7 points to a sustainably designed home

The following points can be used as a guide as what should be considered in designing a low impact building:

1. Minimisation of resource use & habitat destruction through judicious environmental material specification.
2. Minimisation of Energy Consumption (& therefore minimization of CO2 production)
   • Consider Embodied Energy of construction
   • Consider Operational Energy
     1. Space Heating / Cooling
        1. Orientation
        2. Insulation
        3. Windows sizing, placement & shading
        4. Thermal Mass
        5. Ventilation
     2. Solar Water Heating & Photovoltaics
     3. Appliance efficiency
3. Water conservation
   • Water efficiency
   • Rainwater collection
   • Grey-water / black-water re-use
4. Habitat creation
   • Local Native flora
   • Edible Garden (Permaculture)
5. Health
   • Materials as environmentally benign as possible over their life cycle
   • Minimisation of off-gassing materials
   • Asthma friendly design
   • Day lighting
6. Size
   • Efficient use of space for maximisation of resources
7. Good Design
   • Good design lasts longer minimizing embodied energy use for rebuilding