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Aircrete :

Aircrete blocks are an environmentally friendly


sustainable building material offering many benefits
in construction that add to the sustainable
credentials of a project, including thermal insulation,
thermal mass and air-tightness.
Most aircrete is made from a mixture of pulverised
fuel ash (PFA), sand, cement, aluminium and water.
Its unique properties are enhanced by the use of
PFA, a by-product of coal fired power stations, which
would otherwise be sent to landfill, but is recycled to
produce aircrete.
Aircrete is a durable building material with a very
long life expectancy (well in excess of the Green
Guide to Housing Specifications 60 year building
life). It requires little maintenance over its lifespan
and is a good alternative to timber framed buildings.
Aircrete is a durable material that does not give off
any harmful substances or require preservatives to
maintain performance. It does not rot or burn. It is
resistant to sulfates and the effects of freeze/thaw
cycles and it cannot be attacked by pests such as
termites or vermin.

WOOL BRICKS :
Simply by adding wool and a natural polymer found in seaweed to the clay of the brick, the
brick is 37% stronger than other bricks, and more resistant to the cold wet climate often
found in Britain. They also dry hard, reducing the embodied energy as they dont need to be
fired like traditional bricks.

Recycled Bricks
These vary from hand-clamp handmade bricks to factory produced
bricks. The hand-clamp bricks were usually held together with lime
mortar which falls away easily when demolished. Bricks which are
cemented together are more difficult to clean, but time and effort is all that is required.

Straw

after harvest and is a true 'waste' product. Straw walls are easy and quick to build and
have excellant insulating properties. They are ideal for countries like the UK that have an
abundance of straw.

TIMBERCRETE

Timbercrete is one of several lightweight building block construction materials that are on
the market. This one is made from cellulose (hence the 'Timber' in its name), cement, sand
and binders. Timbercrete is sold mostly in large blocks and is meant for building the full
house out of loadbearing walls rather than using the blocks as cladding on a timber or steel
frame. The original owner of the business has a patent in 28 countries, and Timbercrete
itself is a registered name.
They have great insulation qualities, are easy to work with, and come in a range of styles
that look quite attractive.
The insulation and sound proofing was great
you need to render, seal and paint the outside of the walls, which makes construction a bit
more expensive than traditional brick.

Flooring
BAMBOO FLOORING
Pros:

Relatively durable and moisture-resistant

Easy to maintain

Quick and straightforward installation


Widely available

Cons:

Manufacturer's standards vary dramatically

Dents under heavy pressure

Adhesives may contain formaldehyde


Stains easily

CORK
Pros:

Resilient and cushy underfoot

Improves room acoustics


Good thermal properties

Fire-resistant

Cons:

Must be sealed to protect from moisture and damage

Binder chemicals may not be eco-friendly


Challenging to install and difficult to repair

Susceptible to scratches

Typical roofing materials include steel, asphalt shingles, stone and wood, all in
various forms. These materials require varying degrees of materials, and have
differing levels of durability. A composite roof shake offers a superior formulation,
which includes recycled tire rubber. It looks like traditional cedar shakes, but is more
durable and keeps scrap tires from being buried in a landfill.

How do we use it?

Enviroshake shingles cover our animal ambassador spaces on sloped roof surfaces.
Made from 95% recycled materials including used tires, these durable shingles have
not required any maintenance since installation in 2002. This has resulted in a 2/3
reduction in the lifecycle cost compared to cedar shakes, while contributing to
Materials and Resources category credits within our LEED Gold certification because
of their recycled content.

How does it make us more sustainable?


Landfills are filling up quickly as a result of the waste generated from our day to day
lives from household garbage to industrial and commercial waste. The materials
that are being buried should be seen as resources and inputs into other processes
and products. Building products like the Enviroshake and the NRT ProFit athletic
flooring in our staff fitness facility help divert 12 million tires from landfills every
year in Ontario.
Tiles close up

Tiles close up

Old tires are reprocessed and combined into a composite matrix of postindustrial plastic(s), recycled elastomers and cellulosic fibres.
OTS display
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Recycled Rubber Roof tiles


The recycled rubber roof shakes emulates the look of #1 grade taper-split
cedar shakes, but is far more durable while being maintenance free.
Gym overview

The usage of recycled rubber roofing shingles has a lot of advantages. The main benefits of
rubber roofing are ecological friendliness, durability, and complex insulation. The averagesized roof uses a thousand of recycled tires. Because of their durability rubber shingles are
sustainable to cracks and deformation. The Roofing made of recycled tires is fire resistant.
This resistance is explained by the existence of Aluminum Trihydrate which is added to the
rubber shingles during the treatment process. It should be added that high water resistant
properties belong to these roofing shingles as well. The manufacturers usually provide their
rubber shingles with 30 years of warranty, but sometimes this warranty may be extended.
For instance, asphalt shingles, which is the cheapest type of roofing, is covered by only 10
years of warranty. Besides perfect sound insulation rubber shingled roof is also highly
protected from such weather conditions as snow, rain, and wind. Many colors and beautiful
textures are available for the roofing. Some textures very successfully imitate expensive
rooftops such as cedar roofs and concrete tile roofing. Thanks to extra long lifespan and
high durability of rubber shingles your rooftop will look great for a very long time.

FLOORING
Rubber Flooring[edit]
Rubber flooring is made from a rubber tree, a 100% renewable resource. It is easy to install and
maintain, is anti-static and provides effective sound insulation and vibration reduction. Rubber
flooring is also resistant to fading and cigarette burns. Some rubber flooring is made from
synthetic rubber, this is not a sustainable product.[20]

WOOD FLOORING
Reclaimed wood is used for wood flooring, it is wood taken for re-use from many different
sources including old warehouses, boxcars, coal mines and wine barrels, and wood recovered
from rivers. Using reclaimed wood can earn credits towards achieving LEED project
certification. Because reclaimed wood is considered recycled content, it meets the Materials &
Resources criteria for LEED certification and because some reclaimed lumber products are FSC
certified, they can qualify for LEED credits under the certified wood category[15]

Linoleum[edit]
Linoleum is made from dried and milled flax seeds mixed with other plant material (pine
resins, wood flour, ground cork) with a jute backing, all completely natural materials which come
from renewable sources and are 100% biodegradable. All by products and waste is milled and
used. Linoleum does not fade, as the pigments are embedded in the structure. It is anti-static,
repelling dirt, dust and other small particles, making it hypoallergenic for this reason it is often
used by people with respiratory issues (asthma, allergies). It is also fire-resistant and does not
require additional fire-retardants finish.[19]

Natural and Recycled Carpet[edit]


There are carpets that are sustainable, using natural fibers such as cotton, sisal, wool, jute and
coconut husk. Handmade Citapore rugs include a wide range of sustainable flooring material as
these rugs are generally made from cotton (both virgin and recycled), jute, rayon and cotton
chennile. It is also possible to have carpet made completely from recycled polyethylene
terephthalate used for food/drink containers. Recycled nylon is also a common material used
and the process takes carpet made with nylon 6 fibers and recycles it into brand new nylon
carpet. This process can be repeated numerous times and in 2009 alone, Shaw's Evergreen
facility recycled over 100 million pounds of carpet.[21] This is sustainable and it reduces material

sent to landfill; further it uses dyeing methods that are less polluting and require less energy
than other flooring. This flooring is sustainable when used alongside eco-friendly adhesive, as
some products may have toxic finishes added (stain/fireproofing) that are not considered
sustainable.[2

Coconut timber flooring[edit]


Coconut timber is a hardwood substitute from coconut palm trees. Coconut palm wood flooring
is cheaper than teak, with the wood hardness comparable to mahogany. Coconut palm wood is
made from matured (60 to 80 years old) coconut palm trees that no longer bear fruits.

ENERGY EFFICIENT GLAZING


energy efficient glazing systems can reduce carbon emissions, provide insulation and enable
cost savings for new and retro-fit developments in the following ways:
Reduce demand for cooling and heating
Reduce size and cost of HvAC plant
Reduce artificial lighting requirements
provide acoustic insulation.
Glazing Types
There are many glazing types on the market, for the purposes of this fact sheet the following
four types are explored:
Single Clear Glazing
low e Single Glazing

Double Clear Glazing


low e Double Glazing
Single Clear Glazing. Relative to all other glazing options, single-glazed with clear glass allows
the highest conductive transfer (i.e. heat loss or heat gain) while permitting the highest solar
heat gain and daylight transmission.
Low-E Single Glazing. low emissivity (low-e) glass has a coating that minimises re-radiated
heat. It has a clear appearance and good thermal properties and can be used as single glazing
or double glazing. low-e glazing sometimes called spectrally selective low-e glass helps to
reduce the invisible, near infrared solar radiation that contributes to unwanted heat gain while
permitting daylight transmission.
Double Clear Glazing. This offers some thermal insulation. It is made of two clear glass panes
separated by an air gap. The air gap acts as an insulating barrier between the window panes
and is an effective way of reduce conductive heat transfer. Compared to single glazing, it can
cut heat loss in half due to the insulating air space between the glass layers. In addition to
reducing the heat flow, a double-glazed unit with clear glass will allow the transmission of high
visible light and high solar heat gain.
Low E Double Glazing. This is made from coated glass panes separated by argon/crypton gas.
This type of low-e glazing, sometimes called spectrally selective low-e glass, reduces heat loss
in winter but also reduces heat gain in summer. Compared to most tinted and reflective glazing,
this low-e glass provides a higher level of visible light transmission for a given amount of solar
heat reduction.
Other features of glazing that can increase the energy efficiency of glazing include:
Reflectivity, although neighbourhood amenity requires consideration, often reducing the
reflectivity rate to 15 to 20 percent.
Tints and tones act like sunglasses to absorb heat.
Spectrally selective glass which maximises visible light transmission while reflecting unwanted
solar radiation (Uv) and heat. This can also have low emissivity.
polymers (plastic glazing) as alternatives to glass.

Green Roof- Pros and Cons


Nowadays, there are a lot of problems which we have to solve in order to save our planet.
Our citiesface environmental issues. Measures must be taken to change the current

situation. Green roofs areamongst the best solutions to this problem. They are
environmentally-friendly and can do a lot to enhance the exterior of a building.
What is a Green Roof?
A green roof is a roof covered with vegetation planted in a growing medium
over a waterproof membrane material. It is also known as a living roof or an
ecoroof. Despite new technologies and budget-friendly materials, creating and
maintaining a green roof is an expensive undertaking. Nevertheless, the number of ecoroofs
has increased over the last few years, which is a evidence thatthis investment is attractive
to many people around the globe.While green roofs are well on their way to become
a hot trend in architecture, we must recognise that they have both pros and cons.

What Are the Benefits of the Living Roof?


We can group
the pros
of green roofs in three categories: aesthetic, environmental and economic.
1. Aesthetic
If you make a comparison between an ordinary urban roofscape and ecoroof, you will agree
that thegreen roof looks far more attractive and unordinary. Typical urban roof is usually
made by asphaltor tar. If you have a green roof, you can go there and relax after a long and
stressful working day.Especially if you live in a big city like New York, London or Melbourne,
you will have your small paradise where you can forget about the everyday problems. You
can not only walk on an intensivegreen roof, but also eat there with your family and friends,
walk your dog or just sunbathe.
2. Environmental
- Green roofs improve air quality, because plants purify the air through their natural
processes. The plants also absorb pollution and particles from air which is really useful in big
and polluted cities.- Another environmental advantage is the absorption of rain water and
melting snow. You don't needto install drainage system, if you have a green roof.-Living roofs
provide natural environment for bird, insects and small animals.
3. Economical
- Green roofs deteriorate slower than traditional roofs. Plants protect roof's isolation material
fromUV radiation and extend roof's life at least two times that of a traditional roof. While
traditionalroofs have average life from 15 years, green roofs can last 40 years.-Ecoroofs can
save you money on your electric bills. The plants on your roof can't produce energy, but
they can decrease the temperature in the summer. So, you don't have to use your airconditioner so many hours a day.

- If you decide to sell hour home, it will have increased market value because of the green
roof. So,you will invest a lot of money for building it, but you will earn money from this
investment.
Which Are the Drawbacks of a Green Roof?
Having a green roof has some negative sides, too.
1.
As mentioned above, you need to
invest a lot of money
to build a living roof. Most green roofs built today are constructed above commercial
buildings mainly offices.In Melbourne, for instance, there are only a few living roofs installed
and they are all worth millionsof dollars. One is nested atop the Victorian Desalination Plant
and the other at the local building of Origin Energy. As you can see both
establishments have invested a great deal into
developings u s t a i n a b l e e n v i r o n m e n t a n d s u p p o r t i n g t h e V i c t o r i a n G o v e r
n m e n t i n t h e i r c a u s e t o m a k e t h e metropolis an exemplary sustainable
development.

2.
Green roofs need to be
maintained regularly
.While a green roof could resemble the Gardens of Eden, it also requires cares.
Not only do
the plants need to be regarded with high attention from professional gardeners but there is
also theirrigation system that demands regular maintenance from professionals.
Then there are also thecommunity areas which ought to be cleaned. In Melbourne, the
outdoor cleaning is best left to procleaners
Melbourne(http://paulscleaningmelbourne.com.au/).
3.
Green roofs are really heavy and
increase the load of the building
. Naturally, you can't add a living roof to an old building. Its structure must be able to
support theweight of the entire ecoroof system. Therefore, you should hire professional
architects andlandscapers to execute the project.You can see that there are more pros than
cons, which explains why so many people are crazynowadays about green roofs. Now, it's
your turn to consider building one.

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