Beginning with all homes permitted on or after October 1st, 2008, all Built Green registered homes must fully comply with the ENERGY STAR energy efficiency criteria and testing requirements. The ENERGY STAR energy efficiency standards and testing requirements will be the sole method of energy efficiency compliance with the Built Green program. Please see the Guide to the Built Green Checklist, the EnergyStar.gov website, or consult with your Energy Rater for further details on the requirements of the Energy Star for New Homes program.

Be aware that this change requires ENERGY STAR for New Homes energy efficiency criteria only, and does not include their other programs such the ENERGY STAR Indoor Air Package, or Advanced Lighting Package (however, you may still receive points for the ALP through the BG Checklist). As the program moves towards the effective date of this change, we expect to work closely with the ENERGY STAR for New Homes program regarding co-branding, marketing and other pertinent issues and opportunities. Watch for continued program correspondence through e-News and other modes of communication. We also anticipate working through the Governor’s Energy Office to notify our members of upcoming ENERGY STAR trainings around the state, and to offer similar trainings through Built Green.

If you have any suggestions, questions or concerns, please contact Traci D’Alessio, Assistant Director @ 719-339-9639 or tdalessio@earthlink.net.

Help Built Green keep our records current. If you have had changes in staff please email new contact information, including email addresses and any contact deletions, to enews@builtgreen.org.

Please click here to download a copy of the 2008 Built Green Checklist

Pella Corporation honored by J.D. Power and Associates and Energy Star

--Two prestigious awards honor Pella as leader in customer satisfaction and provider of highly energy-efficient product--

To read the full article, click here.

Application Period Open for 2009 EnergyValue Housing Award. Annual Award Competition Honors Nation's Premier Energy-Efficient and Environmentally-Responsible Home Builders.

Built Green encourages its builder members to apply.

April 20, 2008, Upper Marlboro, Md. - The NAHB Research Center has announced the start of the application period for the 2009 EnergyValue Housing Award (EVHA) program. The EVHA honors home builders who voluntarily integrate energy efficiency into the design, construction, and marketing of new homes, while providing educational opportunities and challenging builders to elevate standards for energy-efficient construction. For the past 14 years, EVHA achieved industry recognition as a signature award for the energy-efficiency elite.

To download the application, please click here.

Ok, I admit it. I’m one of those whose perspective gets skewed by the company I keep. Without going too far afield, I’m specifically referring to hanging around with green building types. There is no doubt that this direction in the building industry is both significant and permanent, but not everyone is on board, at least consciously, and I tend to forget that there is still some resistance to the whole idea of “environmental building.”

By now we know that green building is far more than being nice to Mother Nature – not that this is a bad thing. We also know that doing the right thing doesn’t have to price buyers out of the market. Still it is always gratifying to be able to point to real examples.

High performance homes with a green overlay are no longer an anomaly. The stories we see, however, often highlight homes that the average middle class home buyer will see only during a visit to the Parade of Homes, so it is always good to see examples – like Family Homes in Pueblo and Thistle Community Housing in Longmont – of builders that are producing homes for buyers in the moderate income range, homes that score high points for efficiency and green features, and also qualify for the federal tax credit of $2,000 for meeting the criteria of 50% energy savings. How are they doing it?

To read the entire article by Doug Seiter, click here, or see the April 2008 issue of Home Builder Magazine.

To subscribe to Home Builder Magazine, please click here.

American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy Announces Call for Nominations:

ACEEE is proud to announce the opening of nominations for the 2008 Champion of Energy Efficiency Awards. Presented at ACEEE's 2008 Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Buildings conference, these awards recognize leadership and accomplishment in the energy efficiency field.

For more information, please click here.

May 8, 2008 — In a literal sense, every home has a groundbreaking moment.

Not every home has two.

From the moment the first shovel literally broke ground, Bob Stephanoff and the crew at the 2339 Chamonix Lane building site have been striving toward the creation of an energy-efficient home. After dismantling an aging home on the site, re-using and recycling nearly all its materials, and building one of the most energy efficient homes in the Valley, Stephanoff and company will break metaphorical ground when the house is named as Vail’s first officially certified “Built Green” home.

To read the full article, please click here.

Builders:
Cedar Creek Homes - Montrose, CO
Custom Touch Builders, LLC - Durango, CO
Hamilton Builders - Niwot, CO
New Frontier Development, LLC - Winter Park, CO
R.G. Cowan Design/Build, LLC - Grand Junction, CO
Stonefield Homes, LLC - Ft. Collins, CO

Sponsors:
The Sherwin-Williams Co. - Littleton, CO

The total number of home registrations so far for 2008  is 300.

Remember: Built Green home registration submittals are no longer accepted on a quarterly basis. Builders must submit and pay for home registrations at the time they pull each permit or on a monthly basis. The fee per home is $40. Built Green yard signs and brochures are available at an additional cost. Builders – take every opportunity to promote your Built Green status! To order promotional materials, please email enews@builtgreen.org.

Click here to download the Built Green home registration template.

This month’s sales tip features item #73 from the 2008 Built Green Checklist

73. Central Vacuum (canister unit) installed outside conditioned space rated at 500 air watts or greater and including an electric motor-driven floor brush. 4pts.

Sales Tip: Research has proven that a central vacuum can be of great relief to allergy sufferers. Unlike conventional vacuums that tend to re-circulate pollutants, this type of system can remove a larger percentage of dirt, dust mites, pollen, dander and other allergens and carry them away from living areas, which improves indoor air quality significantly. Central power units sit in an out-of-the-way area such as your garage, basement or utility room. Wall inlet valves are connected to the power unit through tubing. The system carries the dirt, dust, animal dander and allergens out of the room into the main power unit and deposits all of the debris into the canister. The system is convenient, quiet and most importantly, improves indoor air quality.

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© 2007 Home Builders Association of Metro Denver