What Materials are energy efficient in house designs?

any help would be greatly appreciated, i want to know, say structures type, either wood or steel etc.What Materials are energy efficient in house designs?
It really depends on your location.





If you live in a cold climate then the best materials are those that are thick and heavy (thermal mass), to help store any heat from the sun, with thick external insulation to keep the cold air from cooling that thermal mass.





If you live in the wet tropics it's best to use very lightweight materials like timber and/or sheet metal with lots of ventilation but with very wide shaded roofs. Insulation still helps a lot here as well.





In hot dry climates the materials are again like cold climates (thick thermal mass with external insulation), but this time with lots of shading to keep the sun off the mass. This will make the thermal mass act as a cooling element instead, as long as you can keep the sun off it.





In all cases it's best to use local sustainable materials. Plantation timber for lightweight structures; local stone, mudbrick, or second hand thermal mass materials. The reason local is better is that transport of materials across the country (or world) take a LOT of energy.





Hope that helpsWhat Materials are energy efficient in house designs?
Metal roofs barely ever need to be replaced. Solar panels on the roof is a new great idea; sometimes you can generate almost all your own electricity. For heating your house, look into Geothermal power. It's awesome! Buy all Energy Star appliances as well.