Straw-bale construction at the Kungas' home, a vent tower at the Lunds' and direct access to the Rail Trail at the Chathams' house in Park City: These are just a few of the interesting details we observed during the recent Green Home Tour, which was billed as a showcase for environmentally wise building and materials.

Deseret Morning News graphic Year-round green Requires Adobe Acrobat.

We found passive-solar design, Energy Star appliances and great insulation in every home. Dual-flush toilets and low-flow shower heads abounded. So did cork floors. Most of the homes had been painted with low VOC paints, which now are available off the shelf.

Highlights from four of the Salt Lake homes:

• Walking up to the Plachta-Carlson-Gotts' home, which is now four years old, you noticed the xeriscaping. The buffalo grass had faded in the summer sun but seemed thick and healthy. Inside, architect Angela Dean gave tours, talking about passive-solar design and radiant-floor heating. The home, which is in the Millcreek area, uses a ground-source heat pump. (Water is pumped through several hundred feet of buried pipes to pick up heat in the winter. In the summer months the pipes are relatively cool, thus cooling the water that flows through them.) The owners spent $650 to heat their 3,400-square-foot home last year and $40 to cool it.