Well, Avalon Master Builder is certainly doing its part when it comes to its building practices. Avalon was not only the first in the province to be certified under Built Green™ for multi-family construction, and taken on the task of building its homes to those high standards, but the builder has also broken ground on its first NET-ZERO home in Red Deer. The Discovery 3 demonstration home, which broke ground this summer, is the first step in Avalon crafting all its homes to a NET-ZERO standard.

Among the energy-saving features in the state-of-the-art home (set to be open to the public early next year) are solar-power panels, a tightly-insulated building envelope, a greywater recycling program, a wall system to help reduce energy use and loss, in-floor heating and a tankless electric water heater. Meanwhile, the house will be tied to the utility grid, which means it produces as much energy as it consumes in light, energy and heat.

Avalon Master Builder’s CEO Ryan Scott says the home was the culmination of a five-year effort. “Discovery 3 combines state of the art energy efficient construction techniques and equipment with renewable solar energy to provide energy for use in this home.bringing Avalon one step closer to our vision of building 100 per cent of our homes as NET-ZERO homes by the year 2015 at no additional cost to the consumer,” says Scott.

The home is part of an initiative called EQuilibrium housing by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). For more information, visit http://www.avalonmasterbuilder.com