Go green. You will find that thought in numerous advertisements of recently launched real estate projects. Perhaps, the concept of “green“ homes appeals to you, but you don't know how to go about it. Don't worry: in- stead of falling for one of the “green“ projects, small modifi- cations in your own house will take you closer to the cause.
“Addition of some basic ele- ments and use of some materi- als can make an existing house eco-friendly and insulated from heat and pollution,“ says Dikshu C. Kukreja, architect, CP Kukreja Associates, a New Delhi-based architecture firm.
Save power Reduce need for lighting: En- sure that your house gets suffi- cient natural light to reduce usage of electricity during day- time. Says Priyanka Kochhar, associate fellow, Association for Development and Research on Sustainable Habitats (ADaRSH):
“Covering the win- dow with double-glazed glass- es with air insulation prevents heat from coming in but allows natural light inside the room.“ Promoted by The Energy and Research Institute and the ministry of new and renewable energy, ADaRSH is a platform to facilitate a pan-India net- working between building pro- fessionals, developers and government officials.
Use compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs): CFLs are costly when compared with incan- descent light, but work out cheaper because they save en- ergy in the long run. Moreover, CFLs last longer than bulbs.
Says Anumita Roy Chaud- hary, head (sustainable urbani- zation), Centre for Science and Environment (CSE): “A CFL uses only one-fifth as much electricity as an incandescent lamp to provide the same level of illumination. Rough esti- mates show that a 60-watt in- candescent bulb burning for 4 hours a day will consume 87.6 kWh (kilowatt hour) in a year, whereas a 15-watt CFL in a sim- ilar condition will use 21.9 kWh, saving the consumer `296.“
Check the stars: The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has made it mandatory for manu- facturers of consumer durables to make energy-compliant products. It uses a star system to indicate energy efficiency.
So while buying a new air con- ditioner, a refrigerator or a television set, look for star la- belling. The higher the number of stars, the more you would save on power.
Adds Chaudhary: “Just by changing the lighting and elec- trical systems, ventilation, cool- ing, and building service opera- tions, your energy saving can go up by as much as 20-50%. This can translate into significant cost savings as well.“ Minimize heating Excessive heating of rooms during the day during summers leads to over-usage of air con- ditioners. To reduce this natu- ral heating, you need to use some insulation techniques on the outer walls of your house.
Low-budget options: The easiest way is to go for paints that deflect the sunlight and are readily available in the market. Apart from that, build- ing material such as white sandstone and white terrazzo have good reflective character- istics. Using broken ceramic pieces on the walls will give it an ethnic look, apart from re- ducing heating. On your win- dows, you can use sunshades.
Thick walls: Bump up your budget a bit and you can achieve a higher degree of cooling. Kochhar suggests that thick walls keep out the heat.
“While in the day, a thick wall will get partially heated, by the time the heat reaches the inner side of the wall, the day gets over. And the outer wall starts cooling up. So, a thick wall minimizes the heating. If you have enough space after the walls, a slight addition to the wall thickness increases insu- lation,“ she explains.
Earth tunnel system: Another method to cool the rooms could be switching to the earth tunnels system. Under this system, you have tunnels from vents on the rooftop to under- ground tunnels that allow air passage. The air in these tun- nels is cooled naturally be- cause of the ground tempera- ture and balances the room temperature. The system works in all weathers.
Vegetation: Plants not only cool the environment, but also add beauty to your terrace.
Putting planted earthen pots on the roof would help cool your room. Planting trees on the outer boundary of the house provides a shield against a sunlight.
Nylon nets: Kochhar adds: “Another option could be spreading a net of plastic or nylon on the rooftop. This re- duces the light falling on the roof, thus bringing down the temperature.“ Save water There are new technologies in the market that save more water compared with conventional systems. “Refitting existing wa- ter guzzling toilets and drinking water systems can help save wa- ter,“ says Chaudhary.
Taps: These include push- button taps or taps with auto- stop sensors. So, if you don't want to turn off the tap five times during brushing your teeth, the tap will do it for you.
It makes sense to replace old fixtures. This can help save up to 300-400 ml every use.
Flush: The conventional flush toilet uses 12 litres of wa- ter per flush; some of them use just 6 litres too. Through dual flush cisterns, you can use as much as is needed. It gives you the option of flushing with 4 litres and 6 litres.
Another low-cost option is to place water bottles of 1-2 lit- res capacity inside the flush tank. It will automatically re- duce the amount of water that gets collected in the tank.
Joint efforts: A bigger change can be brought about in apart- ment complexes. The concept of rainwater harvesting and its storage is well known, but put- ting it in place could be expen- sive. In an apartment complex, the cost can get shared. Rain water being a pure form of wa- ter can be safely used for wa- tering plants and washing common areas.
While the “green“ candy is in your face through advertise- ments, decide how you want to go green.
source:livemint.com
“Addition of some basic ele- ments and use of some materi- als can make an existing house eco-friendly and insulated from heat and pollution,“ says Dikshu C. Kukreja, architect, CP Kukreja Associates, a New Delhi-based architecture firm.
Save power Reduce need for lighting: En- sure that your house gets suffi- cient natural light to reduce usage of electricity during day- time. Says Priyanka Kochhar, associate fellow, Association for Development and Research on Sustainable Habitats (ADaRSH):
“Covering the win- dow with double-glazed glass- es with air insulation prevents heat from coming in but allows natural light inside the room.“ Promoted by The Energy and Research Institute and the ministry of new and renewable energy, ADaRSH is a platform to facilitate a pan-India net- working between building pro- fessionals, developers and government officials.
Use compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs): CFLs are costly when compared with incan- descent light, but work out cheaper because they save en- ergy in the long run. Moreover, CFLs last longer than bulbs.
Says Anumita Roy Chaud- hary, head (sustainable urbani- zation), Centre for Science and Environment (CSE): “A CFL uses only one-fifth as much electricity as an incandescent lamp to provide the same level of illumination. Rough esti- mates show that a 60-watt in- candescent bulb burning for 4 hours a day will consume 87.6 kWh (kilowatt hour) in a year, whereas a 15-watt CFL in a sim- ilar condition will use 21.9 kWh, saving the consumer `296.“
Check the stars: The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has made it mandatory for manu- facturers of consumer durables to make energy-compliant products. It uses a star system to indicate energy efficiency.
So while buying a new air con- ditioner, a refrigerator or a television set, look for star la- belling. The higher the number of stars, the more you would save on power.
Adds Chaudhary: “Just by changing the lighting and elec- trical systems, ventilation, cool- ing, and building service opera- tions, your energy saving can go up by as much as 20-50%. This can translate into significant cost savings as well.“ Minimize heating Excessive heating of rooms during the day during summers leads to over-usage of air con- ditioners. To reduce this natu- ral heating, you need to use some insulation techniques on the outer walls of your house.
Low-budget options: The easiest way is to go for paints that deflect the sunlight and are readily available in the market. Apart from that, build- ing material such as white sandstone and white terrazzo have good reflective character- istics. Using broken ceramic pieces on the walls will give it an ethnic look, apart from re- ducing heating. On your win- dows, you can use sunshades.
Thick walls: Bump up your budget a bit and you can achieve a higher degree of cooling. Kochhar suggests that thick walls keep out the heat.
“While in the day, a thick wall will get partially heated, by the time the heat reaches the inner side of the wall, the day gets over. And the outer wall starts cooling up. So, a thick wall minimizes the heating. If you have enough space after the walls, a slight addition to the wall thickness increases insu- lation,“ she explains.
Earth tunnel system: Another method to cool the rooms could be switching to the earth tunnels system. Under this system, you have tunnels from vents on the rooftop to under- ground tunnels that allow air passage. The air in these tun- nels is cooled naturally be- cause of the ground tempera- ture and balances the room temperature. The system works in all weathers.
Vegetation: Plants not only cool the environment, but also add beauty to your terrace.
Putting planted earthen pots on the roof would help cool your room. Planting trees on the outer boundary of the house provides a shield against a sunlight.
Nylon nets: Kochhar adds: “Another option could be spreading a net of plastic or nylon on the rooftop. This re- duces the light falling on the roof, thus bringing down the temperature.“ Save water There are new technologies in the market that save more water compared with conventional systems. “Refitting existing wa- ter guzzling toilets and drinking water systems can help save wa- ter,“ says Chaudhary.
Taps: These include push- button taps or taps with auto- stop sensors. So, if you don't want to turn off the tap five times during brushing your teeth, the tap will do it for you.
It makes sense to replace old fixtures. This can help save up to 300-400 ml every use.
Flush: The conventional flush toilet uses 12 litres of wa- ter per flush; some of them use just 6 litres too. Through dual flush cisterns, you can use as much as is needed. It gives you the option of flushing with 4 litres and 6 litres.
Another low-cost option is to place water bottles of 1-2 lit- res capacity inside the flush tank. It will automatically re- duce the amount of water that gets collected in the tank.
Joint efforts: A bigger change can be brought about in apart- ment complexes. The concept of rainwater harvesting and its storage is well known, but put- ting it in place could be expen- sive. In an apartment complex, the cost can get shared. Rain water being a pure form of wa- ter can be safely used for wa- tering plants and washing common areas.
While the “green“ candy is in your face through advertise- ments, decide how you want to go green.
source:livemint.com
No comments:
Post a Comment