Planning & Designing Sustainable Green Homes

Lifestyle, location and commuting

Green commuting - getting back to work after social distancing is relaxed

E bike and electric scooters are two low-carbon & independent ways to commute to work, as is walking - it all depends on local legislation, weather conditions and the distance to commute as to the best option. All nations want and need to get back to work, and soon , but there's going to have to be a lot of…

Healthy indoor air quality

Which houseplants are best for purifying air? Ecohome investigates

We explore the oft-touted notion that air-purifying house plants remove toxins & improve air in homes. As much as we like a little interior greenery, we're forced to conclude it's a whole pile of compost in the making. Do house plants clean indoor air? The idea that house plants filter and clean indoor air is at…

Concrete and masonry

Low-carbon concrete by CarbonCure Canada - lowering the carbon footprint of buildings

Producing cement for concrete results in high levels of CO2 output and is the third ranking cause of man-made CO2 in the world after transport & energy generation. Low-Carbon Concrete is needed for Building Green Homes. Low-carbon concrete - green cement at last? One of the most essential and commonly-used building…

Off-grid and Net-Zero Housing

The S1600 - affordable modern prefab eco homes for families

The S1600 Modern prefab kit eco home provides a Stylish & Affordable green home for young families looking for great Value, Comfort & Healthier Living. Affordable prefab eco homes are a growing green home building trend across the US and Canada, as you may have already seen on our pages or in the press. Economies of…

Efficient home design

Why building an affordable family home today means choosing to build a Green Home

When having a home built, making better choices in design and materials is a wise choice. Even if unconvinced about climate change, green homes are proven to last longer, are healthier and more valuable. As the effects of climate change become more pronounced every year, it is becoming virtually impossible for the…

Tiny house

Beautiful shipping container homes - tiny houses in warm climates

We have mixed views on homes built from shipping containers, but there's no denying that their architectural style can be appealing, here's one Tiny House example we found that seems to work well in a warm climate. We already have an article about whether shipping container homes are good or bad? But that was more…

Tiny house

Le Refuge - An architect-designed modern green prefab tiny house kit home

Architect-Designed Modern & Minimalist homes always attract attention - especially ones that are super efficient, stunningly beautiful and that ooze quality - But Le Refuge is all that and more - It's Affordable too. The tiny house movement is on the far end of the scale of a very encouraging and growing trend…

Planning and Design

Prefab & modular construction poised for dramatic growth in 2020

Prefabricated & modular construction is growing as the building industry starts to realize the full potential of building homes in the controlled atmosphere of a factory; a new report reveals some interesting facts. Following on from our predictions for green construction in 2020 , Dodge Data & Analytics just…

Tiny house

Tiny house with attached and mobile greenhouse - good or bad idea?

Are tiny houses, either on foundations or on wheels, a good housing solution to reduce your carbon footprint. The tiny house movement is a fascinating trend that draws attention to one of the greatest problems with the housing industry; how big our homes have become. But the custom homes being built on trailer beds…

Planning and Design

Find out what's trending in 2025 for green home construction

Here's what we think will be the top twelve green building trends for 2025. Top sustainable construction trends for 2025 There are always new green building products coming out that lead to more efficient, more durable or more eco-friendly homes. But most of what grabbed our attention this past year, and the things…

Planning and Design

Calculating the carbon footprint of buildings, introducing The EC3 Calculator from Skanska

The carbon footprint of a building is the sum of 2 things; the embodied carbon from construction & the energy used once built. The EC3 tool from Skanska calculates a building's embodied carbon. EC3 - Reducing the carbon footprint of buildings EC3 Tool – The background - The interest in the environmental impact of…