There is a house located not far from Eastern that looks like many others, but this house has a secret. It is one of the most eco-friendly houses you will find and one of many new houses being put on the market for sale by a company that is, “Saving you money … and the Planet … One Household at a time.”
This is the slogan for Green and Save where Charlie Szoradi is head architect, inventor and CEO. Szoradi and his family live in one of the green houses that the company specializes in making, and he often gives tours to promote their green initiative.
The eco-friendly house is powered by solar panels on the roof, with conventional backup by an energy distributor. The solar energy not only powers the house, but also helps to regulate the temperature within. There are water coils that run underneath the floors to the 250 gallon water tank in the basement at 100 to 180 degrees, relative to the weather outside.
Instead of wood or carpet, the floors are covered with Gyp-Crete and stone tiles, which hold heat better than other material. The walls and windows are also well insulated to keep warm or cold air within the house. The high ceilings allow the heat that rises to get trapped there in the summer and pushed back down by reversible ceiling fans in the winter.
Still, in the summer this house is cooled by an air conditioner that is powered by Solar Photovoltaic Panels that are located on the roof. The air conditioner, like most other appliances in the house, is energy efficient because it is connected to an Energy Star thermostat which regulates the temperature.
In order to keep most of the house friendly for the environment, Szoradi makes sure that he uses less fossil fuel by decorating his house with art work done by his 3-year-old son, instead of having it shipped to him. Szoradi also furnishes the house with locally-made items: “Instead of buying a quilt, why not have grandma knit one for you out of your old sweaters?”
The electrical power in the house primarily comes from the solar panels, with backup power from a local energy supplier in the event that the solar panels do no generate enough electricity to last the day. But there are times when too much solar energy is taken in and the company buys the electricity from Szoradi.
“The cost to power the house does not always end up being neutral, but it does come to a price that is lower than what most people pay,” Szoradi said.