Are you making plans to build a new home? This is certainly an exciting time & having the option of designing & building your own home is a dream come true. You get to select how many bedrooms you have & where the kitchen & living room will be located. You also have the option of building green.

There are many things that you can do to make your home more energy efficient when you’re building it yourself. Some of the options are simple & easy to incorporate into the design plans. Building green starts in the beginning stages of your plans with the location of the home. And so… Spend a little time in the area where the home will be built. This will often help you to see where the sun is the hottest or where it’s blocked by trees. You can see what kind of breeze you get when the wind picks up & so forth.

This information will help determine where some of the windows should be placed. When the right location is chosen the sun can assist provide heat & the wind can assist to keep it cool by blowing through the home. As a general rule, south-facing windows will collect the most heat & help to warm your home while cutting down on your heating bill in the winter. This means that the length of the home should be facing to the south & north while the width should be facing towards the east & west. Using overhangs or awnings above the windows will help to reduce the amount of heat that enters the home in the summer & help reduce your cooling bill.

Use the energy saving building materials that are available today in the construction of your new home. These may cost a little more up-front but they will save you money in the long run & they will help to conserve natural resources. Clear? Install energy efficient windows, doors & appliances. The lighting you use in your home can also make a enormous difference so buy fixtures & use light bulbs that are designed to be energy efficient as well.

Make the most from the opportunity to build your new home by going green in every area that you can. You will be helping the planet while saving money & still have a beautiful home that is comfortable & relaxing.