News About Sierra Homes
"Self sustaining: Couple builds green Hill Country home."
From San Antonio Business Journal.
Off-the-grid house allows these homeowners to be free of water, sewer and electric bills.
Talk about the concept of a self-sustained home and the image that comes to mind is a rustic cabin with bare minimum comforts. But one couple in the Texas Hill Country - Rick and Stephanie Ertel - has erased that image. The couple has built a platinum-certified LEED home that is both environmentally friendly and luxurious. What's more, it also won an Austin Energy Five-star rating.
Here's why: Just a dozen or so steps from Ertels' Hill Country home is a 20,000 gallon tank that holds all the rainwater collected from the roof and carport over the last few months. Despite the drought, the tank is full. And thanks to low-use shower fixtures and composting toilets, Rick Ertel estimates the tank will last him and his wife three years, even if nary a raindrop falls.