Original Work: LEED Guide

What is LEED and Why is it important:
LEED is a green building program developed by the U.S. Green Building Council to promote environmentally friendly architecture. By rating buildings on sustainable construction, design, and operation, LEED can reward designers with official certification and Incentives like tax credits, property tax reductions, fee reductions or waivers, grants, and revolving loan funds.
Original Work:
This document and the Blueprint that comes with it are designed to aid designers and architects with a basic model of what a LEED-certified design looks like and what goes into a LEED certification. This Paper will break down all of the components of the LEED home and explain how and why different appliances work. The blueprint serves as a visual guide to better understand how the appliances work together in a home and how design is involved in receiving the most certification points. With this paper and blueprint, a designer or architect should be able to produce a LEED-certified home, as long as the steps are followed and the application of knowledge is seamless.
Introduction and LEED Appliances:
The LEED program is designed to reduce impact on the environment. Becuase of this the most important part of getting the certification is being as environmentally neutral as possible, if not positive. This can come in 5 different ways: carbon, energy, water, waste, and material. After these main 5 objectives are achieved, there are also a few less important factors like transportation and human experience (aka design, health, and air quality). To achieve a platinum-rated LEED building, all of these factors would need to be implemented almost perfectly. To pursue this perfection, however, one must start with the basics.

Carbon:
   One of the easiest boxes to check would be the carbon factor, this is because achieving carbon positivity is as simple as removing all gas appliances and introducing vegetation. Not only is this the simplest way to start the design process, but it also allows you to start positively affecting other categories such as your design, health, and air quality, which are all sustainably improved through the introduction of plant life. Three things are needed to check this box off:
Vegetation:
-Small Plants: Areca Palms, Spider Plant, Snake Plant, Money Plant, and Gerbera Daisy
-Big Plants: Neem Tree, Arguna Tree, and Peepal Tree
All of the following plants are relatively volatile when it comes to weather, although some of the following are for more dry areas. These are some of the top highest producers of oxygen, meaning that these plants specifically would get the most points for the LEED certification.
Electric Stove(Induction Cooktops and Ranges)
-Induction Devices: LG Smart Induction Slide-In Range with AirFry, Samsung Slide-In Induction Range, Miele Generation 7000 Induction Range
These three induction cooktops and ranges are rated as some of the best induction devices on the market. Some of these are expensive but others great value for their prices. These stoves are very important because they are made with the environment in mind. They are completely carbon neutral and are often more effective than average gas-powered stoves. The only downside to Induction Stoves is that they are generally more expensive than gas-powered stoves.
Electric Water Heater
-Tankless: Rinnai RU199iN Tankless Water Heater, Ecosmart ECO 24 Tankless Water Heater, and Stiebel Eltron Tankless Water 
These are some of the best options out of the green water heaters because they do not run as frequently while still providing infinite hot water, they also use significantly less water. Because of this, they produce much less emissions and significantly lower the electricity and water bills.

-Heat Pump Water Heaters: Richmond Encore 10E40-HP530 heater, AO Smith Signature 900, and GeoSpring GEH50DNSRSA heat pump water heater.
These heat pumps have the ability to work without any natural gas. Making this one of the best options for a LEED-certified home. Some heat pumps have compressors that trap hot air, making them even more effective, all in all, these are very efficient and save the environment while lowering bill rates.
-ENERGY STAR certified water heaters: Rheem - PROPH80 T2 RH375-SO, Rheem - HPLD80-1RH, and Rheem - PROPH80 T2 RH375-30
These water heaters use about 10% less energy than an average water heater while being more environmentally friendly. They are also all-electric based with little to no carbon emissions. These are the cheapest routes out of the environmentally friendly options but are still effective in Raising a LEED certification score.
Water:
   Although most water waste comes from things like Water Heaters, there are more ways to save water. The 2 most common ways are collection systems and efficient restroom appliance installation. These practices, if integrated properly can be very influential for one's LEED score.
Showers: 
-Air Powered: Kelda Air-Powered™ showers
An environmentalist brand called Kelda has developed a new water-efficient method of reducing your effect on the environment. This technology, which could save up to 50% of water use, can significantly reduce your water bill and raise your LEED score exponentially. By using air and creating 2.5x bigger MACRO droplets of water, Kelda is able to make a shower feel the same with ½ of the water use. 
Toilets:
-Sub 1 GPF Toilets: HOROW 1-piece 0.8/1.28 GPF Dual Flush, Niagara Stealth 2-Piece 0.95 GPF Rear-Outlet Single Flush
Using these kinds of toilets significantly reduces water usage, by lowering the gallon per flush to less than one gallon, some toilets can save up to 50% of their average usage.
Washing Machines: LG Electronics' Ultra Large Capacity Front Load Washing Machine, Maytag 4.2-cu ft High-Efficiency Top-Load Washer, and Samsung High-Efficiency Stackable Front Load Washer
These are some of the most efficient Laundry machines on the market. Both LG’s and Samsung's washers are Energy Star Certified which should significantly reduce your electricity bill and increase your LEED score. However, LG’s washer is the most efficient because of its “cold water” technology which allows the machine to wash without requiring hot water. This will lower the need for heated water which is very important for an efficient home. For a cheaper option, Maytag is available. This machine, although not Energy Star Certified, is still a great option for LEED certification.
Dish Washers: N/A
Dishwashers are completely unnecessary and take significantly more water than it would take a human to just wash the dishes themselves. Besides, up to 62% of dishwasher owners admit to washing their dishes before putting them into the machine, so why use the machine at all?

Material and Waste:
Material and waste are some of the lesser-explored environmental sectors when it comes to LEED certification. However, they are essential and any LEED enthusiast should know it. These are so extremely important because of the effect they have on a building, for example, building material or how trash is disposed of, all in all, these 2 are zones that should never be skipped over.

Building Materials:
-Construction: Recycled steel, Cork, and Ashcrete
Although very different, these three options are all very effective alternatives to brick-and-mortar. Recycled steel, although beautiful and extraordinarily strong, is extremely expensive and is difficult to integrate with LEED-certified insulation. However, if someone was wealthy enough to take the recycled steel path, shelling out for some more expensive insulation wouldn’t be a problem. Cork is one of the most obtainable options. Cork is a resilient material that is a relatively effective sheltering material. It is also very sustainable because of how quickly cork oak can grow. Cork harvesting supports the fight against global warming, which should reward extra LEED points.  Finally, there is Ashcrete, a relatively new material developed mostly out of fly ash and borate. The significance of fly ash is that it is made out cheap of pulverized coal from the process of combustion, meaning it is 100% recycled toxic material reused for good. Also, Ashcrete has very small pores making it up to 2x stronger than Portland concrete. Overall, these 3 materials are very effective in improving LEED scores and are quite obtainable, making construction materials a very realistic choice for environmentalist appliances. Either way, this is a cheap and effective appliance that will boost one's LEED certification score, making it a great addition to one's home.
-Plant Based Insulation
Insulation is a very important factor in LEED scoring. Normal insulation like reflective foil and fiberglass negatively affects the environment. However, options like hemp, wool, mineral wool, and cork are biodegradable and environmentally friendly. The only downside to using Plant Based Insulation is that is it generally less effective and degrades faster than the industry standard.
-Recycled Glass
Glass is not a very sustainable material and should not be used in a LEED-certified home. However, glass is 100% recyclable. This means that the use of recycled glass is completely neutral to the environment. This means that recycled glass is a wonderful accessory for a LEED-certified home, it also helps with human experience meaning it could even gain you some points.

Waste Management:
Compost: FCMP Outdoor Tumbling Composter and  Greenes Fence Co. Cedar Wood Composter
Outside of just reducing waste usage and recycling, composting is the best way to improve a LEED waste score. This is because by composting you can completely take out the need for wasteing food. Most waste is food if the home is recycling regularly so composting is the next major step towards waste neutrality. The best 2 options are Tumblers and Cedar composters and each has its pros and cons. The FCMP tumbler is a wonderful and reliable tool, it is also the best option for areas with lots of wildlife because it is off the ground and closed, it can't be accessed by critters. Also, tumblers have the unique ability to mix compost without needing to be opened, this is done by “tumbling”, or turning the cylindrical drum on its axis to allow the contents to mix. However, it is made out of plastic making it less environmentally friendly and can lead to microplastics ending up in the compost, this is where the Cedar composter comes in. Although it is hard to protect from wildlife, the Cedat composter is just as effective as the Tumber. Because it is made out of wood, it is very environmentally friendly. Its cons are the fact that it can be accessed by wildlife and has to be mixed actively. 

Energy:
Energy is an essential component of LEED certification and is a much broader field than one might expect. The goal of this field is to reduce your energy consumption to nothing if not begin feeding electricity back into the grid. This field is the most exposed because of how simple it is to track and should be a top priority. 

Refrigerators:
-Energy Star Bottom Freezer: Beko - BFBF2414SSIM, Liebherr - SCB5790IM, and Miele - KFN 4799 DDE edt/cs
These refrigerators are undeniably the best energy-efficient refrigerators on the market today and are great additions to one's LEED-certified home. These devices are not only Energy Star certified but are the 3 three choices for electricity efficiency by Energy Star. Bottom freezers are fridges with the freezer as a drawer below the main device, for one of the most efficient designs. Refrigerators being one of the highest users of electricity in a home, an efficient one is a great choice.

HVAC Air Conditioning:
-Mini-split Ductless systems: Mitsubishi FH Series models and Fujitsu LZAH1 Series with FGLair
Mini-split Ductless (MSD) systems are the best HVAC options for a LEED-certified home. This is because not only are HVAC systems the most efficient systems of the air conditioning genre, but MSD systems are an even better niche. MSD systems are significantly more energy-efficient and cost-effective because of their lack of ducts. Ducts lead to loss of energy over time as the cool air moves, by avoiding this entirely MSD systems become more effective. Also, because of the split system different rooms in the home can be ventilated at different levels, adding another way to save electricity. All these different qualities make MSD systems some of the best for LEED certification.

Heating:
Water Heater:
One of the simplest ways to save on heating is to not have a heater at all, although the price of water heating will increase, by removing electric heating altogether, there will be a net gain in electricity savings. By running water heating pipes through the walls and floors of the home, hot water would heat the home through the piping. One very important note to remember is that these pipes should only be in use some of the time. These extended pipes should be shut off during the warmer seasons and should be turned on whenever heating is required. By having this alternate pipe route throughout the house, heating can be done with no electric heater required.
Energy Production: 
-Solar Panels: Aiko Solar N-Type ABC White Hole (72 Cells), Canadian Solar HiHero, and REC Alpha Pure-R
Solar panels are some of the best ways to become energy-independent. With powerful solar panels, one's LEED score would be exponentially boosted. Aiko and REC, although some of the most expensive solar panels available, are extremely powerful and can make a home energy-independent very comfortably. Aiko however, is the best option producing an astonishing 640 watts each! With about 10 of these, a family of 5 could comfortably live energy-independent. A more cost-effective option would be the Canadian Solat HiHero, producing 445 watts each for a measly $18,000 a panel. Although solar panels are some of the best possible LEED appliances possible, they are extremely expensive making them unviable for many designers. If you can get them I believe you absolutely should.
-Wind Power:  Tumo-Int 1000W 3 Blades 48V Wind Turbine,  Automaxx Windmill 1500W Wind Turbine, and  Pacific Sky Power Survival Wind Turbine Generator
Wind Mills are also an efficient method to produce electricity for your LEED home. These machines, although expensive, have the potential to be very effective. The only issue with these types of machines is that they only work in specific places. For example, a home designer would need to make sure the city where the home is planned has an average of 8mph winds at the least and the desired windmill location has a clearing allowing wind to blow. If these requirements aren’t met wind power is not very effective. That is why solar is usually a better option.

The LEED Blueprint Home:
The blueprint of a home attached to this paper is a visual representation of what a highly invested, top-of-the-line, LEED-certified home looks like. With the blueprint and this guide, creating an environmentally friendly home should be easier. Below will be all appliances included in the home with prices and where to find them. This home, with all of these devices included, should at least be silver-rated on the LEED certification scale. Below the appliances is a list of tips on ways to receive extra points and what to avoid.

Vegetation:
-Money plant 4x: $51.84
Located outside the home in the hanging baskets, these can be bought at most grocery stores. From Walmart, these are $12.96 each.
-Snake plant 6x: $95.82
Located in the backyard and on the roof, the red, white, and yellow bushels represent the Snake plant, these can be bought in most grocery stores. From Walmart, these are $15.97 each.
-Neem Tree 2x: $166.00
Located at the front of the house between the front door and garage, they can be brought from most plant stores. From Plantvine, these are $83.00 each.
-Peepal Tree 2x: $62.40
Located in the backyard, they can be bought from plant stores with rare seeds. From Navafresh these are $31.20 each.
Induction Stove:
-LG Smart Induction Slide-In Range with AirFry: $2,399.00
Located on the left-hand side of the kitchen, these stoves can be bought at most hardware stores. From Lowes, these go for $2,399.00.
Heat Pump Water Heater:
-Richmond Encore 10E40-HP530 heater: $1,599.00
Located on the left-hand side of the garage, these water heaters can be bought at most plumbing stores. From Home Depot, these go for $1,599.00.
Shower:
-Kelda Air-Powered™ Showers: $1,034.40
Located in the restroom, this shower can be bought only on the Kela website. Kelda cells their deluxe shower head model for £949.00, or ∼$1,034.40 currently.
Toilet:
-HOROW 1-piece 0.8/1.28 GPF Dual Flush: $269.00
Located in the restroom, this toilet can be bought at most hardware stores. From Horow, this toilet goes for $269.00.
Laundry Machine:
-LG Electronics Ultra Large Capacity Front Load: $848.00
Located behind the door of the restroom, this device can be found at most hardware stores. From Lowe’s this washing machine can be bought at $848.00.
Building Material:
-Cork Wall/Insulation: $21,200.83
The walls of the home are made of cork, cork can be bought at hardware stores or websites like CorkHouse.com. For a house perimeter of 160’, with inside walls adding an extra 40’, multiplied by the wall height, 9.5’. The house requires 1,900 sqft of 12mm cork at $66.95 per 6 sqft, the total cost of walls would be $21,200.83.
-Mineral Wool: $1,793.00
The insulation strictly on the outside perimeter of the home is made of RockWool Mineral Wool, this can be bought at most hardware stores and RockWool.com. With a perimeter of 1,520 sqft and RockWool being $1.18 per sqft at Home Depot, the total cost comes out to be $1,793.00.
-Recycled Glass 10x: $288.00
Located in the living room, as well as the door to the bedroom and the bedroom window, in total the house has 6 glass panes averaging 6 sqft per pane. Assuming the average cost of a glass pane is $8.00 per sqft (from Angi’s list). The glass would be $288.00. 
Composter:
-Greenes Fence Co. Cedar Wood Composter: $159.99
Located in the backyard hugging the fence, this composter can be found on the Greenes Fence website. On their website, it can be bought for $159.99.
Refrigerator:
-Beko - BFBF2414SSIM: $1,249.80
Located on the right side of the kitchen, this fridge can be found in most hardware stores. On Greentoe, this device goes for $1,249.80.
Mini-split Ductless Air Conditioning:
-Mitsubishi FH Series models: $1,309.68
Located on the west side of the house with units in the living room and kitchen, this device can be found on most HVAC websites and some hardware stores. On HVACDirect.com, this device is $1,309.80.
Heating:
-Richmond Encore 10E40-HP530 heater (listed above)
Solar Panels: 
-REC Alpha Pure-R: $6,487.00
Located on the roof, there are 12 solar units. There is also an inverter on the west side of the home. Each of these units and the inverter averages about $499.00 each. These devices can be found on almost any solar panel website. Altogether, this setup will cost $6,487.00.
Total: $39,013.76

In total, this home's environmental appliances (not including taxes or installation costs) are $39,013.76. Following these steps would guarantee a LEED certification if not receiving gold or even platinum certification. As long as these devices are installed with design in mind this guide should work perfectly. 
Tips:
-Some HOAs and cities do not like certain plants, building materials, or devices. Make sure you are in accordance with your HOA or City rules.
-Recycling is vital, although it was not highlighted in the paper, having a recycling bin is necessary, to make sure it is visible for everyone to see, including the LEED inspectors.
-Roof insulation, although not necessary, is very helpful when keeping a house warm, in some cases you don’t want it for more natural ventilation. However, in colder climates, roof insulation is extremely recommended.
-The more plants the better. In the model, there are only 14 individual plants highlighted, however, there is no limit to the number of plants you can have.
-Gray water collection can be a great addition to your home. It is not an appliance, but rather just directing your sink, bath, and shower water to your sprinkler system. 
-Bikes can boost your LEED score, by putting bikes in your garage, you could argue that you have less carbon emissions and don’t use your car as much as the average person, therefore an increase in your score.
-Maintaining home beauty is important for the human experience score. By cleaning the LEED home and adding small quirks such as plants or wood furniture, you can have a chance of increasing your score.
-Some of the devices listed in the home are out of most designer budgets. In every category, I have provided at least one better-value alternative for designers on a lower budget.

 

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