Material Selection
Selecting building materials can be complex. You have to take into account toxicity, performance, the environmental life cycle, cost, and other factors.
Understanding what makes a building product green is a long-term prospect. Green characteristics differ from product category to product category, and multi-attribute vetting is critical.
Material Selection
Deep Dives
Get up to speed on complex topics. You can also earn CEUs and download PDF Spotlight Reports.
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Choosing Windows: Looking Through the Options
Feature
We ask a lot from windows: energy efficiency, aesthetics, durability, affordability, and more. Which window frame materials and low-e glazing options balance these choices best? This article explores all the options and decodes the performance labels we see when buying windows.
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Better Choices in Low-Slope Roofing
Feature
There are big differences in environmental impacts of commercial roofing materials, but the biggest variable may be service life.
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LEDs: The Future Is Here
Feature
LEDs have finally become an economically viable lighting option, but choosing the best LED products still takes knowledge and skill.
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What Makes a Product Green Today?
Feature
Lots of manufacturers call their products "green," but are they? Here's our guide to the high-performance attributes that matter.
Quick Takes
Jump straight to the essentials with these short explanations of green building concepts.
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Hemp: A Durable, Low-Carbon Building Material
Explainer
This rapidly renewable material is excellent for textiles and non-structural concrete. (And no, it will not get you high.)
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Circular Economy: Better Design from Start to … Start
Explainer
“Circularity” is about more than just recycling. It means building and buying things only when necessary—and without wasting anything.
Product Guidance
Unbiased information from our product experts helps you separate green from greenwash.
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Laminate Flooring: Worth a Second Look?
Product Review
Laminate flooring offers recycled content and low emissions in an economical, low-maintenance product that has overcome aesthetic and performance challenges.
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BuildingGreen Selects Top-10 Products for 2014
Product Review
Solving key design and environmental problems cost-effectively was the focus of this year's selection by BuildingGreen's editors of its top building products.
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Passive House Windows and Doors Continue to Wow
Product Review
Exciting new doors and windows featuring cork, composites, and low U-factors have come to U.S. markets.
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BuildingGreen Announces 2010 Top-10 Green Products
Product Review
BuildingGreen announces its 2010 Top-10 Green Products, with exciting entries drawn from the GreenSpec directory and coverage in Environmental Building News.
In The News
We break news down to the essentials and provide expert analysis.
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Materials Innovators Engage Cradle to Cradle Protocol
News Analysis
Material ConneXion has agreed to feature products certified under the Cradle to Cradle protocol in its materials library.
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Energy Star Labels for LED Lighting
News Analysis
Energy Star ratings for LED light fixtures, to become effective in September 2008, provide assurance that products have been tested to meet a wide range of performance and durability specifications.
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FSC-Certified Bamboo Plywood Now Available
News Analysis
In an industry first, Smith & Fong now offers bamboo plywood panels certified to the standards of the Forest Stewardship Council.
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FSC National Standard Friendly to Small Forests
News Analysis
The U.S. affiliate of the Forest Stewardship Council is moving towards a national standard that incorporates some of the streamlined procedures used for smaller forests.
Perspective
Thought-provoking opinions from the most trusted minds in sustainability.
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Sustainable Sealants: The Challenges of Predicting Service Life
Blog Post
Caulk joint sealants can be a major deciding factor in how long your building envelope lasts. Is there a better way to predict how long the sealants last?
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Sealing Without Stickum: Gaskets Make a Place for Themselves
Blog Post
Compressible gaskets keep air and water barriers continuous without liquid sealants or adhesive tapes. But they don’t all last equally well.
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Hidden Seam Failures? We Put Flashing Tapes to the Test
Blog Post
Flashing and air barrier seam tapes get buried deep in our walls where we rely on long-term performance without monitoring them. Are they doing their jobs?
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4 Insider Tips for Choosing Flashing Tapes, from a Real-Life Engineer
Blog Post
A research engineer at Pella Windows finally offers some adult supervision for our benchtop tape tests.
Learning Resources
Syllabus supplements and CEU content, with automatic reporting for AIA and GBCI.
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Let’s Get Real about Wood’s Carbon Footprint
Webcast
You’ve probably heard that wood products are carbon neutral. You might also have heard that timber harvesting causes immense carbon emissions. Which is it? Could it be both?
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Selecting Optimized Products for LEED Projects
Webcast
This pragmatic webinar walks you through the v4.1 version of the three Materials & Resources credits that encourage product-related disclosure and optimization.
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Breaking Barriers to Building Material Reuse
Webcast
Buildings aren’t garbage. These three circularity loop-closers are making it easier and easier to reuse materials.
Just For Fun
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