CNN.com Video Featurette "Catching rain, saving water" A professor reduces his home use of city water by inventing a new rainwater recycling system... 1:19 minutes in length WATCH VIDEO

Watch a Streaming Video Presentation of LEED ® Homes Requires The Flash Player plugin Download Plugin here 11:45 minutes in length WATCH VIDEO

THE FIRST LEED-CERTIFIED PLATINUM LOWRISE HOME TO OPEN IN CANADA.

A new era in energy efficient home design has arrived.

While the R2000 home that was unveiled in the 1980s represented the state of the art in energy-efficient design, our environmental awareness and understanding has grown in leaps and bounds since then, with one technological advance after another.

In 2006, Reid's Heritage Homes took the bold step and made Energy Star the standard in each and every new single family home we build.

Now in 2007, we have taken the next giant step and built our first LEED home one of the first to open in Canada - and forming the template and prototype for Reid's Heritage Homes new offering of LEED-certified high performance homes.

Now Reid's Heritage Homes purchasers can select from the company's standard Energy Star homes... from Energy Star homes enhanced with additional green features... and coming soon, the ultimate in green technology with LEED-certified homes.

WHAT IS A LEED HOME?

A new standard that promotes the design and construction of high performance green homes.

Reid's Heritage Homes is currently working in cooperation with the United States Green Build Council (USGBC) on the construction of one of Canada's first certified LEED - Platinum single detached homes.

While "LEED for Homes" may be an unfamiliar term to many Canadians, Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) is an internationally recognized standard that promotes the design and construction of high performance green homes.

That means it includes features promoting superior energy and water efficiency... healthier indoor air quality... more effective resource use... and lower overall environmental impact.

In addition to a variety of unique components, this green home will feature a Rain Water Harvesting system. This particular element is part of a local initiative driven by Reid’s Heritage Homes, the City of Guelph, CMHC, the School of Engineering at the University of Guelph, and Ontario Centres for Excellence to promote large-scale Rain Water Harvesting in new residential developments.

The LEED® home is now open to the public in Guelph's Westminster Woods community at 162 Goodwin Drive.