The votes are in: coolest green building products

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Each year, the Pacific Coast Builders Conference (PCBC) holds a competition for the coolest building products. This year, 125 products were entered into the contest and were voted on by 679 home-building professionals.

Here are the 2008 cool-product winners in the green building category:

1. Rinnai LS Series tankless water heater

Rinnai’s LS Series tankless water heaters, the company says, save 30% to 50% in energy over traditional tank-style units, and offer installation flexibility and low emissions. Read more

2. Eagle Solar Roof (pictured above)

This is a solar-power system that integrates with Eagle's concrete roof tile. Read more

3. Cree LED Lighting Solutions LR6 light bulb

This bulb has a 20-year life span, the manufacturer says, or 50,000 hours under normal use. The LR6 is comfortable to the touch and so could reduce the burden and cost of the air conditioning system. The LR6 uses 85% less energy than a conventional incandescent and less than half that of a comparable fluorescent, the company says. And unlike any fluorescent, the LR6 contains no mercury. Read more

4. Akeena Solar’s Andalay solar panels

These solar panels have a modern, sleek design and feature a built-in rack, allowing panels to lie flat on rooftops and blend into the home’s architectural elements. Each panel is fit with electrical wiring, eliminating the errors that occur with complicated electrical grounding during the installation process, the company says, and the panels have a Lego-like snap-in-place process. Read more

5. GE Profile SmartDispense front-load washer and dryer

Using as little as 10 gallons of water for a small load, the company says, the Energy Star-qualified washer can save more than 5,800 gallons of water per year compared with a typical top-load washer. The new H2ITION technology automatically senses the load and adds just the right amount of water to each load. The washer's SmartDispense pedestals store and automatically dispense detergent and fabric softener based on each load's size, soil level, water hardness and fabric or cycle type. Read more

See more about PCBC June 24-27 in San Francisco.

(Photo: Open Energy Corp.)