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When does a green home project make financial sense? The authors of this book provide the answer to this and other questions relating to the cost (and relative value) of environmentally friendly home improvements. Eric Corey Freed and Kevin Daum are experts, respectively, in green building and in financing custom homes. In this information-packed book, they walk readers through 50 green home projects and break them down according to the positive impact they have on the environment, as well as the impact they may have (both positive and negative) on the reader's wallet.

They evaluate a wide array of projects, including insulating pipes, weatherizing doors and windows, composting and recycling trash, installing a solar hot water heater, installing green countertops, upgrading appliances, building with reclaimed materials and installing radiant heat. This unique perspective on going green is a reference that green-leaning homeowners simply cannot do without.

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Prefabulous and Sustainable dispels the negative myths associated with prefab homes and shows the reader how beautiful and remarkably green prefab homes are.

In this guide to prefab home-building, author Sheri Koones demystifies the prefabricated house by using 25 unique homes to showcase how factory-built homes are greener, more efficient, sturdier and more cost-effective than site-built homes. The book is divided into three categories — green, greener, greenest — and the homes featured vary in style, design, type of construction and size. All of the homes included in Prefabulous and Sustainable have been customized to create a level of sustainability beyond the inherent qualities of prefab.

Written in an easy to understand and approachable style, this book walks the readers through each of the homes, explaining the materials, strategies and systems used to create a sustainable living environment. Photographs, captions, floorplans and sidebars show readers that green living is not as complicated as one might think, and attainable for everyone. Also included is a resource guide, making this book a hands-on guide for homebuilders.
About the Author
Sheri Koones is a widely respected author who helps readers understand that getting the house of their dreams can be done in an ecologically responsible way. Her book, Prefabulous, explored the variety, beauty and eco-friendly benefits of prefab homes and recently won the prestigious Gold Award in the 2008 Robert Bruss Real Estate Book Awards from NAREE. Koones is a member of the National Association of Real Estate Editors, the Sustainable Building Industry Council, and the American Society of Journalists and Authors. She is also a columnist for Home Resource Guide and a freelance writer and speaker. She lives in Connecticut.

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Fresh perspectives on how good design can create stylish yet ecologically sound living spaces in small-scale homes. Anyone who has faced the challenges of limited living space will find inspiration in this survey of the latest trends in environmentally sensitive, small-scale residential designs.

More than 50 residential spaces are profiled — from woodsy houses and repurposed barns to cool apartments and urban lofts — both inside and out. Most of the projects were designed by up-and-coming architects, and each design proves that small-scale efficiency as well as beautiful, thoughtful design can overcome the apparent constraints of a small setting.

Environmental impact is a growing concern, so each project was chosen because of its ecological sensitivity. Each case history describes the challenges confronting the designer and the solutions. Creating color schemes to enhance the feeling of openness, taking advantage of high ceilings to make multiple levels, and using collapsible furniture and sliding doors to maximize space are some of the design solutions that can be applied in any situation. Filled with beautiful color photographs and helpful floorplans, this book is a remarkable showcase of how good design can transform any small space into a comfortable, modern and environmentally sensitive home.

About the Authors:
Cristina Paredes Benítez has degrees in fine arts and in information science. She is an editor specializing in illustrated books and she has collaborated with several publishers and photo agencies.

Àlex Sánchez Vidiella earned a degree in art history, specializing in contemporary art, baroque art, and entertainment art (cinema), from the University of Barcelona. He has worked as an art history teacher and as an editor and graphic editor for various publishing houses specializing in art, architecture, geographic atlases and scientific encyclopedia. He is currently a writer and editor, working mostly on architecture books.

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Good things do come in small packages.

Just ask internationally recognized small living expert Jay Shafer. His small buildings have appeared on CNN, Oprah, Fine Homebuilding, and This Old House. Ranging in size from 64 to 110 square feet, these tiny backyard buildings can be used as guest cottages, art or writing studios, home offices, craft workshops, vacation retreats, or a full-time residence.

Filled with photos, elevation drawings, and door/window schedules for six Tumbleweed box bungalows, The Tumbleweed DIY Book of Backyard Sheds and Tiny Houses, also includes an extensive how-to set of instructions that can be applied to any backyard building project. Though conventionally built, these handsome little buildings have real doors, windows, and skylights with interesting and practical details throughout. With extra attention given to energy and space efficiency in their design, these tiny houses can help deliver the relief we all need on the road toward a sustainable world.

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A State-of-the-Art Resource for Natural Builders

Natural buildings not only bring satisfaction to their makers and joy to their occupants, they also leave the gentlest footprint on the environment. In this complete reference to natural building philosophy, design, and technique, Jacob Deva Racusin and Ace McArleton walk builders through planning and construction, offering step-by-step instructions on:

• Siting
• Planning for heat and moisture
• Developing an integrative design
• Creating the foundation, wall system, roof, and floors
• Protecting against fire and insects
• Planning for acoustics
• Selecting and making finishes
• Plastering
• Budgeting

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There's a grassroots movement in tiny homes these days. The real estate collapse, the economic downturn, burning out on 12-hour workdays – many people are rethinking their ideas about shelter – seeking an alternative to high rents, or a lifelong mortgage debt to a bank on an overpriced home.

In this book are some 150 builders who have taken things into their own hands, creating tiny homes (under 500 sq. ft.). Homes on land, homes on wheels, homes on the road, homes on water, even homes in the trees. There are also studios, saunas, garden sheds, and greenhouses.

There are 1,300 photos, showing a rich variety of small homemade shelters, and there are stories (and thoughts and inspirations) of the owner-builders who are on the forefront of this new trend in downsizing and self-sufficiency.

At the heart of our 1973 book Shelter were drawings of 5 small buildings, which we recommended as a starting point in providing one's own home. Now, almost 40 years later, there's a growing tiny house movement all over the world – which we've been tracking over the past two years.

Many people have decided to scale back, to get by with less stuff, to live in smaller homes. You can buy a ready-made tiny home, build your own, get a kit or pre-fab, or live in a bus, houseboat, or other movable shelter. Some cities have special ordinances for building "inlaw" or "granny flats" in the back yard. There are innovative solutions in cities, such as the "capsules" in Tokyo. There are numerous blogs and websites with news, photos, and/or plans for tiny homes, documented here.

If you're thinking of scaling back, you'll find plenty of inspiration here. Here's a different approach, a 180º turn from increasing consumption. Here are builders, designers, architects (no less), dreamers, artists, road gypsies, and water dwellers who've achieved a measure of freedom and independence by taking shelter into their own hands.

About the Author
In 1968 Lloyd Kahn worked as Shelter editor for the Whole Earth Catalog. In 1971 he published Domebook 2. His shake-covered geodesic dome was featured in Life magazine. Ultimately disillusioned with domes, he took Domebook 2 out of print and in 1973, published the oversized book Shelter, which went on to sell more than 250,000 copies. In 2004, Kahn published HomeWork: Handbuilt Shelter – in many ways the sequel to Shelter – and Builders of the Pacific Coast in 2008. Tiny Homes: Simple Shelter is the 4th book in this series. Kahn and his wife Lesley live and work in a small coastal town in Northern California.

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Everyone can make green home decisions on a budget with this inspiring, information-packed guide. Whether you are building, remodeling, buying, or just curious, here are real-world strategies for getting the greenest results from your budget, with hundreds of ideas for a home that is built to last, comfortable and healthy, money- and time-saving in the long term, and kind to the planet.

What shade of green is right for you, your resources, schedule, and setting, and how can you achieve it? What questions should you ask? What approaches and resources are best for the Northwest? From your home's exterior to its operating systems within, from siting to interior design, this is the basic training that has given many the confidence to proceed.

Award-winning sustainable design and building consultant and teacher Kathleen O'Brien and architectural designer and sustainability consultant Kathleen Smith offer their "top picks" for each phase. Their perspective is both down-to-earth and cutting edge. They've also each faced their own green home challenges in a single family house and a duplex, and other case studies show affordable energy-efficient green homes both old and new.

Brimming with ideas, clear and logical, with tips, checklists, and resources for green home planning, construction, remodeling, and maintenance, extensively illustrated with photos and diagrams, this is the essential green home manual for novice and professional alike.

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Malcolm Wells' fourth book about underground architecture will show you that building a house underground is not only possible but also a very good idea for those who want a friendly-with-the-earth life.

This book covers everything you need to know about underground building, from concept basics to house plans you can use for your own underground home.

An architect by trade, Wells lived in The Underground Art Gallery, in Brewster, Mass., and wrote several books about this subject, which he began promoting in 1964. A pioneer of underground building and natural design, he penned such best-selling books as Gentle Architecture and The Earth-Sheltered House. How to Build an Underground House is scanned from his own handwritten and illustrated pages and is self-published.