Breaking Down LEED-H – Points vs. Price vs. Purpose

 We are knee-deep in applying for LEED®-H (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification through the USGBC (U.S. Green Building Council). LEED-H has proven to have a stronger program, better guidelines and more resources (although I still love the NAHB’s online tool). LEED’s third-party certification program is undoubtedly the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green homes and this is what we are striving for. We’re going to undergo a lot of learning during this process and we’re going to share what we learn.  

 

I’ve been working on my LEED-H application since our full team meeting with Rob Sherwood of Conservation Services Group on Wednesday; my goal is it is done by EOD today, Sunday12/7/08.

 

But in doing this I’ve started to break down the topic areas of LEED-H into how I understand it both in terms of what I want to accomplish for my family and how to get points. I’ve tried to understand where to get easy points (landscaping), what are the hard points (IAQ), and how to find the cheap points (walk off mats) and the expensive points (geo thermal and solar energy) and then there is the cost and points of the third party verification.

 

Here’s the LEED-H Point chart as of November 2008 (note: applications that come in after January 2009 will have a whole new system (good times).

Certification Level
LEED for Homes Certification Levels	Number of LEED for Homes Points Required
Certified	45 – 59
Silver	60 – 74
Gold	75 – 89
Platinum	90 – 136
Total Available Points	136

 

Full details can be found in the 114-page LEED for Homes Rating System document.

LEED-H points cover eight topic areas where a home can attain points towards the four performance levels of Certified, Silver, Gold, Platinum.

One of the first things you have to do in the LEED-H application process is the checklist and select the points that you are in fact going for and your certification level. As you do this, you will have to determine the threshold level specific to your home, you need to calculate a “Home Size Adjustment” based on your home’s size. According to LEED-H, this compensates for the overarching effect of home size on resource consumption by adjusting the award level point threshold based on home size under the theory that bigger homes host more people, and every additional person means an increase in a home’s resource consumption. The adjustment is based on the square footage of the house and the number of bedrooms.  At 4360 square feet and 4 bedrooms, our calculation added 13.5 points to all of the certification thresholds, which means to achieve Gold we have to attain 88.5 points minimum. Platinum for GLSL means 103.5 points, which in a 136-point rating system with some points that simply are not achievable (see my post on the delusional Compact Development points) will be very hard unless we put in a geo-thermal system.

In order to achieve LEED-H points, we have to provide both the prescriptive pathway of how we’re achieving the point and document the actual process, materials, specifications, etc. for every point in every category. This can be overwhelming, but is also incredibly educational, thought-provoking and inspirational. I can honestly say that despite

 

I’ve also decided to create our own list of where we can get innovative points but I iwll share that at a later date. 

 

Here’s an overview of what we’re trying to accomplish.

 

Innovation in Design :: 0 point minimum/ 11 point maximum ::  Use a LEED Accredited Professional, greatly exceed the requirements of a credit, incorporate innovative environmental features not covered in other areas. Target your preliminary rating. We’re looking at exploring Greening Your Entertainment and Home Automation for Energy Savings as two innovative ways to go greener. We’re also putting in some fun stuff for the kids about how to take of the earth and wondering if that might get a smile or two.

Location and Linkages ::  0 point minimum / 10 point maximum ::  All about the urban infrastructure/density, favors urban areas (so not fair) and green space. Though not a requirement, big loss of points here for the project house because it is in a very small, beach community.

Sustainable Sites ::  5 point minimum / 22 point maximum ::  Site stewardship, drought-tolerant landscaping,  surface water management, pest control and compact development (an item of which I am not a fan at all). If you don’t know what these mean, we’ll explain as we get to each point in the process, so check back.

 

Water Efficiency :: 3 point minimum / 15 point maximum ::  Water reuse and reduction, irrigation and indoor water use (fixtures and fittings).

 

Energy and Atmosphere ::  0 point minimum / 38 point maximum ::  There are perquisites which require you to meet the performance of ENERGY STAR for Homes and be inspected by third party but you get no points for this. The overall goal of this area (which is also where you can rack up the most points) is to reduce building energy consumption, use renewable energy, eliminate ozone-depleting chemicals, commission building systems. You’ve got to acheive a lows HERS score for any hope of solid points here. You’ve also got to explore solar, PV and geo thermal. The latter gives you teh most points because of reduction of fossil fuels (it can also help in your water area).

 

Materials and Resources ::  2 point minimum / 16 point maximum :: Minimize construction waste, implement best green building practices, use renewable construction materials, and design and build more durable buildings. The second part addresses environmentally preferable products (worth ½ of a point each, homeowners can earn 8 out of a possible 11 points here) and includes recycled and salvaged materials and all the cool green products you can use to build inside and out.

 

Indoor Environmental Quality ::  6 point minimum / 21 point maximum :: Explores the ENERGY STAR with Indoor Air Package (worth up to a whopping 13 points but I’ve been told they are very, very, very hard to get) including moisture control, outdoor air ventilation, distribution heating and cooling, use of low emitting materials, air filtering and contaminant control during construction.

 

Awareness and Education :: minimum 0 points / maximum 3 points :: Education of the homeowner including operations training and public awareness (there’s one point).

 

We’re going to keep you updated on where we do well on LEED-H points and where we fail. We’re going for Gold but our goal remains the same, show today’s families that they can afford to go green and that it is an investment in “THEIR” environment.

 

This is and will continue to be challenging. But I am up for it.

 

KDL | follow me on Twitter: newscaster