ProjectTM. Live Green, Live Smart has transformed an ordinary post-War rambler in a suburban neighborhood into a Century hour that will be energy efficient, environmentally healthy, respectful of the natural environment, and comfortable for family life as climate and energy resources alter in the coming decades. Environmentally-Conscious Applications The green building materials and techniques as applied to the House are less conspicuous than alternative energy sources, but no less important to our Platinum remodel.

• Efficient insulation and an air transfer system ensure that none of the heat or cold generated goes to waste, and that the air inside the home stays clean and breathable.
• Solatubes provide natural sunlight all day long, even in the basement, reducing electricity needs.
• Every lightbulb in the house is an energy-efficient compact fluorescent or LED.
• Low-voltage radiant in-floor heating is an efficient way to reduce furnace needs.
• Greywater is collected from the showers for reuse in the double-flush toilets.
• Windows are triple-glazed and argon-filled to reduce heat transfer.
• Appliances are EnergyStar rated, and an induction stove is used for cooking.
• All electrical energy purchased from the grid is the product of windfarming – no coal-fueled energy will be used in the House.

By Peter Lytle, Live Green Live Smart For more information on this project visit http://livegreenlivesmart.org.