Green Certs

Milhaus

Anyone looked into LEED certification or anything similar for contractors/builders? LEED certification is technically not available yet from what I have seen (for residential), but in process to be available this year. Is there any other recognized and reputable green certification out there for residential GCs, builders, etc?

Bob Kovacs

I'm LEED Accredited- have been since 2003. Although the program hasn't yet been rolled out for homes or remodeling, just having gone through the process of becoming an Accredited Professional will help you to apply the intent of the program to your projects.

There are local/state programs in some areas that apply to homes and remodels, though. If we knew where you're located, I might be able to point you toward one.

Bob

Milhaus

Thanks Bob. I'm in Iowa. I was checking out NAHB, and it looks like they are pushing their own green program certification. I wonder what is is about LEED that they are not in agreement with?
I read an article stating that NAHB is backing the movement towards energy efficiency, but then later on in the article, the guy was knocking it because it was going to add $12-15K to the price of the home and that was far too much. Maybe I'm missing a big factor here, but $12-15K on a $200-$300K home doesn't seem much for a house that is top of the line in regards to energy, water quality, and its footprint in the world.
I have no intent on offending anyone who is heavily involved with the NAHB, but that doens't make sense to me. But again, I'm pretty 'green' to the whole process yet.

Bob Kovacs

Regarding NAHB and LEED, I think NAHB is pushing their model more because it's very finite and defined, allowing their members to implement it far easier than LEED. It's a "seal rim joist- check. use HRV unit at 50 CFM per person- check." checklist kind of program, where LEED is more open ended and would require more work on the part of the builder to get his product to comply. I'm not trying to say that they're trying to make it "easy" to acheive a certification (OK, maybe I am....lol)- just following a "different route".

The comment about the cost is a fact of our wonderful "I want it all, but I don't want to pay for it" world. I deal with it every day- the client wants a green building so they can tell the world how they're doing the right thing, but when they find out the cost its "but I don't want to spend any MONEY on going green". The same goes for homebuilders- they all want to talk the talk so they can use it in their ads, but if they can't take that $15k cost and pass it along to the buyer in the form of a $20-25k higher home price (which the public currently won't pay), they won't do it.

Bob

Milhaus

Great info Bob.

It seems like the NAHB kind of 'directs' builders to specific building practices with the checklist? This keeps ropes on the building process, which I suppose is what they are after - to keep the 'standard'; while LEED would allow for alternatives a bit more by being open-ended; albeit requiring more work on the builder's end.

Cost/pricing is certainly going to be an ongoing issue, and a delicate balance for me to find. Everyone wants to get the most for their money. I can understand the position of 'most' builders now, wanting to make sure they keep profits up. I'm a bit of an idealist when it comes to these things, so I'll definitely need to be wary of how I proceed.

Again - I appreciate the info.

BKA

How do you get LEED cert'd for commercial / public work?

Bob Kovacs

Technically, the projects get "certified", but you can become a "LEED Accredited Professional" by taking the exam that the USGBC offers. There's no experience or educational requirements to take the exam, but it's a difficult test if you aren't familiar with green building practices and the LEED program in general.

Bob