Eco Energy Efficient Houses and Homes in Mexico

Although the 'eco' theme has become predominant in recent years, the concept of an ecologically-sound (which in many respects means 'energy efficient') is not new at all.

However, as the subject of ecology and energy have taken center stage in world affairs, new companies have sprung-up to develop new techniques, materials and technologies to make houses more efficient and ecologically-friendly; and existing companies, which previously worked in 'niche' markets have found renewed and expanded interest in the work they have been undertaking for years.

If you are building a home in Mexico -- or renovating an existing home -- Mexico's natural environment offers you a plethora of ecologically-friendly and energy-saving choices.

Furthermore, there is added incentive for you to be energy efficient in Mexico, as electricity, gas and water can cost more than you may be used to paying in your home country; relative to earnings, Mexico's energy costs are high by comparison to the USA and Western Europe.

The subject of home energy efficiency and 'green' home building and management is enormous and also quite specialized. This guide is, therefore, a basic introduction to the principal options, techniques and materials which you may consider for building a new home, renovating an existing home or transforming your house in Mexico into a more energy-efficient and thus ecologically-friendly dwelling.

The useful web sites section at the foot of the guide contains a wealth of links where your research may be continued in detail.

• Planning for Energy Efficiency
• Design Your Mexican Home Efficiently
• Use of Natural Materials
• Using Solar Energy
• Gardens and Landscapes
• Light and Lighting Systems
• Heating and Cooling
• Use of Water and Sewerage
• Useful Web Sites

Planning for Energy Efficiency in Mexico Homes

Good planning is the essential ingredient for creating an energy-efficient home, or transforming an existing dwelling into one which is much more energy-efficient. Mexico is the northern hemisphere and, therefore, homes built here should be designed in the same energy-efficient way as those in the USA and Europe, for example, but differently to those in say, Argentina, Australia or New Zealand; this is predominantly to do with one of the most important aspects to consider when you plan an energy-efficient home: the orientation of the sun.

If you are building your house from new, then you will have the widest choice of energy efficient options; if you are transforming an existing dwelling then you will need to plan your building projects around the existing structures, which may be favorably or unfavorably situated depending on the situation.

Although the design and position of the house structure itself are the most important elements, there are numerous other aspects which need to be considered too: the principal ones are outlined in this guide.

The more elements you can integrate into your home, the more energy-efficient it may become, although care must be taken that the various elements and techniques you are employing work with each other so as not to create a "zero sum" efficiency, for example, installing solar energy panels to create electricity and then ignoring the way in which you consume that energy.

Ask your architect about energy-efficient designs, materials, construction techniques, and home utilities. Check their previous work and, if you don't feel that the firm you are dealing with is up-to-speed on the issues that matter to you, consider alternative firms. Architecture is a competitive business in Mexico and, like hiring any other professional, it's important to consider several options, check references, and review portfolios.

This guide will give you a good primer about building and transforming a home in Mexico so that it may be more energy efficient (and ecologically friendly). There are plenty of good web sites which proffer additional knowledge -- we've listed some of them at the foot of this guide for you.

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Design Your Home in Mexico Efficiently

The most important aspect of an energy-efficient house is its position in relation to the sun and local topography. Getting this part right (or adjusting the design of your renovations, where possible, to maximize your efficiency from these two factors) is the principal foundation upon which the level of your energy efficiency will ultimately depend.

Always take a compass with you when you are viewing land or homes in Mexico and get an exact picture about how the building may take advantage of the sun and local topography.

Working with The Sun

The Sun's energy is the over-riding factor which affects the Earth's climate; nothing else in the atmosphere comes close to influencing it. So designing your home around the sun's orientation will make a colossal difference to how much alternative energy you will need to use to be comfortable in your home.

Designing your house to make efficient use of the sun is a term known as 'solar gain'. The principle aims to maximize the sun's power upon the building in the winter months and minimize it in the summer months. See the web link at the foot of this page to read more about the concept of solar gain.

The Effect of Surface Angles for Solar Gain

The angle at which surfaces are placed will also have an impact on your home's solar gain. Most of Mexico's existing homes are flat-roofed, which means that in the summer months they bear most of the heat, which can cause over-heating of upstairs rooms, particularly during the the summer months. Pitched roofs provide a means to insulate from the heat (and from the cold in the winter) and also provide an excellent foundation for solar panels.

The most efficient angle for a surface to receive solar heat reception depends on where you are located in relation to the Equator; for example, if you live on the equator, then a flat surface is best; a surface somewhere between 20 and 35 degrees is likely to be best for locations in Mexico -- do your calculations or ask a local architect for details. This 'efficient' angle, based on your geographical location, will also be the same for any solar panels you install. For more information about solar energy, read the chapter below.

Building Orientation

In the northern hemisphere, where Mexico is situated, only south-facing sides of your home will receive sun all year round. Mexico has three time zones: although most of the country is on US Central Time; north of Puerto Vallarta is one hour behind this, and the Baja peninsula is two hours behind central time (i.e. on Pacific Time). There are exceptions, too: the northern state of Sonora, which borders the US state of Arizona, does not move its clocks at all: see the Mexperience guide to Time Zones in Mexico for more details.

Despite the change of clocks in spring and fall, Mexico does not suffer the tremendous change of daylight which northern USA, Canada and north-western Europe experience. For example, in Scotland, the shortest day of the year (December 21st) will only receive about 6 hours of daylight. However, on the longest day of the year (June 21st) the reverse is true: there will only be 6 hours of darkness.

Mexico's sunlight distribution over the course of the year is much more evenly distributed and, because it is considerably further south than Canada, northern USA and north-western Europe (even in Mexico's northern regions), the sun's power is considerably stronger, giving rise to opportunities (using that energy) and challenges (keeping cool while using the least amount of energy).

Another factor when buying or building a house in Mexico is to consider the altitude. At sea level, in the northern deserts, and on the unique geology of the Yucatan Peninsula (wiki), temperatures soar in the summer time and humidity is also constant by the coasts. Inland, most of Mexico's towns and cities are situated at high altitudes. Up in the mountains, where you'll find many of Mexico's colonial cities as well as Mexico City and Guadalajara, the climate is much more temperate all year-round: requiring less use of energy to keep cool in the summers, but more to keep warm in the winter months. Also see blog Breathing Easy in Mexico, for more information about altitude.

Whether you are buying at sea-level or inland at altitude in Mexico, it's important to consider which parts of the house face north and south. Southern-facing sides are ideal for solar panels and windows which feed natural light into the building. Solar Panels should face as close to due south as possible: especially to capture the maximum amount of solar energy during the cooler winter months. In hotter climates, you need to consider the maximum amount of heat that will bear down upon the southern-facing sides of your home when you are building or renovating (see building mass, below).

Some new eco designs bury the north or south face of the building into the ground (depending on whether the environment is predominantly hot or cold) to maximize energy efficiency.

The proximity of other buildings, especially in built-up areas, or in the heart of old colonial cities, will also have a significant effect on your solar gain. Big windows looking out onto a courtyard with a high wall (perhaps next door's house) may get precious little sunlight through them in the day and allow large amounts of heat to escape at night. Because most inland cities in Mexico are situated at high altitude, the use of over-sized windows should be considered carefully as nights do get chilly (or cold) in the winter in places situated at high altitude.

When you are building your house: consider the situation of the plot, nearby buildings (existing or potential future buildings) as well as local topography (nearby mountains and hills, lakes, rivers, woodland, ocean) and how these will impact your home's energy efficiency. Consider how your home design may take full advantage of the sun's orientation and the topography in both winter and summer months and taking into account the local climate.

When you are buying an existing house house: You will need a south-facing roof that is not blocked by other buildings (i.e. un shaded) for solar panels. An ideal design is to have the front of the house facing north and rear facing south, allowing the use of solar panels that don't face the street and adding energy-efficient new buildings or conservatories to the rear (south-facing) side of the house.

When adding new features to an existing home: Having land on the south side of your existing buildings will give you more flexibility and choice when it comes to adding energy-efficient living space to your home.

Building Mass

The mass of a building (often referred to as 'thermal mass' in relation to energy efficiency) is a building's capability to absorb, store and regulate heat internally.

Buildings with a high mass take a long time to warm up and then long time to cool down. Buildings with low mass heat up quickly, but give up their heat-gain quickly, too.

Concrete, stone, brickwork, and timber have a high density, making them ideal for high-mass buildings; areas with large windows and wide air spaces heat up and cool down quickly.

Energy-efficient homes use high-mass materials. Most colonial-era buildings in Mexico are built from high-mass, thick stone (or adobe). This is a natural energy efficiency technique as it keeps the building cool in the scorching summer months and keeps the heat indoors in cooler winter months. The drawback is that they tend to have small windows and can, therefore, be quite dark, requiring more use of artificial light if they are occupied during the daytime. In recent times, property developers have been using skylight in order to brighten up otherwise dark rooms in older colonial properties.

If you want your home to be energy efficient, build, extend or renovate using high-mass materials. This means that the solar gain during the day will be absorbed and released slowly overnight. Building solid walls (or stone floors with dark colored tiles) behind south-facing windows will help to create natural 'heaters' in your home: they will absorb the heat through the window during the day and release the heat overnight.

Building high-mass homes will keep you cool in places in Mexico which experience hot summers. In the hottest regions, keeping your home well ventilated at night will cool the high-mass of the building overnight and leave your home cooled throughout the next day.

Another advantage of high-mass buildings is that they experience a much lower temperature fluctuation between day and night: this will make your home more comfortable to live in, reduce your heating and cooling costs and make more efficient use of your water heater and some other high-consumption appliances (e.g. refrigerators and freezers).

Whenever you build a new home, always use high-mass materials instead of less expensive lower mass materials. If you are building onto an existing property, use high-mass materials for the new build. If existing walls -- especially exterior walls which do not meet adjoining properties -- are of low-density mass, consider ways of adding to the mass with modern insulation or, if possible, by building an extra layer onto the inside or outside of the building.

Regulating Room Temperatures Naturally

Depending on the room, different temperatures are usually preferable in your home. Very warm (20-24C / 68-75F) rooms include the bathroom, the kitchen and airing cupboards; living rooms, studies and library rooms are generally preferred warm (17-20C / 62-68F); while bedrooms are best kept cool for best health (around 16C / 60F); and cold zones would include areas or rooms of the house that are not in use, cellars, cold stores, and the garage (all 15C/59F or lower).

Very warm rooms should, ideally, be in the center of the building: rooms with no external walls. The kitchen should face the center of the house, which enables it to radiate its natural heat inwards; your oven should be placed against an internal wall. Many homes in Mexico are built with internal bathrooms featuring covered sky-light 'chimneys' for light and ventilation.

Warm rooms should have south-facing walls where they can receive the lion-share of the sunlight to warm up during the day; high-mass buildings will retain this heat keeping them comfortably warm after dark. Children's rooms are sometimes preferred slightly warmer than adult rooms, especially if they double as a play room for use during the day.

Cool rooms, such as bedrooms, should be designed into the cooler north side of the house. Windows facing east or west (to capture morning and evening sun) as well as skylights may be employed to ensure good lighting.

With cold rooms, the key concern is to keep the area dry: excellent ventilation is required here. Rooms which are used infrequently (e.g. store rooms or guest rooms) are best on the north side of the house; basements and cellars are ideal for storage provided they are water and damp proof and well mentholated.

By taking some time to consider the design of your new home (or re-arranging the use of an existing building during a renovation) you can make best use of the natural heat and cooling, without resorting to extensive use of heaters or air-conditioners. This will make your home more energy efficient while keeping you and your family comfortable, your financial costs down and reduce the consumption of environmental resources.

Use of Glazing (Glass)

Glazing (windows) plays three crucial roles in house design: it enables sunlight into the building reducing need for the use of artificial light; properly installed, it can trap the sun's heat in indoor spaces; and windows also provide a means to create essential ventilation.

Although glass can trap heat, after sun-down the effect is reversed: glass is a poor insulator, although measures can be taken to reduce this heat-loss after dark by use of drapes, blinds and shutters.

South facing windows should be as large as practicable, to allow in sunlight and heat to build up during the day; unless you live in a very hot climate and want to keep the house cool, in which case south-facing windows should allow ventilation and some light. Be careful how you employ the use of south-facing skylights as they may lead to over-heating in rooms.

The use of double or triple glazed panes, where practical, is a good idea. Some buildings have six or more inches of empty space between two or three panes of glass, allowing light in and creating an insulating barrier that keeps heat in and cold out.

North facing windows, in hot climates, should be a source of light and ventilation; in cooler/temperate climates north-facing windows should be smaller and skylights should be used to maximize the use of natural daylight.

Windows that face east and west need to be considered carefully; they receive the least amount of sunlight in the winter months but will face directly to the low sunrise and sunset in the summer months, and west-facing rooms with large windows are particularly susceptible to over-heating.

After dark, windows should be covered with drapes, venetian blinds, or some other type of shutter to retain heat inside the house and regulate the indoor temperature.

In extremely hot climates, you might not employ the use of glass at all and simply have fine wire netting (to keep out insects) substituted for glazing. If this is the case, you should have an additional shutter (or window pane) to cover the insect netting for days when it rains, and for home security when you want to leave the property vacant.

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Using Natural Materials for Your Mexican House

As we mentioned in the previous section, using high-mass materials is preferable to low-mass materials. There are other factors to consider when choosing materials for building or extending an energy-efficient home in Mexico:

Efficiency: Materials like stone, adobe, concrete and timber (from managed forests) are the best materials for building a high-mass, energy-efficient home.

Ease of Delivery: Choose materials which can be bought locally. One of the huge advantages Mexico offers for home builders and those who want to develop their own homes is the abundance of local materials, especially stone, adobe, marble and timber. Buying your materials locally will also pay dividends with your local community who like to see foreign investment making use of local labor, materials and other local resources.

Licensed Timber: Don't buy unlicensed timbers, which are harvested predominantly from old forests. It's highly illegal and, worse, encourages (and finances) the wanton destruction of highly-valuable jungle habitats, especially in regions like Chiapas in southern Mexico. Ensure that all your timber comes from reputable and licensed timber merchants which have government-granted certificates to harvest woods from managed forests and wood plantations.

Clay and Sand: When mixed with water, creates one of the oldest and most natural building materials (adobe); most colonial buildings in Mexico are made from this (or a mixture of this and other natural materials like horse hair).

Straw-Bale Construction: Straw bales are now being used for house construction in Mexico. The first straw-bale home in the Baja was constructed at El Dorado Ranch. Indeed, more straw-bale homes have been built in there that anywhere else in North America, and the trend towards using more ecologically friendly materials of this type is likely to increase in future. Also see straw bale construction link at the foot of this guide.

Natural Materials: Other natural materials used in home construction include blocks of compacted earth or 'earth bags'; recovered timber, rice-hulls, rocks bamboo and insulation made from recycled denim, cork or cellulose (sugar).

Recycled / Recovered Materials: There is a huge opportunity to use recycled materials for home construction in Mexico. Recycled materials include iron and steel from old furniture, doors and window guards, salvaged chunks of previously used concrete and old brick-work, old tires, old clothes and textiles, discarded bottles and other waste glass.

Some Materials to Avoid: Timbers from unmanaged forests (see unlicensed timber, above), use of toxic wood preservatives (e.g. creosote), paints or other coatings with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and plastics containing formulations which are harmful to the environment such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride). See the link about green building techniques, at the foot of this guide, for more details.

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Using Solar Energy in Mexico

Thanks to its warm and sunny climate, Mexico provides you with an ideal opportunity to make good use of natural solar energy in your home.
Also see: Mexico's Climates by Seasons and Regions

Solar energy has been harnessed for thousands of years, for example, by civilizations who positioned their buildings so as to make best of use of the sun, and to heat water.

Today, the most common use of solar energy in modern homes is to heat water and create some electricity. However, living in a sunny climate also proffers other energy-saving opportunities too...

Solar Energy for Light

As highlighted in the 'design' section of this guide (see above), efficient use of sunlight can be one of the most effective ways to create an energy home in Mexico. Good use of windows and skylights can save you considerable amounts of electricity by providing natural light instead of needing artificial lighting indoors, especially in older, colonial, properties.

Solar Energy for Hot Water

Heating water using solar panels is an excellent way to save energy. The hot water may be used for domestic consumption or, if you have a swimming pool, using solar panels for heating the pool water can save enormous amounts of gas (and money).

Most domestic hot water systems require an electric pump to move the water through the heating system and into a storage tank. They tend, also, to have a back-up heating system, whereby if the water falls below a certain temperature (e.g. due to poor weather conditions), the back-up heater comes into use to ensure a constant flow of hot water. The back-up heating system is usually gas-fired; however electric and oil-fired systems are available; you may also use a wood-fired heating system which would reduce your dependence upon fossil-fuels.

Solar Energy for Electricity

Solar panels can provide an ideal low-voltage electricity circuit for your home. With so many appliances now powered by low-voltage sources: for example, computers, iPods, cell phones, radios, and even low-voltage lighting systems, creating a low voltage circuit in your home -- powered by solar energy -- may be an ideal way to save energy.

Stepping down 120V to 12V or less (which is what happens when you plug in any technology gadgets into the wall) is extremely inefficient; the process wastes a lot of energy. The installation of a low-voltage circuit could save your electric bill and will be an efficient way to charge up batteries and run other technology devices requiring 12V or less of energy to operate. In practice, your solar panel would charge a battery which would power your local 'low voltage' home circuit. Speak to your architect or electrical professional for advice.

On a smaller scale, small, portable solar panels may be purchased that will easily charge up a cell phone or iPOD. Due to the abundance of sunshine in Mexico, this small panels can be convenient and energy-efficient way to re-charge your smaller technology items and help to lower your overall energy consumption from external sources.

Other Uses of Solar Energy

Clothes Drying: Drying your clothes on a clothes line outdoors instead of using an electric/gas powered clothes tumble dryer is possible thanks to Mexico's wonderful natural climate. Even apartment blocks in Mexico tend to have roof-top laundry drying areas. If you buy a tumble dryer in Mexico it will consume electricity and gas (it needs to be connected to gas); unlike European tumble dryers which operate solely on electricity.

Food Preparation and Cooking: Drying out foods for their preservation; making tea in the sun; cooking foods on a 'solar frying pan' or oven.

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Eco Friendly Gardens and Landscapes

There are a number of sensible reasons to employ the use of 'eco friendly' garden and landscape techniques when you build or develop your home in Mexico:

• Protection from the sun (shade for your home);
• Water conservation;
• Wind breaks;
• Reduce electricity consumption.

Protection from the Sun

Creating shade around your home by the use of trees and shrubs is the perfect way to prevent excess heat from entering your home through windows and roofs, especially in exceptionally hot climates. Keeping the interior of your home cooled down naturally will save energy by reducing the amount of air conditioning required to cool the indoor living areas.

Water Conservation

Water conservation is of primary concern, especially in Mexico's hotter climates and desert regions. The use of certain breeds of grass as well as alternative landscaping materials that don't require water (e.g. bark chipping, pebble stones) will provide you with a means to create an attractive landscape around your home without the need to use up scarce water supplies. For example, at El Dorado Ranch in San Felipe (a desert environment) the developer has used a species of salt-tolerant grass to make use of previously unusable water sources to irrigate the landscaping and golf course, thereby preserving the region's precious potable water supplies.

Wind Breaks

Wind breaks help to prevent the wind from carrying heat away from your house, in climates where indoor heat preservation is desirable; for example, in Mexico's high-up mountain regions. The most common form of wind breaks are shrubs and vines planted to divert winds away from the house walls. Another technique is to use 'earth breaks' by either creating mounds of earth in strategic places or using the land's natural topography to create wind breaks for the house.

Reducing Electricity Consumption

By employing the use of solar-powered lighting for your garden (if you use garden lights, buy the stand-alone type which charge up during the daylight and use that stored power to illuminate the bulb at night) and reducing the amount of water required in your garden, especially in areas where water is more scarce, energy may be conserved through less us of electricity (e.g. water pumps, water delivery to your home, sprinkler systems). A carefully thought-out garden and landscape can provide beautiful surroundings for your home and save energy. See the Landscape ecology link at the foot of this guide for more details.

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Use of Energy-Efficient Lighting in Mexico

Effective use of natural lighting is by far the most eco-friendly way to light your home. Dark rooms may be transformed by the creative use of skylights and even mirror-light systems. Wherever possible, you should try and use natural light to illuminate your home in Mexico; it will save you money and is better for your health and well-being.

Where artificial light is required (for example, dark rooms where skylight or windows cannot be installed) and at night, there are four broad options:

Incandescent Lighting

These are the regular light bulbs that have been around since Edison invented them (wiki). They work by running electric current across a filament in a glass vacuum. They create a warm 'yellow' colored light and some bulbs are sold with a color coating to give additional 'softness' to the light they emit. Although their life span is shorter than CFL's (see below), they create a warmer color temperature which some people prefer, especially for lamps and small side-lights.

CFL Lighting

Compact Fluorescent Lights are similar to fluorescent strip-lights except that, as the name suggests, they are compact. CFL's are filled with a gas and mercury. The mercury molecules get excited when electricity is passed between the electrodes at the base of the light unit; they, in turn, produce UV light which excites the molecules on the tube's phosphor coating, thus creating visible light.

CFL's have a much longer shelf-life and use a fraction of the energy an incandescent bulb consumes to produce a similar amount of brightness. However, the color temperature of the light is much higher, which means that CFL's create a bright white light instead of the softer yellow and amber tones created by incandescent light. Some later versions of CFL's deliver a more natural color of light, closer to that given out by incandescent bulbs; they are more expensive, though.

The mercury used in CFL's may be a cause for environmental concern if the bulbs are not properly disposed of when they finally expire. There have also been some reported cases of CFL's causing headaches and epileptic fits in some people (due to the color temperature which they emit and the way in which the light from them is produced).

CFL lights are available at hardware stores and supermarkets across Mexico. They became particularly popular when Mexico's state-run electric company, the CFE, increased electricity bills sharply a few years ago. In a bid to reduce electricity bills, people installed CFL lights in their homes.
Also See: Shops and Shopping in Mexico

Low Voltage Halogen Lights

These have been popular for years. A small halogen bulb is placed inside a highly reflective socket. The unit is powered by a low-voltage 12V circuit.

These lights are popular in kitchens, bathrooms and other areas where bright, distinct ('spot') areas of light and shadow are preferred. These lights are not ideal for areas where you want low-level warm, or intimate lighting.

LED's - The Latest Development in Home Lighting

Light Emitting Diodes have been around for decades, although recent advances in this technology have produced LED's that can create sufficient amounts of light for use in homes and offices.

The most common use of LED's now are on bicycles (safety lights) and new-style small flashlights. LED's are beginning to appear for use in domestic lighting systems, although you still need a good number of LED's to produce an equivalent amount of light given off by incandescent or CFL bulbs.

The advantage of LED's are the fact they use a fraction of the energy incandescent lights consume and a typical LED will last 100,000 hours. They generate very low levels of heat and, clustered together, they may be used for an array of lighting purposes and situations.

Also See: Electricity Supply in Mexico and Security Lighting in Mexico

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Energy-Efficient Heating and Cooling in Mexico

If your home in Mexico is up in the mountains, you may be concerned with keeping heat in, especially during the winter months. If your home is at sea level and/or in the desert or jungle regions, keeping cool will be one of your primary concerns for home comfort. Both require consumption of energy. Here are some tips to save energy in your Mexican home:

Hot Water

Most homes in Mexico are fitted with traditional water heaters: water enters a semi-insulated tank and is heated by means of a gas-fired heating system at the base of the unit. The water is kept to the temperature set on the tank's basic thermostat which has three settings: hot/warm/tepid; when the water falls below the temperature indicated on the setting, the heater kicks-in and heats it up again. These boilers are popular but somewhat inefficient. A way to reduce the gas consumption is to leave the setting on "tepid" and turn it up ten minutes before you need hot water: e.g. to shower or wash-up. Some modern homes in Mexico are now being installed with condenser boilers. These heaters are known as "calentadores de paso" (literally translated this means 'in passing heaters') because they heat the water from cold, on demand. They are more efficient as they do not keep a tank of water constantly warm (or hot); instead they heat as much water as is required when the hot water tap is switched on. If you have a choice, opt for the latter; if you want to save gas, rip out the old heater and install a new condenser heater.

The use of solar energy can be an ideal way to supply hot water to your home. It is estimated that in warmer climates like Mexico up to 80% of home's hot water needs may be met by solar energy. See "Solar Energy", above.

Keeping Warm in the Cold

Mexican homes are not fitted with gas-fired central heating systems. Portable electric heaters are common, although the cost of running these is very high as they consume copious quantities of electricity, which is not cheap in Mexico. See Electricity Supply in Mexico for more details.

Smart design of your home (or smart renovation) can make use of the sun's natural heat (see Design Your Home Efficiently, above) and additional planning such as getting the kitchen to face to the center of the house and placing your oven against an internal wall, will all contribute to keeping your home warm without the need for additional heating sources.

Water-based heating systems, such as under floor heating, may be installed using gas-fired heaters to warm the water in the under floor pipes or, better, using solar-panel systems, in areas where the days are warm and the nights are chilly or cold.

A wood burning stove in the living room is an excellent way of creating a good amount of heat with the minimal amount of fuel; wood-burning stoves can also be a source of energy to heat your water. Older properties have fire-places although the soot these create make them less attractive than wood-burning stoves fitted which are fitted with their own flu/chimney.

Keeping Cool in the Heat

When you live in some of Mexico's hottest regions, you will need to keep cool to stay comfortable and, in many cases, to be able to work and live normally. Electricity prices are subsidized by Mexico's government in the summertime for regions in the north and south of the country, where the heat is intense and people rely upon the use air-conditioners to keep cool in their homes and offices.

However, air-conditioning, even at subsidized rates, is expensive and too much is never that healthy for your lungs. Wherever possible, you should try and use natural cooling systems, especially in your home and at night when you are sleeping.

Good home design can help to keep your home cool: read about high-mass materials which enable your home to keep the heat out in the day and ventilation systems which 'sweep away' the heat from the building during the night in the first section of this guide.

Using ceiling fans for ventilation instead of of air-conditioning units is better for your health, much less expensive to run than air-conditioning, and better for the environment.

Employ the use of trees and shrubs as part of your landscaping to provide shade from the sun; some homes have 'green roofs', whereby the trees and foliage growing from an inner courtyard or patio not only provide natural shade, but also create a cool moisture in the air.

Living at Higher Altitudes

Another factor when buying or building a house in Mexico is to consider the altitude. At sea level, in the northern deserts, and on the unique geology of the Yucatan Peninsula (wiki), temperatures soar in the summer time and humidity is also constant by the coasts. Inland, most of Mexico's towns and cities are situated at high altitudes. Up in the mountains, where you'll find many of Mexico's colonial cities as well as Mexico City and Guadalajara, the climate is much more temperate all year-round: requiring less use of energy to keep cool in the summers, but more to keep warm in the winter months.

Most of Mexico's colonial cities and its major cities are situated at high altitude. The temperate climates offered in these areas provide a natural heating and cooling system. Summers are not too hot, winters never get too cold. Usually, a properly insulated home will provide sufficient protection from the summer heat and the use of a low-energy heating system for the coldest winter months (January and February), to take off the chill edge in the air, will suffice.

Living at altitude has its advantages and disadvantages and by doing so will mean that you will not be living by the ocean, which many people prefer. For more details also see our blog story Breathing Easy in Mexico.

Also See: Heating and Air Conditioning in Mexico

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Eco-Friendly Water Supplies

Most homes in developed areas across Mexico are supplied by mains water; some homes in more remote areas require water from a local well. Sewerage can be more complicated; many urban areas are well-served by mains sewerage systems; some homes in rural areas have septic tanks, and even some areas in big cities need septic tank systems, for example, the up-scale Pedregal area in southern Mexico City, is a neighborhood built on volcanic rock, making a mains sewerage system unviable: home there have septic tank systems.

Regardless of where you home is, there are ways to reduce your water consumption, recycle and re-use 'gray' water...

Reducing Water Consumption in the Bathroom

The easiest way to reduce the amount of water you use with each flush is to place a brick in the toilet's water cistern. Many older houses in Mexico still have the old toilets installed, and the 'brick' method is particularly effective for those old toilet cisterns, which are huge, and in case you're not ready to change the toilet out for a new-style toilet which offers you a "short flush" / "full flush" button.

Recycling Rain Water

Mexico's monsoon season runs from May to September each year. Afternoons are often marked by colossal pour-downs of rain; an ideal opportunity to collect rain water for your garden or even your toilets. Some of the more advanced rain recycling systems will collect water (known as 'gray' water) from your roof and deposit it into a huge water cistern under your house. Your house water may then run from its own reservoir, by means of water filters to remove any impurities and an electric pump. By doing this, you will have access to fresh rain water for drinking and bathing -- you will notice the difference as mains-fed water has small amounts of chlorine added to it to kill off any bugs in the pipe work.

Recycling Bath and Shower Water

If you have designed your own home, you may be able to have all bath and shower water immediately dispersed into your gardens. This will save having to use fresh water to irrigate your lawns and flowers.

Also See: Water and Drainage in Mexico

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Other Web Resources

Here is a list of web resources for further research on the subject of home energy efficiency, eco-building and sustainable living:

Blog Articles : Latest Articles about Real Estate in Mexico

Energy Savers - a US Government Agency, dedicated to helping home owners and other realty stake-holders create more energy-efficient homes

US DOE - The US Department of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

ACEEE - The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, gives consumer tips and advice on energy savings

Thermal Mass - Wikipedia entry on Thermal Mass (buildings)

Recycling - Wikipedia entry on recycling

Waste Management - Wikipedia entry on Waste Disposal

Septic Tank Systems - Wikipedia entry on Septic Tanks

Wood as Fuel - Wikipedia entry on Wood Fuel and Wood-burning Stoves

Straw-Bale Construction - Wikipedia entry on this construction technique

Solar Gain - Wikipedia entry and links about solar gain

Solar Energy - Wikipedia entry on Solar Energy

Heating Systems - Wikipedia index of heating systems

Solar Air Conditioning - Wikipedia entry on solar powered air conditioning

Lighting Systems - Wikipedia entry on lights and lighting

Landscape Ecology - Wikipedia entry on eco-friendly landscaping

Irrigation Systems - Wikipedia entry on types of irrigation

Green Building - Wikipedia entry about ecology-friendly buildings

Sustainable Development - Wikipedia entry about Sustainable Development

Sustainable Living - Wikipedia entry about Sustainable Living

Voluntary Simplicity - Wikipedia entry about 'simple living' lifestyles

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