Issue link: http://digital.nexsitepublishing.com/i/938775
BY LEAH MISSIK BUILT GREEN PROGRAM MANAGER MASTER BUILDERS ASSOCIATION Built Green ® Net Zero Energy Homes Making Tomorrow Better Today B uilt Green has certified several Net Zero Energy (NZE) homes, starting as early as 2011 with projects such as zHome, the nation's first net zero energy, carbon-neutral, multifamily community, in Issaquah, WA. Today, we are seeing more and more of these innovative projects. This is exciting! To protect both the environment and our future, we need to use less energy, and Built Green Net Zero Energy homes play an important role in this endeavor. But what does net zero energy really mean? The simplest definition, which is employed by Built Green, is that NZE homes produce as much renewable energy as they consume over the course of a year. We commonly see this achieved via solar panels. The net zero energy definition specifies a yearlong time frame because solar panels produce more energy in the sunny summer months. This excess energy not used immediately by the home is sold back to the utility and banked as a credit. In the winter, when a building is using more energy and the solar panels are producing less, this banked credit is applied to the bill. If renewable energy production equals or exceeds a building's consumption over a Net zero energy homes are the future and the future is here. 20 master builder SPRING 2018 " •