Buying Green - Or Greenish

November 20, 2008

This year’s energy scare is a taste of what will come. Experts all agree that our use of energy in this country has to change. So if you’re looking to buy a home, how do you choose a home that has a moderate appetite for energy? Although “green” homes are becoming more popular, they come at a price. But there are alternative choices that will provide savings if you are aware when you go looking.

The first thing to look at is the orientation of the home. Passive solar homes are designed to work with the sun. The ideal home is one with most windows facing the south. During the hot summer months, the sun moves over your house but will not directly shine into the south facing windows. During the winter months, the sun is lower and will shine into your south facing windows, providing solar warmth to your home. A home with a lot of west facing windows will have much higher cooling bills as the hot afternoon summer sun will penetrate even double glazed windows.

Next take a look at how the house conserves energy. The existing homeowner may be able to tell you what the energy efficiency rating is on the house. Are the windows double or tripple glazed? Is there insulation in the attic and under the floors (not all areas of the country need insulation under the floors). Do the built-in appliances have an ENERGY STAR rating? Is the home leaking energy? Sealing air leaks is the quickest and cheapest energy improvement you can make. Actual savings vary for each home, but it is possible to reduce energy costs by one-third. Sealing air leaks can save money in other ways, because a tighter home envelop allows for smaller-capacity heating and cooling equipment. The best way to reduce air leaks and implement the right ventilation strategy is to hire an energy analyst to run a blower door test.

Bear in mind that once you buy a home you there are other things you can easily do to increase the energy efficiency of your home. Unplug appliances when not in use, especially chargers. Switch to using energy efficient Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFLs). Look for ENERGY STAR qualified CFLs by choosing the right lumens (not watts). Use cold water to wash clothes, line dry items, use air dry instead of heated dry on your dishwasher. Invest in thermal shades or drapes.

So with a little forethought, your next home could be a partner in your effort to save both money and the earth’s natural resources!

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Local Information for Tulsa, OK

Latitude: 36.131294 -- Longitude: -95.937332

Other Area Cities: Claremore Tulsa Broken Arrow Jenks Owasso Sapulpa Glenpool Sand Springs

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The city is located in Northeast Oklahoma, a part of the state often referred to as "Green Country." It is considered the cultural and arts center of Oklahoma, boasting two world-renowned art museums, full-time professional opera and ballet companies, and the third largest concentration of art deco architecture in the country, behind New York City and Miami, Florida. [citation needed] Many of Tulsa's downtown skyscrapers and also entire neighborhoods were constructed in the art deco style of architecture. The city has the nation's most inland water port, the Tulsa Port of Catoosa [5], which connects the state with international ocean trade routes through the Arkansas River and Mississippi River. Tulsa is also home to an American Airlines maintenance center, the largest airline maintenance base in the world.The Tulsa area has 13 school districts with more than 20,000 students as of Fall 2005.Tulsa Public Schools is the largest school district in Oklahoma. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

Oklahoma 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Tulsa	Oklahoma	United States
Population	393,049	3,450,654	281,421,906
Median age	34.5	35.5	35.3
Median age for Male	32.6	33.9	34
Median age for Female	36.4	36.9	36.5
Households	165,743	1,342,293	105,480,101
Household population	382,616	3,338,279	273,643,273
Average household size	2.31	2.49	2.59
Families	99,094	921,750	71,787,347
Average family size	2.98	3.02	3.14
Housing units	179,405	1,514,400	115,904,641
Occupied units	165,743	1,342,293	105,480,101
Vacant units	13,662	172,107	10,424,540

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