The green building trend that has taken hold across the US in the past few years, and is surprisingly evolving toward a whole new level. Whereas before when there were only a few green real estate developments, today this trend in sustainable development has expanded to whole communities and neighborhoods as well. The LEED rating system was put in place to help builders and renovators create more energy-efficient buildings. This is a brief overview of the LEED green building rating system. Over the last few years there has been a stronger interest in Green building techniques. This blog discusses some of the current terms and techniques involved with green building. There once was a day where someone was speaking about the word green, it was obvious they were referring to a color formed by mixing yellow and blue. That assumption is no longer true - with our society leaning toward a healthier environment and ways we can help save the earth, the term green now takes on a whole new meaning. One way to support an environmentally conscious lifestyle is with green architecture.
Green storage facility
With the recent adoption of constructing facilities with solar panels and a huge push in recycling, self-storage is one of the leading forces in sustainability. Whether you are developing a new facility or revamping an old one, there are many steps that operators and owners can take to make their facility a perfect example of eco-friendly innovation. Below are just a few of the things different owners across the country have been doing to “green up” their businesses. "Daylighting" is another solution for cutting down energy costs. This is where sunlight is used to power your lighting system.
Lighting – Look for either natural lighting from skylights or updated lighting.
Insulation – Check to see if the storage facility is insulated. Heat and cold may damage your items, plus proper insulation is about as green as you can get.
Restrictions – Look to see if the storage facility has any restrictions on what people can store there and for how long. Letting things deteriorate to the point where they’re useless isn’t very green.
De-clutter Your Current Storage Spaces
There is nothing more green than finding new use for space you already have. Take a weekend to clean out your closets, attic, basement, and other storage spaces in your home. Consider having a yard sale or selling some stuff on eBay. Only throw out the stuff that’s too badly damaged to be donated to charity or sold. Once you finish cleaning out the clutter, you will likely have more available storage space than you thought you had. What you really want to look for in green storage options is durability. Plastic is fine, as long as it is strong enough to handle being moved around. Your best green storage option is to free up space you already have.
