The Green Building Inspector » Miracle Home

Bridgewater Subdivision Adds NAHB Bronze Level Home

Green Building Inspector — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 15:03:17 +0000

Spring is here and everything seems to be turning green! Especially the homes in several Madison County subdivisions. Builders in those central Mississippi communities are finding that the public is ready to save money on utility costs and want a cleaner living environment.

This past Saturday I verified a fantastic home in Bidgewater Subdivision of Ridgeland, MS. The Hidden Heights Drive home attained a Bronze level certification as rated by the NAHB Green Building Guidelines and marks the third home I’ve verified in the past 4 months in the tri-county area.

I currently have 3 homes in my inspection portfolio under construction at various stages. Scott Shoemaker of Shoemaker Homes has two custom homes being built side by side in the Ashbrooke Subdivision of Madison County. Scott is seeking NAHB Silver Level certification on both homes. When finished in a few months they will be the first Silver Designation to the program in Mississippi. David Smith is building this year’s Blair Batson House in Madison County and is building it NAHB Bronze.

For more infomation about going green contact me toll free at 1-877-809-6139 or online here.

NAHB Green Miracle Home adds Energy Efficient Roof

Green Building Inspector — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 19:02:44 +0000

A energy efficient roof decking called Radiant Barrier is being installed on the Trustmark Children’s Hospital Miracle Home. Each year the Home Builders Association of Jackson, MS coordinates the construction and donation of the home. This year’s location is Madison County and is being built by Certified Green Professional Builder David Smith. David chose to build the home to the guidelines of the NAHB National Green Building Standard (The Standard). The Standard requires both elective and mandatory specifications be followed. The rigorous requirements are awarded via a point system. Certain aspects of the home must meet specific constructs designed to create a more energy efficient, cleaner and more live-able environment.

Under the energy efficiency catagory, points may be claimed by the builder and awarded by an acredited 3rd party verifier by incorporating designed elements called for in the standard.

Foil backed decking is installed to lower attic temps.

David chose to include a special roof decking that reflects the suns heat, pushing it back into the atmosphere. The decking helps lower the attic temperature. A lower attic temperature means less heat transfer into the home and therefore, less work on the air conditioning system. The result? Lower utility costs for the owner. And in this case…the lucky owner!

The focus on energy efficiency and design is also evident in David’s use of the ceiling framing. An extra strip of lumber is placed around the outside edges of the raised ceilings of the family room and dining rooms. This extra lumber acts as a border for the blown-in loose fill insulation. The insulation is added after the drywall has been installed. It’s important to keep a uniform thickness of insulation over the entire ceiling to help maintain a consistent R-Value of the insulation.

Orange colored foam insulation seals the fire draft ceiling.

Without the border nailed in place the insulation has a tendency to fall off the edges of the room’s ceiling line. The result? Heat gain in that particular area of the ceiling and a rise in the buildings temperature and higher heating and cooling costs.

Special foam caulking is being used along the top edge of the interior and exterior walls to prevent unconditioned air from leaking into the wall cavity. The area directly above the fireplace is sealed to prevent a fire draft in the family room wall. Again, sealing this area is mandatory.This same insulation seals all the penetrations throughout the home.

Next we’ll report on the efforts to maintain a tight building envelpoe by showing you examples of proper drywall sealing techniqes.

For more info on construction consulting and Green Building Verification contact Gary N Smith toll free: 1-877-809-6139 or online at www.garynsmith.net.

Raising the Walls – Miracle Home goes NAHB Green

Green Building Inspector — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 13:08:00 +0000

The lines that form the room layouts have been drawn on the slab and the window and door openings have been established. 9-0 feet tall 2 x 4 studs are being raised and will soon carry the ceiling joists and bracing for the 2009 Trustmark Children’s Hospital Miracle Home built by David Smith of David Smith, Builder.

One of the new framing techniques used in “green building” will not only help save money on waste but will allow the wall insulation to wrap around the building.

In the past, framing members called a “T” helped connect an interior wall to the exterior wall. This connection left a section of the outside wall uninsulated. A new way of framing called “Advanced Framing Techniques” is being used on the home.

These new framing members will also be used at the corners of the building adding an improved insulation factor to the wall structure. Another payoff will come in the way of lower energy consumption.

Extra attention is being given to the building’s design and function. Green building not only saves energy but improves the indoor living environment.

For more information on green building contact Gary N Smith at 601-454-5559 or online at www.garynsmith.net.

2009 Children’s Miracle Home Will Be NAHB Green

Green Building Inspector — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 11:56:00 +0000

The 2009 Trustmark Children’s Hospital Miracle Home is under construction and if David Smith of David Smith Builder has his way it will not only help a great cause but the winner of this years home will also save energy and water. The home will also be more resource efficient and will offer improved indoor air quality. The home is being built to the NAHB Green Building Program and plans are to achieve Bronze level in the program.

As an NAHB Accredited Green Building Verifier I’ll be adding construction progress updates here to help keep you informed of the home’s construction progress.

The verifier’s role as a third party inspector is an integral part in the process of defining the elements of green building.

David began lot prep in January of this year and poured the concrete foundation in early February.

As a home warranty inspector for Bonded Builders Warranty Group I inspected the home for compliance before the concrete was poured. The post tension cable system, form depth and design layout inspection was performed clearing the way for concrete trucks to roll. The pad was poured and after the supporting form work was wrecked the slab was made ready for the framing crews to start raising the first walls.

One of the elements of the the green building program is resource efficiency. Form boards and other lumber used to pour the slab will be re-used in the building thereby reducing waste and saving valuable framing lumber.

Yesterday the framing contractors began the wall layout process and they formed special “green” framing components for the building. These newly designed wall members allow wall insulation to be wrapped around the building’s outside walls improving the insulating value of the home.

Also, during this early phase, a foam strip is added to the frame that helps prevent air and water vapor from entering the wall structure.

The termite treated pine lumber that forms to bottom of the outside walls are bolted securely to the slab pressing the foam and completing the “air tight” seal.

Sealing and caulking the building’s wall structure from unwanted air infiltration is important to maintaining a mold free home and a healthy living environment.

We’ll talk about air quality and how to improve it through green building techniques as we follow the project.

For more information on green building contact Gary N Smith at 601-454-5559 or online at www.garynsmith.net.