Ingrid Weir

Differentiate Yourself with Earth Friendly Green Products



Posted: Wednesday, July 18, 2007

by
http://www.facebook.com/ingritaweir

According to Rex Nutting, Washington Bureau Chief of MarketWatch, the inventory of previously owned homes up for sale in May 2007 rose to the highest level in relation to sales in 15 years, putting even more houses into an already glutted market.
With sales of existing homes falling 0.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.99 million down from the upwardly revised 6.01 million in April, according to the National Association of Realtors, and sales down 10.3% from just a year ago and off approximately 17% from the peak, what can builders and homeowners do to differentiate themselves from the 4.43 million homes currently for sale on the market?

Building or remodeling with Green products is the perfect way to do just that. 

According to a survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders and McGraw-Hill Construction, 85% of homeowners said they were more satisfied with their new green homes than with their previous, traditionally built homes.  The survey allowed respondents to state more than one reason for buying an environmentally friendly home; showing that nearly 50% of those surveyed said that concern for the environment was a reason to buy a green home, and the same percentage held that their family's health was a reason.  63% stated lower operating and maintenance costs motivated their purchases.

Additionally, homebuyers were willing to pay a higher price up front to get those benefits.  "We found that people buying green homes were willing to pay an $18,500 premium in order to get a green home," said Harvey Bernstein, vice president of industry analytics, alliances, and strategic initiatives at McGraw-Hill Construction.

To be classified as, "Truly Green", homes must include three or more products or features addressing the following:

1.    Energy-Efficiency

2.    Indoor Air Quality

3.    Resource Management and/or Use of Recycled Materials

4.    Site Management/Location of the Home and its Surroundings

5.    Water Efficiency

Who is the Competition?

Their research showed that only 0.3% of existing homes qualified as "Truly Green" whereas, 2% of homes incorporated a green product, such as energy-efficient doors and windows, appliances, or heating.

In Jack Trout's "Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition", he warns, "Those who fail to differentiate their product or service, in the mind of the consumer, won't stand a chance."  This is your chance to differentiate yourself as a renovator, builder, homeowner, real estate agent, or other professional looking to change your business as well as the world.

Who is Buying Green Homes?

The report found that those apt to invest in a green home are women, who are married, affluent, well educated and are likely to be in their mid-40s and from the Southern or Western states. The popularity of green features is not limited to new construction.

The research estimated that about half of U.S. homeowners recently renovated their homes, and about 40% of them used green products.  Energy-efficient windows and doors, as well as energy-efficient heating and air-conditioning systems are some of the most popular green upgrades, Bernstein said.

Green Building Products 

 

Water-Efficient Showerhead with H2Okinetic Technology from Delta

H20kinetic ShowerheadDelta Faucet Company showerhead uses just 1.6 gallons of water per minute.  Delta worked with Bowles Fluidics Corporation to develop their H2Okinetic Technology™, which produces droplets that are large, resulting in good heat retention and body wetting.

What makes this product green?

•    Fixtures and equipment that conserve water

•    Equipment that conserves energy

Underwater Standing Timber Salvage by Triton Logging

Triton Logging

Triton Logging, Inc. harvests underwater standing trees from forests that were submerged decades ago by reservoirs created by hydroelectric dams.  The trees are cut, which ensures that the reservoir floor and sediments are not disturbed in the process.  Douglas fir, western white pine, lodgepole pine, hemlock, and other species are recovered year-round.  All of the milled wood is certified as SmartWood Rediscovered by the Rainforest Alliance.  The company produces a range of lumber products and is launching a line of glulam beams made from underwater-salvaged timber.

What makes this product green?

•    Salvaged products

SageGlass Tintable Glazing from Sage Electrochromics

SageGlass Glazing

SageGlass® is an electronically tintable exterior glazing that provides glare control on demand while preserving views.  The product is available from such partners as Velux®, Architectural Wall Systems, Inc., Harmon, Inc., the Vistawall Group, Wausau Window and Wall Systems, and YKK AP America, Inc.  While SageGlass is currently very expensive (increasing the cost of insulated glass six- to seven-fold), Sage Electrochromics expects the cost to eventually become competitive with standard high-performance glazing combined with interior mechanized shades.

What makes this product green?

•    Building components that reduce heating and cooling loads

•    Improves light quality

WeatherTRAK Smart Irrigation Controls from HydroPoint Data Systems, Inc.

WeatherTRAK Irrigation Controls

The best option for outdoor landscapes is usually native, climate-appropriate plantings that do not require irrigation, but where irrigation is required, efficiency is essential.  HydroPoint® Data Systems, Inc. has revolutionized irrigation management in North America through its WeatherTRAK® irrigation control systems that create watering schedules based on physical landscape features (soil type, slope, and plantings) as well as weather data that is beamed wirelessly to the controllers each day.  Both residential and commercial WeatherTRAK systems are fully compatible with most irrigation systems, and they offer an Internet control unit.  The company has partnerships with irrigation equipment providers The Toro® Company and Irritrol® Systems.

What makes this product green?

•    Fixtures and equipment that conserve water

•    Reduces storm water pollution

Electric Radiant Floor Heating Systems by Speedheat® US

Speedheat Efficient Heating

Speedheat® electric radiant floor heating systems conserve energy by being installed in touch directly with the floor covering.  This allows the systems to perform optimally, using significantly lower amounts of electricity than similar systems and other conventional heating systems.  The systems can be installed under any flooring type, including tile, hardwood, vinyl, carpeting, laminate, and portable products under area rugs.  The systems use a programmable smart thermostat, used for zone heating.  As a result, you only heat the areas you occupy and not the entire home.

What makes this product green?

•    Energy savings

•    Improves Indoor Air Quality

Coolerado Cooler Advanced, Indirect Evaporative Air Conditioner from Coolerado, LLC

Coolerado Cooler Air Conditioner

The Coolerado Cooler is a revolutionary air conditioning system that relies on the evaporation of water (latent heat of vaporization) to cool a space, but its similarity to standard evaporative coolers, or swamp coolers, is so remote that the company does not even use the term "evaporative" to describe its product.  Water consumption can be significant; it is comparable to or slightly lower than that of direct evaporative coolers—as much as 12 gallons per hour at peak load, but typically averaging about 4 gallons per hour over the cooling season.

What makes this product green?

•    Energy savings

•    Improves Indoor Air Quality

Product Information: Delta Faucet Company
55 East 111th Street
P.O. Box 40980
Indianapolis, IN 46280
www.deltafaucet.com

Triton Logging, Inc.
6675 Mirah Road
Saanichton, BC V8M1Z4
www.tritonlogging.com

Sage Electrochromics, Inc.
One Sage Way
Faribault, MN 55021
www.sage-ec.com

HydroPoint Data Systems, Inc.
1726 Corporate Circle
Petaluma, CA 94954
www.weathertrak.com

Speedheat® US, LLC
120 Arnold Mill Park, Suite 100
Woodstock, GA 30188
www.speedheat.us

Coolerado, LLC
4700 West 60th Ave., Unit 3
Arvada, CO 80003
www.coolerado.com

About the Author:

Ingrid Weir is a member of an elite team of electric radiant floor heating professionals, who concentrate on energy-efficient heating solutions.  For more information, contact Speedheat US, LLC at 1-888-WARM FLOOR (1-888-927-6356) or www.speedheat.us.  Address is listed above.



Sources: Existing home-sales decline hits builder stocks - Full week for company earnings, housing data opens with a thud  - http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/home-builders-busy-week-gets/story.aspx?
guid=%7BA4CD62C3-5CCF-46B1-B673-77F4C33C4182%7D - By John Spence, MarketWatch - Apr 24, 2007

  Home sweet green home - Most buyers of resource-efficient homes say they're more than satisfied - http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/most-buyers-green-homes-satisfied/story.aspx?
guid=%7B1539C4AB%2DF4E7%2D49A4%2D99D1%2D83555EC8E27A%7D - By Amy Hoak, MarketWatch - Mar 26, 2007 

"Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition" - Jack Trout 

BuildingGreen Announces 2006 Top-10 Green Building Products - http://www.buildinggreen.com/press/topten2006/top-10-list.cfmDelta - Jerelyn Wilson - November 15, 2006

 U.S. Green Building Council – LEED for Homes - http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=147  - Homes Pilot Version 1.11a released February 1, 2007

 Energy Efficient and Renewable Energy Consumer's Guide - http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/water_heating/index.cfm/mytopic=12760
Ingrid Weir is a writer, public relations and marketing consultant, graphic and web designer, comedy writer, and activist.

For more information, visit facebook.com/ingritaweir .

This Article has been viewed 1,229 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
Top-level comments on this article: (7 total)
» left by Becki
from San Diego 4 years 201 days ago.
Looks Great!!!
» left by Anonymous
 4 years 201 days ago.
Just what I was looking for. Thanks!
» left by Anonymous
 4 years 200 days ago.
Very good article. It was very informative and well written.
» left by Jessica
from Fein 4 years 199 days ago.
Looks awesome as always!!!
» left by Kim
from Atlanta, GA 4 years 199 days ago.
Great information! So smart and easily understood. We should all go green.
» left by Don
from Earth (for now) 4 years 196 days ago.
Good information
» left by Rachel
from Chattanooga 4 years 178 days ago.
Great article! I was looking for information about new green products that would give more than just advertising, and this woman obviously knows her stuff. You should get her to write more.... Thanks!
» left by 4 years 178 days ago.
Thank you so much!
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