52 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • APRIL 2019
PRESS HOME
FOR THE ULTIMATE INNOVATIVE HOME EXPERIENCE, GO SMART AND GREEN
continued from page 51
Approaches include sustainable construction
that maximizes materials,
efficient building that uses only the
necessary amount of resources, resilient
construction that prepares for
natural disasters, and renewable energy
production that reduces fossil-fuel
dependence. Houses that use these
standards are referred to as Leadership
in Energy and Environmental
Design (LEED)-certified homes.
“These options often cost a bit more
upfront, but all lead to significant
savings,” Busi says. “People have
started to really see the ROI Return
on investment for geothermal, benefits
of innovative and alternative
wastewater treatment septic systems,
value of solar arrays panels, etc.”
But Busi doesn’t think LEED-certified
homes have caught on quick enough
and notes that solar sales have declined
since 2016.
“It isn’t the case everywhere, but an
industry-wide average ROI is seven
years,” Busi says of the up-to-$30,000
cost of installing solar panels. "I've
heard examples of the payback being
worth it after only one to two years.”
THE JETSONS LIFESTYLE
Home innovation goes beyond consumer
devices like Amazon virtual
assistant Alexa.
“The future of housing ... is home automation,”
says Rick Wertheim, senior
vice president of housing and green
initiatives for United Way of Long
Island. "Now a home has the ability to
detect things that go wrong, on its own.”
In the past, there was never any device
for automatically detecting toxins,
aside from carbon monoxide detectors.
“The most important innovations
coming out,” says Wertheim, “are
sensors that communicate with home
systems like HVAC and monitor if the
air is good or bad.”
For example, the Foobot Indoor Air
Quality Monitor connects to smartphones
and detects if there are too
many volatile organic compounds in
the air or if the humidity is too high.
If so, exhaust fans turn on.
“The solution to indoor pollution is
dilution,” he says. “Dilute with fresh
air so toxins are less harmful.”
IS GREENER BETTER?
“Putting bamboo floor in my house
doesn’t make it green,” says Wertheim.
“Bamboo flooring may have
formaldehyde.”
Real green products are sustainable
and renewable, he says.
“We have people asking us for insulation
products that aren’t toxic,” says
architect JP Lardoux, who works with
Wertheim on building green houses.
“Instead of fiberglass products, some
folks are using cellulose (chopped-up
newspaper). Foams can create bad gases.
This is a natural recyclable product.”
Cellulose works better on cold air.
Borax (boric acid) is also added, a
natural fireproofing agent that even
acts as an insect and rodent repellent.
For floors, Wertheim suggests strong,
economical, sustainable Marmoleum
— an all-natural flooring that’s an
alternative to sheet vinyl.
Devices like thermal leak detectors
that integrate with the home’s water
supply systems via smartphones to
detect leaks and fix insulation are
an efficient way to monitor ducts,
windows, and other vulnerable insulation
spots.
Wertheim says the next big thing
for green tech is the heat pump,
an inexpensive, electric plug-in
system that can switch between
heating and cooling and replace air
conditioners.
“Eventually these devices and products
will become more economical
to incorporate into your house,” he
says. “You may not be able to do fully
automated systems, but you can try
and implement as much as you can.”
“Sooner or later,” Lardoux quips,
“the house will become more like a
machine that’s working for us.”
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