Keeping it green with Built Green

Drought conditions make green building principles even more desirable

Colorado's Built Green program has always promoted water conservation principles, but with drought restriction on the rise, those elements are gaining new appreciation.

Built Green promotes a two-pronged approach to making wise use of this precious resource, taking equal care to boost efficiency for indoor water use as well as outdoor irrigation.

"Water - or the lack of it - is on everybody's mind." said Kim Calomino, director of Built Green Colorado. "We all need it to live, and the business of home building needs it to survive. Colorado needs to develop new water resources and better manage our current supply, but we also need to use what we have as efficiently as we can."

According to Calomino, Built Green Colorado has been pushing water conservation through the Built Green Checklist since 1995. The list targets landscaping practices (outdoor irrigation accounts for more than half of household water use) as well as more efficient faucets, toilets and laundry appliances.

Smart landscaping preparation is critical to any water-saving measure, particularly in Colorado's poor, clay-laden soils. The Built Green program encourages builders to take extra steps for soil preparation, use low-water plants and install irrigation systems that provide the right amount of water when plants need it.

For inside water use. the Built Green Checklist places a priority on flow-limiters for faucets and showerheads, as well and installing more efficient appliances such as dishwashers and clothes washers, with an emphasis on those featuring the Energy Star label.

The Energy Star rating, a program run by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy, has always been a signal for greater efficiency, but some of the newer appliances are truly revolutionary in the amount of water they can save, according to Randy Schutte, senior account manager for Whirlpool, which has won an Energy Star Partner of the Year award for four consecutive years.

Whirlpool brags that its Duet frontload washer uses 68 percent less water than its more conventional top-loading counterparts. Over the course of a year, that can mean savings of more than 12,000 gallons, according to Whirlpool.

"When it comes to the benefits of these products, it is still about educating the consumer," Schutte said. "Consumers are the ones driving this now."

But builders looking for an edge in the drought-conscious marketplace can also position themselves as leaders by offering more efficient alternatives in their homes. Schutte said.

"Some builders are way out ahead in this game," he said. "But any builder who considers offering these alternatives can show that their heads are in the same place as some of these more aware people."

Checking it off

Getting into the water conservation game can be much easier by following some of the recommendation in the. Built Green Checklist. Calomino outlined the water conserving suggestions in the Built Green Checklist and the rationale behind them:

• Install three cubic yards of soil amendment per 1,000 square feet of installed landscape area. based on soil analysis. This is probably the single most important thing you can do to save crater. Trying to grow anything in bad soil is dumb. Turf and grass in poor soil needs more water: more chemicals and more lending in general ... and it will be needy forever. Do it right the. first time.
• Installed irrigation system is zoned separately for turf and bedding areas. The next most important thing. Not all plant life has the same water needs, or same- light needs for that matter One size does not fit all, so plan, plant and irrigate accordingly.
• Installed irrigation system includes a soil moisture or rain sensor or other irrigation efficiency device. Most folks set the timers on their sprinklers and leave it at that, rain or shine. There are inexpensive, effective devices that will at least shat of 'the sprinklers i f its raining or if the mind is already wet.
• Less than 50 percent of installed landscape is cool-season turf grass (fescue or bluegrass): remainder in nonturf planting beds. Granted, having a bard crud fast rule about percentages may not be the best approach. But be reasonable and plant turf as, and where, it's appropriate. A steep slope is no place for grass.
• Installed landscape is Xeriscape for at least 50 percent of nonpaved area. The word "Xeriscape" inspires visions of rocks and cacti to many, folks, mostly because its not well understood. It means water wise, and that's probably the term we should be using. Visit www.denver-water.org to team about the principles of Xeriscape.
• Installed bedding areas are mulched to a depth of 3 inches. Keeps down the weeds, holds in the water and looks nice.
• Rainwater harvested and directed toward landscaping needs where practical. Does this mean you can store rainwater? NO. But you can plan landscaping to take advantage of natural run off swales, downspout flows, etc.
• Provide a list of native, drought-resistant plants to homebuyers. This is so easy. Your landscaper can give you this list together with some advice to keep Your homebuyers from making had choices when they get to the backyard.
• Passive or on-demand hot water delivery system installed at farthest location from water heater. If the master bath is far from the water heater you can bet hundreds of gallons of water get wasted just waiting for the hot water.
• Bathroom faucets fitted with aerator restricting flow to 1.8 pin. Where the most common uses are shaving and brushing teeth, reducing the flow below, federal requirements will not be noticed but will save water.
• Kitchen faucet fitted with aerator restricting flow to 2.0 gpm. Much less flow than this will likely not go unnoticed.
• Installed clothes washer is an Energy Star labeled product. Granted, most builders don't include clothes washers as a standard, but the fact is that next to toilets, clothes washers are the biggest water user in the home. A variety of top-loading and front-loading machines are available that are highly energy and water efficient. A list of qualifying products is available at www.energystar.gov.

Steve Andrews consults with builders for E-Star Colorado and writes on energy issues (sbandrews@att.net). E-Star (www.e-star.com), is a nonprofit home energy rating system that works with both new and existing homes statewide.

2008 Built Green Colorado

Home Builders Association of Metro Denver, 9033 E. Easter Place, Suite 200, Centennial, CO 80112
(303) 778-1400 fax: (303) 733-9440  info@builtgreen.org

Last Updated: 10/05/2007