Part 4: How to Buy a Green Home- HVAC

Part 4- How to Buy a Green Home- HVAC

HVAC- that means your heating and air conditioning. You'll need both here in Austin, and the air conditioning will be pretty critical.

Here's some things to look for in a greener home.

1. One story, or zoned hvac for a two story. Heat rises, so unless you have zoned air to control the upstairs temperature separately from the downstairs, you'll end up cooking your sleeping guests, or shivering down on the first floor. A one story home will be more efficient, or a 2 story 'zoned'.

2. Look for a SEER number on the HVAC system. The higher the number, the more efficient it is. 13 or higher is pretty good. The number correlates to the amount of space it can cool.

3. Sheet metal duct work and sealed and tested ducts. This carries your air to where it needs to be. Sheet metal means there is less friction for the air flow. Sealed ducts mean less leakage of your cool air, and tested ducts can tell you how much (or how little) your system is leaking.

4. Duct work within the conditioned space- this means that you can either see the duct work, or it's in the middle of the house. It seems logical now, but back in the day, the air conditioning system was stored in the attic, where it would BAKE all summer. Even if the system wasn't in the attic, the duct work was stuffed up there to keep it out of view. Result? A pretty counterproductive set up.

A/C Pumps out cold air--- Cold air leaks into attic---Cold air warms up from hot attic---- A/C must pump more cold air to keep your house cool.



Your Green Realtor
Stay Tuned and Stay Green
Patty Sylvana
512-297-5658
patty@GreenAustinProperties.com

check out some local green homes here.