HGTV Green Home Giveaway Tour

4-14-08 hgtv green.jpg We blogged about the new HGTV "Green Home Giveaway" a few weeks ago, and now we've got some photos to go with it.

We were quick to scoff at the "green" theme of the house as it seemed to be taken a bit too literally - the house is littered with green pillows and other decorative accents.

we get it.

Turns out, though, that HGTV went all out by making the house LEED-registered through the US Green Building Council.

4-14-08 hgtv kitchen.jpg The house features many of the standard "greenification" (yes, we just made that up) methods, like solar panels, insulation, and water-efficient fixtures. However, we were a little more interested in some of the more creative ways they have made an environmentally-friendly home, such as the golf cart for cleaner short-distance driving, rainwater harvesting, and a heating and air-conditioning systems that allows rooms to be individually controlled, so energy isn't wasted on less frequently used areas of the home.

Check out a full tour of the home and more information on their sustainability efforts here.

Comments (7)

Go green!

posted by ekoshyun on April 14th 2008 at 11:50am
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I applaud HGTV for building a relatively modest house and trying to raise the awareness of green building.

Okay, now that I got that token nicety out of the way, oh how I wish they would get rid of that shamelessly exuberant "My House is Worth What?" and that deformed, pretentious abomination also known as Kendra Todd. She gives me convulsions.

posted by hejiranyc on April 14th 2008 at 12:01pm
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Yay! What good inspiration for going green :)

posted by ee2485 on April 14th 2008 at 12:27pm
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so then you've got a "green" home with a gas-guzzling SUV in front? and maybe replace the golf cart with a bicycle?

posted by aad on April 14th 2008 at 1:08pm
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It's a hybrid vehicle, also part of the giveaway.

posted by Trish on April 14th 2008 at 1:35pm
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I am skeptical of the idea that environmental sustainability can be achieved through buying more things. Maybe a green product is better than a not-green product, but how about no product? Less consumption = less waste. Is a hybrid better than a gas guzzler? Sure. Should we pat ourselves on the back for being good environmentalists for buying a not-terrible car? Probably not.

Also, while LEED may raise awareness about building sustainably, it is actually possible to build a LEED certified glass box house in a desert. Again, there are probably better ways to go about living in an environmentally sustainable way.

posted by greyny on April 14th 2008 at 1:54pm
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Let's be real....they're giving you that golf cart because the house is in a planned community whose major feature is a golf course. As another said, give the winner a bicycle, a good pair of walking shoes, fertile land, and an accessible community, and you will have given them real sustainability.

I have issues with this- certainly it is an improvement over the zillion square foot monstrosities that HGTV has built in the past, but they are still playing to the commercial definition of "green." It is possible to live a far more sustainable lifestyle without having to spend, spend, spend all the time.

posted by zero on April 15th 2008 at 6:08am
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