What makes a home sustainable? A home can be designed to be energy efficient, to be a high performing building, but to make the whole build a sustainable home will come down to the decisions you make as the owner.
Sustainable building design intentionally aims for the most positive outcome for the environment, the community and the occupants throughout construction, for the life of the building and beyond.
The average volume built home has an expected lifespan of a maximum of 30 years . A custom home new build or renovation can have an expected lifespan of +100 years if designed and finished correctly. When you are designing your home, think about the life of the building, what the surrounding landscape may look like in 50 years, what generations may occupy it, what expectations they may have.
When you are choosing your finishes and fixtures, ask yourself these kinds of questions – what is it made from, where was it made, who made it, how long will it last, can it be repaired or modified or reused later on, what kind of reputation does the manufacturer have, is there an equivalent local product that can be used? Every choice you make has an impact on the planet and society. The myriad of small descisions each project owner put together to form a larger picture, reprinted on a regional scale, that form the industry patterns.
Our role at 4305 design is to help you make informed descisions, and to understand the implications of choosing one style of cladding over another, one brand of tile over another, right down to the lumen values and color of external lighting that may effect the ecosystem surround your new home.
4305 Design considers the following attributes when developing a design to assist the client to make better informed decisions.
Operational Energy (cost of living, greenhouse emissions)
Embodied Energy (carbon footprint)
Resilience (climate change, future purposes)
Indoor Air Quality (health)
Accessibility
Water collection, use, disposal
Ecological diversity
Social design
Economic benefits
Ethical choices
