Page 14 - Waxahachie, TX Residential Design Guidelines

IntroductIon

e n v i R o n m e n t a l c o m p o n e n t o f

s u s t a i n a b i l i t y

The environmental component of sustainability tends
to be the main focus when discussing historic structures and their
relationship to green building. Among other things, this component
focuses on saving energy, generating it through “clean” methods,
as well as minimizing the demand for water and conserving
building materials.

Embodied Energy
Embodied energy is defined as the amount of energy expended
to create the original building and its components. Preserving a
historic structure retains this energy. If demolished, this investment
in embodied energy is lost and significant new energy demands
are required to replace it. Studies confirm that the loss of
embodied energy associated with replacing an existing structure
takes three decades or more to recoup from reduced operating
energy costs in a high-efficiency replacement building.

Building Materials
Many traditional building materials used in Waxahachie have
long lifespans, which contribute to their sustainability. Newer
materials may be less sustainable and require extraction of raw,
non-renewable materials. High levels of energy are involved in
production and the new materials often have inherently short
lifespans.

The sustainable nature of historic construction is best illustrated by
a window. Older windows were built with well-seasoned wood from
stronger, durable, weather resistant old growth forests. A historic
window can be repaired by re-glazing and patching and spacing
the wood elements. Many windows that have been installed in the
past 25 years cannot be repaired and must be replaced entirely.
If a seal is disturbed in a vinyl window, the best approach is to
replace the window rather than repair the part. As noted above,
this is not the recommended treatment for a historic wood window.
Furthermore, even newer wood windows often lack the same
qualities displayed in historic wood windows and are less durable.

6 Waxahac hie Residential design guidelines