Design Ideas for the Home
Home design for the interior is the set of decisions that makes the inside of the house work for the person who lives in it, and it is the work the interior design does on the room the architecture delivered. The sustainable home design is the branch of this work that makes the room work with less, less energy, less water and less material, and it is the set of ideas this page gathers, the ideas that cut the running cost of the home and the waste of the fit out. A home that is designed for sustainability runs on the 3 systems the design touches, the energy the room uses, the material the room is made of and the air the room holds, and the idea for each is the one that makes the system work with less.
The energy ideas the room runs on
The energy ideas of the sustainable home design are the decisions that cut the power the room draws, and they work on the 3 loads the room carries, the heat, the light and the appliance. The heat is the first load, the energy the room uses to hold its temperature, and the idea for it is the insulation of the envelope and the seal of the window, the double glazing and the draft proofing that keep the heat in in winter and out in summer. The light is the second load, the energy the room uses to be seen in, and the idea for it is the daylight, the window placed to the light the room needs by day so the lamp is off in the hours the sun is up. The appliance is the third load, the energy the devices of the room draw, and the idea for it is the selection of the efficient unit and the control of the standby, the appliance that draws less and the switch that cuts the draw when the room is empty. The 3 loads, the heat, the light and the appliance, are where the energy of the room goes, and the 3 ideas, the insulation, the daylight and the efficient unit, are the design decisions that cut the load at the source, the room that uses less because it is designed to, not because the occupant remembers.
The material ideas the fit out is made of
The material ideas of the sustainable home design are the choices that cut the waste of the fit out, and they work on the 3 materials the room is finished in, the floor, the wall and the fixture. The floor is the first material, the surface the room is stood on, and the idea for it is the material that is local and durable, the timber of the region and the stone of the quarry, the material that was not shipped and will not be replaced in 5 years. The wall is the second, the surface the room is seen against, and the idea for it is the finish that is low in its making, the paint of the low volatile content and the covering that is not the plastic that off gasses, the finish the air of the room is not poisoned by. The fixture is the third, the built in element the room is fixed with, and the idea for it is the joinery that is built to last and the unit that is made to be repaired, the fixture that outlives the trend and is not the one that is replaced when the style turns. The 3 materials, the floor, the wall and the fixture, are what the fit out is made of, and the 3 ideas, the local durable, the low impact finish and the lasting joinery, are the material decisions that make the room the one that wastes less, the material chosen for the years it serves and not for the season it is in style.
The air and water ideas the home holds
The air and water ideas of the sustainable home design are the decisions that keep the room healthy and the home drawing less from the supply, and they work on the 2 flows the home carries, the air that moves through it and the water that runs through it. The air is the first flow, the air the room holds and the air it exchanges, and the idea for it is the ventilation that is controlled, the fresh air brought in and the stale air taken out by the design of the opening and the fan, the room that breathes without the window open to the weather. The water is the second flow, the water the home draws and the water it returns, and the idea for it is the fixture that draws less, the tap and the WC that use the reduced volume, and the capture of the rain, the water the roof collects that the garden and the flush use. The 2 flows, the air and the water, are what the home moves, and the 2 ideas, the controlled ventilation and the reduced draw, are the design decisions that make the home hold its air and use less of its water, the room that is healthy because the air is designed and the home that draws less because the fixture is chosen for the draw.
The ideas that pay for themselves
The ideas of the sustainable home design that pay for themselves are the decisions that cut the running cost, and they are the 3 that the bill shows, the insulation, the efficient unit and the water fixture. The insulation is the first that pays, the decision that cuts the heat load, and it pays in the heating bill of every winter and the cooling bill of every summer, the cost that falls for the 20 years the insulation holds. The efficient unit is the second, the decision that cuts the appliance load, and it pays in the electricity bill of every day, the draw that is lower from the first month the unit is installed. The water fixture is the third, the decision that cuts the water draw, and it pays in the water bill and in the hot water bill, the draw that is lower at the tap and the flush. The 3 that pay, the insulation, the unit and the fixture, are the ideas the running cost shows, and they are the ones the budget that weighs the cost of the idea against the saving of the years finds to be the ones that return, the idea that costs more at the fit out and less at the bill, the saving that the design puts into the room and the bill takes out for the years the room is lived in.
How the ideas come together in a home
The ideas of the sustainable home design come together in the home in the order the design runs, and the order is the order the 3 systems are touched, the energy, the material and the air and water. The energy is designed first, because the envelope and the window and the appliance are the decisions the architecture carries, and they are fixed before the fit out begins. The material is chosen second, because the floor and the wall and the fixture are the decisions the fit out carries, and they are chosen to the room the energy design has set. The air and water are designed third, because the ventilation and the fixture are the decisions the service carries, and they are set to the room the material has finished. The 3 systems in that order, the energy before the material and the material before the air and water, are the order the sustainable home design runs, and the home that is designed in that order is the home that works with less, the energy cut at the envelope, the material chosen for the years, the air and water held to the draw. The ideas are not the add on to the home but the design of it, the set of decisions that makes the room work for the person who lives in it and works with less for the ground it stands on, the sustainable home the interior design makes, the room the architecture delivered made to last and to draw less.