LifeStyle Homes leads the charge for building solar-powered homes
The idea of living in a home that produces all the electricity it will ever need may sound too good to be true. But it’s not. And LifeStyle Homes is on a mission to prove it.
In August 2010, the LifeStyle team built the first solar-powered “zero-energy” home on Florida’s East Coast. This home, located in Rockledge, is equipped with flush-mounted solar panels on the roof that capture free sunlight and turn it into free electricity.
“Since the completion of our first zero-energy home, LifeStyle has built nearly 25 more ‘electric-bill-free’ solar-powered homes right here on the Space Coast. These homes represent the future of home building,” says Karen Hufford, LifeStyle’s marketing director.
LifeStyle’s quest to build affordable solar-powered homes was originally undertaken in 2009 with the assistance of the scientists at the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) in Cocoa. LifeStyle and FSEC team members worked together to develop a package of scientifically proven energy-efficiency building components and practices. Today, this package, which LifeStyle calls its “SunSmartSM” package, comes standard in every new home.
“If a homebuyer chooses to add solar panels to his or her LifeStyle SunSmartSM home, he or she can essentially enjoy free electricity for life. And because each and every one of our homes is so tightly built, the amount of solar panels needed to achieve a zero-energy performance is significantly reduced. In other words, each one of our LifeStyle SunSmartSM homes is ‘zero-energy-ready’ and can easily evolve to be self-sustaining just as soon as its owners are ready to make the solar leap.”
LifeStyle Homes, Inc. 3453 West New Haven Avenue, West Melbourne (321) 727-8188 BuildingALifeStyle.com
FIVE REASONS TO “GO SOLAR”
1. Energy bills are significantly slashed, if not eliminated altogether. And, if your solar-powered home produces more electricity than needed, the utility company will issue a credit for the surplus.
2. Owners of solar-powered homes may qualify for financial incentives, including a federal residential renewable energy tax credit equal to 30 percent of the solar system’s cost.
3. As energy is generated by the sun that shines on the United States, our country’s dependence on oil imports is significantly lessened. Not only does this mean increased safety for the United States, it also means more economic stability for all Americans.
4. Solar power provides our planet relief from excessive greenhouse gas emissions. Unlike fossil fuels, the technology requires no carbon, methane or particulate emissions, nor does it call for significant drilling or mining operations.
5. The clean-energy revolution is upon us. Going solar today means that.
