In the process of building your new home, you become so overwhelmed with all the decisions and responsibilities that come along with it. How many rooms should there be? Do I need four bathrooms? What kind of flooring should I choose? Is green roofing more expensive but worth it in the long run? These questions are often asked but are eventually answered with help from the right contractor. However, one thing that every new home owner needs to consider is the orientation of their homes. Which direction should your new home face and why is this important?
Home orientation involves taking into consideration the positioning of your home in relation to the sunlight’s direction and that of the winds too. Good orientation can increase the energy efficiency of your home, making it more comfortable to live in and less expensive to maintain. In addition, the climate today is warming, and hotter summers with more extreme heat waves will become common. Hence, proper home orientation might just help.
South-facing homes would be preferred. As much as possible, we want the sun to shine into our homes to light up and warm the house for as long as possible. However, this will still depend on where you live. In Texas, for example, where the sun shines more and the days are longer and hotter, the direction may be different. A north-facing house is preferred instead so that the home stays cooler longer.
So it all depends on where you live. What you can do for now is ask about the following:
- Temperature ranges
- Humidity ranges
- Direction of cooling breezes, hot winds, cold winds, wet winds
- Seasonal characteristics, including extremes
- Impact of local geographic features on climatic condition
- Impact of adjacent buildings and existing landscape.
These are all very valuable information that your architect or home builder contractor can use to determine the perfect home orientation.
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