If you’re planning to build it from the ground up, somewhere around the vicinity of Php 7M ($155k, $1=P45). Engr. Nestor Archival of Cebu put up a two storey 400sqm house on a 7,000 sqm property which uses biogas, solar and wind energy to power their electrical needs. And you can’t say that the house is spartan because along with working electricity it also has a swimming pool at the back.

Inspired by his work as chair of Cebu City’s committee on environment, he decided to redesign the original plans of the house he was planning to build so that he could contribute to making the world a better place. With a household of 8 people he spends just around P1,500 a month for their electrical needs.

A list of the house’s eco features :

1. Railings made out of used aluminum soft drink cans filled with cement.
2. Coffee tables made out of varnished used spools of large electrical wires.
3. Doors made out of strips of scrap wood and were hammered and stuck together.
4. Cabinets and floors made out of used materials.
5. The house’s roof lining is made out of used aluminum doy packs that were stitched together
6. Planters made out of Plastic cups and Styrofoam packs
7. Pots made out of used paint and milk cans
8. Green wine bottles used as a border for plant boxes.
9. Staircase and balustrade made out of discarded metal and wood.
10. Different sized windows and a skylight to maximize illumination from the sun during day time
11. High Ceiling and Cut-up PVC pipes flushed into the walls of the house to let air in so as to reduce the need for electric fans and airconditioning. At night or when it rains they are closed.
12. Seven solar panels each producing 75 watts of electricity. One panel is enough to run four light bulbs and a television set.
13. Two wind turbines to augment the solar panels if there is not enough sun.
14. Water catchments on the house’s roof to collect the rain which is used to flush the toilets in comfort rooms, wash clothes and plates, water the plants and fill the 30,000 liter swimming pool and fish pond.
15. Used water from the wash basins and toilets would be processed, along with Styrofoam and other materials, to produce the paving blocks that line the garden.
16. P30,000 biodigester which converts human, pig and goat waste to methane to power their cooking stove. It produces enough gas that they are planning to connect pipes to give free gas to their neighbors as well.
17. The slurry from the biodigester is used to fertilize their garden.
18. Waste from Cebu City’s market and Eden Fruit Corp are transported into their home to feed the goats and pigs as well as used to make to produce organic fertilizer for their vegetable garden.

People who want to have an eco friendly house don’t necessarily have to rebuild their house in order to follow the example set by the Archival’s. Simple things such as switching to energy saving bulbs, turning off the refrigerator at night, setting your thermostats to reasonable levels, unplugging unnecessary appliances, waste segregation and recycling are but some of the things you can do for starters. Then you could graduate to more higher levels such as eco friendly insulation, backyard composting, biodigesters, solar panels and the like.
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