In semi-tropical San Antonio where heat pounds rooftops relentlessly, it may be assumed that local homebuilders are national leaders of the ”go green” charge producing more energy- and water-efficient homes.

While home buyers seeking green abodes in the Alamo City will find a fair amount of them, the fact is that greening initiatives vary among regional builders embracing this movement. As in many regions of the country it’s moving forward by small increments, propelled by both consumer demand and nascent technology.

Architect John Speegle, owner of Speegle Architecture, confirms San Antonio is “in the early stages of green homebuilding. It’s being driven by energy costs, but we’re just not there yet.”

Homebuyers are definitely becoming increasingly savvy about energy efficient systems, he notes. “People need to be knowledgeable. They can do Internet research, and consult resources like Consumer Reports. Slowly homebuyers are becoming more aware of what it means to truly be energy efficient [and/or] green consumers.” And that’s a good thing. “They just shouldn’t take the word of a salesperson.”

Typically people living here for three to five years buy homes with energy savings at top of mind, not high-quality materials, continues Speegle. “With the price of construction materials going up, that increases the chances of lower-priced materials being used.” In contrast, people living in homes for the long term “are interested in materials that get a better rate of return, and they’re willing to make more of an investment” in new and/or efficient initiatives.

Surprisingly, it doesn’t cost much more to build a green home. While conventional wisdom opins that homeowners pay about 2 to 5 percent additional monies for green initiatives, Speegle says he’s heard prices “can be as much as 10 to 15 percent higher. It all goes back to this question: How green you want to be? [Deep] green or a light shade of green?”

“Build San Antonio Green” Program Certifies Homes

What exactly is a “green” building, and why should the average home buyer care about buying one with as many green attributes as possible? Generally speaking, such homes are “good for your health, your pocketbook and the Earth,” according to the Build San Antonio Green (BSAG) program. (Visit www.BuildSAGreen.org.)

Launched in 2004, this cutting-edge voluntary “green” certification program – designed specifically to work primarily with San Antonio’s residential builders – is a project of the Metropolitan Partnership for Energy (MPE). The nonprofit is funded by the City of San Antonio, Bexar County, CPS Energy and San Antonio Water Systems, and includes board representation from the San Antonio Builders Association and Alamo Area Council of Governments.

According to BSAG guidelines, a “green” building must be evaluated in five areas.

• Materials: Viewed in terms of “durability, local origins, and minimal environmental impact during manufacture and reusability”
• Site development: Includes decisions about proximity to amenities; maximum solar and shade benefits; land disturbance and erosion.
• Water conservation: Deals with indoor/outdoor measures, from showerheads to xeriscaping.
• Energy conservation: Concerns efforts providing the greatest cost savings.
• Health: Includes ideas on how to reduce particulates in the air to using more low-toxic building materials.

“We work closely with our water and energy utilities to come up with the best efficiency solutions,” says Stephen Colley, MPE’s Green Building Coordinator. He is most proud of the fact BSAG homes are also Energy Star homes; meaning they’re at least 15 percent more efficient than code.

BSAG doesn’t certify builders but rather the homes they build, explains Colley. During the program’s first year only four homes were certified out of the 8,000 built in 2004. “At that time there was no incentive; green building not on everybody’s list.”

Today BSAG has 32 member builders and 179 certified homes on its books, and expects to have about 400 certified homes by 2009. It also is adding to its program line-up this year and next. By fall 2008 BSAG will launch a new renovation and remodeling program designed to help tens of thousands of San Antonians “go green” with existing homes by becoming more energy and water efficient. Information will cover everything from the roof, walls, windows and doors, to room remodeling and additions, landscaping, heating and air conditioning, interior gutting, and carpet and paint selections. Then in early 2009 BSAG will unveil the Net Zero Energy program which certifies new homes that produce as much energy as they consume.

Local Home Builder Sets Pace for Peers

Amazingly, about 90 percent of BSAG’s certified homes have been built by one company: Imagine Homes (www.imaginehomessa.com.) Established in 2006, it built 77 homes in 2007 and expects to build 100 in 2008.

Company co-owner John Friesenhahn, a former president of the San Antonio Home Builders Association, expects 99 percent of his homes under construction and to be built in the future will be BSAG certified. Consumers appreciate the fact his homes are at least 30 percent more efficient than code, he explains; meaning they’re 15 percent more efficient than Energy Star-certified homes. This achievement can be credited to the countless green features through the building process of all Imagine units, ranging in price from $130,000 to just under $400,000.

For example, Demilec expandable foam is sprayed in the wall cavity between wall studs filling air pockets and reducing energy loss, seals out pollen and dust, and helps control moisture. When the walls and ceilings of an attic are sprayed with this foam, they help reduce that room’s temperature to a comfortable number. The builder says this foam “closed attic system” typically is 50 percent more energy efficient than code.

Other energy improvements include: sealing all returns (and verifying there are no leaks in the duct system) before the drywall goes in; conducting a blower door test to find holes in need of plugging; performance testing to ensure a properly sized energy system is chosen; and installing numerous water conservation elements (e.g., dual-flush toilets, tankless water heaters.) Windows are vinyl double-frames with low e-glass to cut down the heat and UV light entering a home. The water package “saves an average of 40,000 gallons of water a year,” says Friesenhahn.

“John is a shining light and an inspiration to others,” says BSAG’s Colley. “He shows builders not only that they can build green, but that it doesn’t cost much more to do it.” Not surprisingly, Imagine Homes won “Single-Family Production Home of the Year” recognition in the 2008 National Association of Homebuilders Green Building Awards program.

“Green Home” Program Part of National Initiative

Energy efficiency concerns are the cornerstone of the “Green Home” program launched by David Weekley Homes (www.davidweekleyhomes.com.), the country’s largest privately held builder. All homes in the homebuilder’s program are Energy Star® Certified and are said to save up to 50 percent in heating and air conditioning usage over a similar home built to 2004 building code standards.

They also meet the Diamond Level requirements for the Environments For Living® program (EFL), a national initiative which helps builders construct energy efficient, durable and comfortable homes using the latest building science solutions. Since 2001 over 100,000 homes have been built within EFL guidelines. (David Weekley is the only local participating homebuilder.)

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