3 Green Remodels that Pack a Knockout Punch

Did you know that Dr. Bruce Banner, a.k.a. The Incredible Hulk, is an expert in biology, chemistry, engineering, and physiology, and holds a Ph.D. in nuclear physics? That's a heck of a resume for somebody whose vocabulary at times is limited to "GRRRRRR!" Fortunately, you don't need half the brains of Bruce Banner to select the right green remodeling project for you, or your home. If you're on the hunt for a green project that packs an Incredible punch, the following 3 areas deserve your attention, thanks to their proven potential for cutting home energy costs, improving indoor air quality, and reducing environmental impacts. Let's take a look at these green heavyweights one project at a time, to see what each has to offer.

Hulk Hungry!!!
Sources as varied as the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), Former Vice President Al Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection, and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), all agree that kitchens can be as two-faced as Bruce Banner and the Hulk when it comes to core green concerns like healthy indoor environments, energy consumption, and environmental friendliness.

How so? From a decidedly un-green perspective, kitchen appliances account for one of the largest energy draws in your home, many building materials used in kitchen remodels are known for contributing to poor indoor air quality and potentially serious health problems, and kitchen-centered activities like food preparation and cooking are known to create the perfect breeding ground for bacterial growth and moisture related problems, like the development of potentially dangerous mold and mildew.

On the other hand, if you opt for Energy Star appliances, install countertop and cabinet materials that don't off-gas urea formaldehyde, use Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood products, and make sure you incorporate plenty of ventilation into your kitchen remodel (range vents are key), what used to be a monster can easily be transformed into one of the greenest rooms in the house. Go ahead, rip your shirt off with excitement if you want. Green kitchens are everything they're made out to be.

Hulk Smelly!!!
Next on the list is . . . you guessed it! The bathroom. Not quite as monstrous as the kitchen in either scope, cost, or environmental degradation, bathrooms still have a lot of untapped potential when it comes to going green. Some of the issues are the same as those facing kitchens: high moisture levels can contribute to unhealthy indoor environments, as can many adhesives, and cabinet and countertop materials that are commonplace in the boudoir. That said, it's in the area of water conservation that bathrooms stand as solitary and colossal as the Incredible Hulk himself. According to lowimpactliving.com, the average American uses 165 gallons of freshwater a day, the majority of which either runs down your shower drain, or gets flushed down the toilet. With fresh water resources dwindling worldwide, anything you can do to bring that number down is smart from a green perspective. According to eartheasy.com, installing low-flow faucets, showerheads, and low-flow toilets are all good places to start, since these eco-friendly solutions can reduce home water consumption by as much as 50%. Even better, since you'll be using less water to wash and bathe, you'll save even more money and energy at your hot water heater than you will at the tap. Word to the wise: if you do go with a low-flow toilet, it's probably a good idea to ask the Hulk to double flush.

Hulk Save World—and Money!
The last Incredible green upgrade we'll list here isn't limited to a single room. It's what the U.S. Green Building Council likes to call a "deep energy retrofit." The idea behind this major green remodel is saving as much energy, and money, as possible—and why not? If the Incredible Hulk can save Earth from total destruction (as well as a few other planets in foreign solar systems, if you're a devout fan of the Hulk's comic book adventures), then is it all that unreasonable to think you could cut your home energy consumption, and costs, by anywhere from 50% to 90%?

Not according to the U.S. Green Building Council. By first performing a full home energy audit, and then "addressing all, or nearly all loads—space conditioning, hot water, appliances, and plug load—even sometimes transportation," the USGBC guarantees that you'll get big results, in that 50% to 90% reduction mentioned above. It's not easy, or cheap, to go this green, but by upgrading insulation inside and out, designing with passive solar heating in mind, replacing conventional energy sources with solar alternatives, and educating homeowners how to live greener lives, any home can be transformed into a textbook example of energy conservation, ecological responsibility, and financial windfall! Best of all, unlike Bruce Banner, there's no need to get angry in order to get green. You just need to find a designer and contractor who are as committed to the process of deep greening your home as you are.

Rumor has it that Bruce Banner possesses "a mind so brilliant it cannot be measured on any known intelligence test." Turn your house as green as Banner's alter ego, the Incredible Hulk, and you can rest assured that it won't be too long before your neighbors start talking about you the same way.