Energy efficiency is quickly becoming one of the top factors to consider when designing and building a property. The demand for better energy efficiency is higher in today’s modern world, especially with the major shift towards cleaner renewable energy and increased awareness of global warming affecting the world.
Building for energy efficiency starts with choosing the right materials to use. Some building materials are more energy efficient by nature. Which materials offer the highest level of energy efficiency? That is what we are going to find out in this article.
Steel
Steel is considered a more energy-efficient building material than many other materials for several reasons. For starters, you can use steel for an extended period. Substituting wooden beams with steel beams is a great way to prolong the lifespan of a property, increasing its energy efficiency by a substantial margin.
The amount of energy used in making steel is also greatly reduced thanks to new manufacturing technology and improved processing. Steel buildings can be purchased online through retailers like this one which are much cheaper and more time efficient than other structures as they come pre-fabricated. The entire process of erecting an entire building is more efficient thanks to this prefab approach.
Bamboo
Bamboo is now used for interiors more often because it is very renewable. The material is also notoriously flexible and can be used for structural and finishing purposes alike. You can easily find bamboo plywood used for covering, flooring, and even beams, as well as specially designed parts for a property from various sources.
Bamboo is also very sustainable. It doesn’t take as much time to grow bamboo to its optimum size as it would take to grow other types of wood. Even compared to reclaimed wood, bamboo is still rated as more energy efficient and affordable at the same time.
There is one other advantage that bamboo offers, and that is its immense strength. You can use several layers of bamboo to create a very strong and flexible surface.
Insulating Concrete Forms
Concrete forms aren’t new, but they are now becoming very popular due to their high energy efficiency. In colder climates, buildings constructed using insulating concrete forms are up to 20% more energy efficient than those constructed from wooden frames.
It is the way the layers are set up that makes insulating concrete forms very effective. Newer technologies are also making this building material easier to use. A team of skilled workers can complete projects using insulating concrete forms as freestanding walls and building blocks very quickly.
Plastic Composite Lumber
Repurposed or reclaimed lumber are great building materials, but they are even better when processed into something called plastic composite lumber. As the name suggests, plastic (a polymer, to be exact) is added to the mixture of reclaimed wood for added strength and unique properties.
As a result of this process, plastic composite lumber is not only more energy efficient but also stronger in the cold and easier to work with when heated. It is the perfect set of properties to look for from a building material.
If you want to build an energy efficient building – and keep the process energy-efficient – then these are the materials to go for. Save on your energy bills in the long run just by opting for any of the building materials we covered in this article.
