Getting the tax credit for solar is comparatively easy. You call up an installer, they put solar panels on your roof, and then installer then files the paperwork for your credit.

The federal tax credit for home retrofits – which covers 30 percent of the cost of retrofit equipment in your home up to $1,500 – is a little more complex. Not all windows and doors quality for the credit and the credit only applies to things purchased, not installation costs.

To help out a little, Andersen Windows has come up with this website to guide consumers on what sort of products qualify. Naturally, it only includes their windows, but what do you want? If anything, it's a start. (San Francisco is also trying to put together a program to finance green retrofits through property tax surcharges.)

Besides, the window giant certainly has a wide selection. It currently is touting its 100 series windows, which come in frames made from Fibrex. Fibrex consists of 60 percent polymer and 40 percent sawdust and wood scraps.

Green buildings and building materials will likely play prominent roles in reducing energy consumption. Building operations consume approximately 40 percent of the energy in the U.S. and 76 percent of the electricity and much of this power consumed by buildings is not used efficiently. Luckily, as Dan Geiger of the Northern California chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council among others has pointed out, building performance can likely be improved somewhat economically.