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The Greening of Homes
More Buyers, Builders Embracing Benefits of Homes with
Eco-Friendly Features
by Karen Mansfield, The Observer-Reporter
April 20, 2008

Let’s face it. We’re living in a world gone wild for green. Everything from grocery shopping to automobiles has a green option (think recyclable bags and hybrids).

The green movement also is gaining momentum in the homebuilding market, where customers are reaping the benefits: lower heating and cooling bills, better indoor air quality and a sense of environmental responsibility from leaving a smaller environmental footprint.

“Green building is the next level of building houses,” said green home builder Lewis Keith, owner of Keith Homes in Washington, who has been at the forefront of eco-friendly building for more than a decade. “I don’t think I’ve deliberately been especially environmentally conscious, but I think it’s the right thing to do. It’s a better home.”

Keith constructed the first five-star energy-efficient house in Western Pennsylvania, and the homes he is building in Sycamore Reserve, a 96-home conservation community on 120 acres in North Franklin Township, are models of energy efficiency. Continue reading →

“Rooms With A View”
by Harry Funk, The Observer-Reporter
November 6, 2005

Set atop a South Franklin Township ridge, the just-completed house was built with the view in mind: From all directrions it overlooks hills and valleys that are full of foliage.

Location certainly is a prime consideration when it comes to building a home, but so are the design elements of the house. And the Keiths have come up with some distinctive features. Walk inside, and you’ll immediately take note of the floorboards: planks of Eastern white pine cut in uneven widths, some as wide as 20 inches, anchored by square-head nails to create an effect reminiscent of an early American home. Continue reading →

“Energy Efficient House Garners Five-Star Rating”
by Denise Bachman, The Observer-Reporter
October 12, 1997

Lewis Keith saw stars when the Environmental Protection Agency presented an energy conservation program to the National Association of Home Builders. Five stars to be exact. And that will translate into cost savings for Keith’s customers.

Keith, owner of Keith Homes in Washington, has built the first five-star energy-efficient house in Western Pennsylvania. The two-story, four-bedroom house on Driftwood Drive in North Franklin Township meets the EPA’s standards for energy efficiency with its insulated concrete form foundation, fresh indoor air and high-performance windows. Continue reading →