Benefits of Using Sustainable Materials for Home Renovation

April 28, 2017

Today's eco-conscious and compliant architects and builders know the value of using construction materials with low counts of embodied energy, which is the amount of energy necessary to manufacture these materials. Although heavy building supplies are strong and can withstand harsh weather conditions as well as general wear and tear over a long time period, they have large amounts of embodied energy and require use of heavy, energy-consuming equipment and tools during construction phases. Sturdy exterior building supplies like brick and mortar are not only heavy in weight and embodied energy, but they can also crack and crumble in extreme weather conditions, requiring repair or replacement.

Multiple Benefits of Choosing Sustainable Building Materials for Home Renovations

By using sustainable construction materials for home renovations today, you can gain many different benefits that will enhance the results of your remodelling efforts. They will provide you with building advantages such as the following:

• Less Greenhouse Emissions. - In general, buildings are now responsible for approximately 60 percent of all greenhouse emissions. By using lighter construction materials like durable timber rather than brick, mortar or steel, less embodied energy is involved and homes can be renovated using less expensive building products. Fewer greenhouse emissions are involved in both the production of construction materials and in home renovations using these lighter products as well as less high-powered machinery and tools.
• Easier, Lightweight and Less Expensive Frames. - Most residential remodelling and extension building in Australia today includes use of timber frames. Because the constant growth of new trees helps rid the air of carbon dioxide while creating a continuous supply of new wood for construction use, frames made of timber are sustainable. Wooden frames can also be obtained prefabricated and ready for transport and use in construction. They are less costly and easier to deliver to building sites than steel or metal alloy frames.
• Cost-Efficient and Sustainable Wallboards (Claddings). - Popular weatherboard and fibre cement sheeting are now used across Australia for professional home renovation projects. Although these modern green materials provide durability like masonry walling, they are much lighter in weight and easier to work with, speeding up the building process while cutting costs significantly.
• Environmentally-Friendly Roofing Products. - Although terracotta, concrete and slate roofing is still used in building in Australia, sustainable metal roofing materials have gained strong popularity and usage. Roofing of copper is sustainable and it also protects radio frequencies and guards homes against damage from lightning during storms. Other types of metal roofing now in vogue are corrugated galvanized steel and blends of aluminium, zinc and silicon. Metals with surfaces that rust easily, like aluminium, return beneficial metallic content to the earth.

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