Natural Lighting

Green homes feature the intelligent use of natural light.  A home naturally lit feels more open, spacious and welcoming, while also reducing the need for electrical lighting and mechanical heating and cooling.  However, uncontrolled sunlight or too many windows in a room can cause a home to be uncomfortable and results in higher utility bills.  Because the use of natural light plays such an important role in the comfort and energy efficiency of a home, such factors as orientation, window types and quantities all factor heavily into the careful planning of a green home's final design.

Depending upon your home's orientation, there are various strategies that can be used to control natural light and sunlight to your advantage.  The most effective strategies are those that prevent the sun's rays from striking the glass in the summer, or cooling, season.  Southfacing windows are best handled with roof overhangs or other shading devices such as trellises and awnings.  They should be just deep enough to block the high, midsummer sun while still allowing the lower winter sun rays to penetrate deeply into the living spaces.    Eastern and western exposures can be more challenging, particularly the setting sun.  Overhangs are ineffective because the sun angles are low and penetrating.  Here, heat gain can be controlled with vertical louver shading devices, or by strategically planted deciduous trees.   As the north side of the home is the coldest, glass should be minimized wherever possible.  Skylights, while a great assest on overcast or winter days, present unique challenges in warmer seasons.  Remotely operable insulating shades with reflective material are effective at rejecting summer heat while allowing winter sun and light to enter.