Over 30% of the typical California household energy bill goes toward space heating.  Ensuring that a home's space heating system and building envelope is efficient and well designed will save money, improve comfort and help reduce global warming.  Equipment sizing, system design and installation will all determine the overall efficiency and performance of an HVAC system.

Lighting accounts for about 25% of a home's electricity usage.  Switching to a more efficient lighting scheme can save energy, lower bills and improve comfort. Each residential lighting option yields a different relative efficiency and design niche.  Read on to learn more.

This fact sheet discusses: environmental considerations such as energy efficiency and life span, and performance criteria such as color rendition, hue and best practices.

In recent years, numerous local governments in California have implemented "green" building ordinances. These measures can increase energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and decrease other harmful environmental impacts. This document identifies the various approaches to green building ordinances that jurisdictions have taken and the most common features of the measures.

In the U.S., termites cause more monetary damage to homes than fires, storms, and earthquakes combined. Many termite infestations can be avoided in the first place: numerous low-cost, common-sense, chemical-free design and construction measures can physically hinder termites and other pests from entering a home in their search for wood and wood-based materials to eat. As a general rule, implement measures that eliminate excess moisture, available food, and physical termite pathways. Read this fact sheet for details.

Advanced framing, or Optimal Value Engineering (OVE), is a systems approach to the design, engineering, and construction of wood-framed structures that reduces lumber use, minimizes wood waste, and maximizes a structure's thermal efficiency. View this fact sheet for details on how to implement various strategies.

Many people consider the kitchen to be the heart of a home, the place where nourishing food is prepared and guests tend to gather; and perhaps countertops are then the heart of a kitchen. Between preparing food and drinks, cutting bread, and using the surface as a trivet, dish dryer or eating place, topped off by aggressive scrubbing, countertops take a lot of abuse and require high durability in the average kitchen. With myriad options and so many performance demands, how does one choose the greenest surface? Read this fact sheet to help you make the best decision.

Since tankless units heat water only as needed, they are also referred to as Demand, Instantaneous, or Flash heaters. While they've historically been popular in Japan and Europe, the market for tankless units in the United States is now heating up. People like tankless water heaters because they take up less space, generally last at least 20 years, and can truly provide endless hot water if they are specified properly. Read this fact sheet to learn more about the benefits and drawbacks of tankless water heaters.

The delivery of hot water comes at a high price, as gas water heating accounts for about 16 percent of the average California home utility bill, and electric water heating about 28 percent. Read this fact sheet to learn how different water heating options compare in cost, performance, and energy efficiency:

• Storage/Tank-Type Water Heaters
• Heat Pump Water Heaters
• Tankless Water Heaters
• Combination/Combo Space and Water Heating Systems
• Solar Water Heating

This spreadsheet contains information and links on the various incentive programs, including rebates and tax credits, available to Santa Clara homeowners for implementing green building practices.