Building A Green Dream Home

I read an article in the latest issue of Natural Home magazine last night and it got me thinking yet again about what my ideal green dream home/property might be like.

This is something I think about a lot, and in fact something that’s been on my mind for years - long before my (fairly) recent adoption of a more serious environmental stance.

Don’t get me wrong, even just being able to purchase our first home a couple years ago was a monumental occasion. At the time we didn’t think we had a hope of being approved (I was still in school full-time), but wanted to test out the system so to speak, just to see how far off the mark we were. Well much to our surprise (and delight) we were approved for a reasonable amount and the rest is of course history.

Anyway, as lucky and content as I feel owning my own home & my little chunk of land, my mind still wanders to thoughts of my ideal home and property.

While many of the details and possibilities change from one thought to the next, there are definitely certain details that remain constant.

Ideally, I would love to have a 5-20 acre secluded property in the country (yet not in the middle of ‘nowhere’). I envision having my own outdoor pond stocked with fish, a massive organic garden, a giant underground rainwater tank (would capture all run-off from buildings), a decent sized house (but nothing too crazy), plus a workshop building where I could mess around with vermicomposting and other ‘dirty’ experiments (aquaponics etc).

I would LOVE to have some sort of solar greenhouse incorporated into the house itself if at all possible. Take a photo tour of the Rocky Mountain Institute if you want to learn about the sort of design that totally gets me excited. I love to grow things and am a serious nature fanatic and thus really want to surround myself with as much as I can within the boundaries of a habitable dwelling.
You may recall that I was quite inspired by the ‘Wilson Solar Home‘ and the Enertia home solar heating/cooling design as well. If I was starting from scratch there would be so many more possibilities than if working with an established structure.

Ok, really starting to day dream here! I definitely don’t want to get too carried away today, although I must admit it’s actually been quite fun thinking about all of this.

Originally my intention with this post was to tell you about the article I read last night (mentioned at the beginning)! Luckily you can access it online : Build a Better Straw Bale: Simply Perfect
If you are interested in green design/construction or are simply a green home dreamer like myself I definitely recommend checking it out!

Here’s a blurb to tantalize your taste buds:

Although it took Michele and Dale Doucette five years to plan their straw bale house and two years to build it, they agree it was worth the wait. Their home reflects the life they live: simple in design and elegant in detail.

Set on 22 acres in Wilmington, Vermont, the 3,200-square-foot house fits right into the landscape. Local stones set in the stucco perimeter around the base connect the house to the earth. Locally sourced timber and straw bales make up the frame and the walls. The indigo metal roof mirrors the surrounding mountain peaks at dusk

I should also mention that there is a decent photo gallery with images from the house as well.

Technorati Tags: green building, green homes, green construction, LEED, sustainable living, off the grid, solar power, solar panels

Written by Bentley on January 23rd, 2007 with 4 comments.
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