Compare House Builders
Purchasing a new home will be among your single greatest investments you will make, and as such, your brand-new home's energy performance need to be one of your main concerns. Now might be a great time to make the most of a slow housing market, low interest rates and homebuilders that aspire to add incentives, allowances and specifically, energy efficient upgrades.
Homebuilders today are providing various types of energy effective features in their homes', this enables homebuilders to get approved for the EPA's Energy Star classification. Energy Star rankings are provided by an independent third party and these findings are based on that specific homebuilder's products, products, and overall building methods.
New houses with this Energy Star designation ought to be given careful consideration when you are attempting to narrow down your new house choice process. Remember that not all homebuilders construct their houses the same way, so you should start your questions regarding the specifics of the homebuilder's energy performance functions and compare which will provide you with biggest advantages for your financial investment.
Framing that Counts
The type of framing is a good beginning, 2x4 or 2x6 outside building and construction for instance, allows you to figure out the R-value or insulation density of the walls. You may also wish to ask regarding whether the contractor's new houses have any outside plywood wall sheeting as part of their building, as it boosts the house structurally and adds to the houses R-value.
Outside finishes such as siding or stucco, for example, do extremely little in the way of increasing the home's energy effectiveness. Depending on your home builder, another choice you ought to strongly think about is thermo resistant roof sheathing, this product can significantly decrease the summertime heat in your attic (30 degrees cooler usually). With a distinction of a few dollars a sheet, (5/8") this roof sheathing need to be a standard in the construction of your house.
Air Conditioning and Heating that Saves You Money
The air conditioning & heating system is single biggest customer of electrical power and natural gas in a home. That is why the efficiency of the HVAC system is so extremely important. The air conditioning system is determined by a SEER (Seasonal Energy Performance ratio) score and is given a coefficient or number, the greater the number the more efficient the unit transforms electricity into cool air for your home. For example: new Energy Star houses must have a SEER rating of 14, which is enhanced over the standard SEER 12 or 13, from years past.
There are currently updated ac system on the marketplace that have a SEER score of up to 23. These units run at various speeds, which enable them to use you an even greater efficiency. But keep in mind, no matter what SEER ranked a/c you have, if your home isn't properly insulated you won't have the ability to make the most of the a/c unit's complete capacity.
Energy Effective Windows makes a Difference
If minimizing Office tinting your heating & cooling expenses interest you, then having windows with a good R-value is important to your house's total energy efficiency.
When comparing various windows with other homebuilders, here are a couple of things to consider; there are 2 R-values to consider for your windows: one, for the glass itself (generally determined at the center of the window) and one for the entire unit, consisting of the frame.
The higher the R-value a window has, the lower the U-value should be. The rate of heat loss is indicated in regards to the U-factor (U-value) of a window's assembly. The lower the U-factor, the higher a window's resistance to heat circulation and the much better it's insulating residential or commercial properties.
Your windows ought to have a low Solar Heat Coefficient score as well, which implies the amount of sunshine going through a window as heat, the lower the number, the more efficient the window. In addition, a home builder that has an Energy Star medallion on his design houses must use windows with LOW e tinting as a standard.
A Well Insulated Home is the Secret
Your research study should likewise consist of the R-value of the duct work and the attic as well. Normal duct has in between an R-value in between 4 to 8, this is the minimum, R-12 or much better is suggested. Attic insulation is also a crucial concern as to your house's energy performance.
The requirement on brand-new homes is typically R-30 or 38, whether it is Batt or blown insulation will rely on your house builder. Most builders offer an alternative to update the attic insulation from R-30 (requirement) to an R-45 or in many cases R-60. Keep in mind, when inquiring or working out insulation upgrades, it is among the most low-cost items for a homebuilder to install and the charge ought to be extremely minimal, if at all.
If your new house is going to be a two story, your homebuilder needs to use an alternative to insulate the downstairs ceiling. You need to highly consider this choice, especially if your brand-new house has 2 or more A/C systems (up & downstairs). It significantly minimizes your downstairs conditioned air from getting away through the ceiling, in addition to creating a nice from the upstairs.
The garage is one location of the house that is greatly ignored by lots of homebuyers and contractors alike when it comes to energy effectiveness. Although it is hardly ever inhabited, it is still a part of your home and should be secured from the components, especially if there are bed rooms or a living room above. An upgraded R-60 insulation in the ceiling is highly recommended. Insulating the exterior walls and an insulated garage door can help in reducing the temperature level variations from the garage and the rest of your home.
Quality You can Feel
Seeing your new home being built can be an emotional time. You will find the urge for constant participation in your home's building and construction. Many new house contractors understand this desire and give you an opportunity to closely analyze the inner operations of your new house, by scheduling what is known as a "frame or alternative" walk-through.
This is where you will discover the walls still exposed, and you will able to plainly see the internal mechanics of your brand-new house (electrical wiring, recessed lighting, rough plumbing, duct work & venting. This is the stage of construction prior to the insulation is to be installed.
This walk-through permits you an opportunity to consult with home builder's representatives and evaluate your house's development, construction approaches, quality, along with, evaluating the setup of the choices you may have bought, such as: electrical (extra outlets, recessed lighting & positionings, and so on) cable, plumbing and extra rooms or conversions (other than insulation).
This walk-through is extremely informal, although for some maybe complicated, so if you would feel more comfortable you may welcome a certified "third party" or friend to join you.
At this moment you need to carefully analyze the quality of building and reveal any issues you might have, such as: the condition of the stud walls (twisted or bowed, if any), the sealing of all draft stops and wall fire blocking (8'above bottom plate). Make sure that all the penetrations (water & waste piping, duct and electrical wiring is thoroughly sealed, either with foam or batt insulation. You should likewise check the gap in between the frame of your windows & exterior doors and the stud wall are effectively sealed or insulated, this will greatly lower heating and cooling loss after drywall is set up.
If your new house is to be a two story, the nearby walls of the house and the garage should be draft stopped above the ceiling line to the bottom of the second floor. Blocking out this air from aerating into the living location from the garage is very important due to the fact that, one, it prevents fire from spreading from the garage to first floor ceiling of your home, and 2, the garage is generally not air conditioned.
For that reason the ceiling above is subject to radical changes in temperature and venting this air into the remainder of the house is expensive to the energy performance of your new home. This type of draft stopping could be carried out quickly by your builder at the time the house is initially being framed. But these steps are not required, (unless structural engineered) by numerous court codes throughout the country, for that reason it is seldom done by homebuilders.
At this stage in building you will also find that the exterior vapor barrier or in the "south west", the stucco lathing should have been set up. You ought to examine this product carefully, (from the within), and explain any rips or tears that may have happened. The bottom of this material, at the sill plate, should also be sealed with foam insulation or caulk, this will avoid outside hot & cold air vapor from penetrating the wall cavity.
If these items have actually not yet been carried out, you might want to set up another walk-through, ideally after all the "foam preparation" and insulation has actually been set up.
After the drywall has actually been set up, among the very best ways to prevent against heating and cooling getting away into the walls, is to have your builder caulk the new drywall at the floor, (upstairs & down), as well as, the electrical boxes, recessed lighting and plumbing protrusions around your entire home (every wall). All this ought to and can be done quickly by the contractor prior to the baseboard and trim products being set up, by the "prep crew", prior to the "rough" painting of the interior of your home.
The EPA's Energy Star designation is an excellent start to house's overall energy performance, but there are many things that you can do to ensure your brand-new home is too built as possible. One of those is installing affordable insulation where ever possible. The benefits will far out way the little costs you may have.
With energy conservation ending up being a growing number of common today, buying a home that is the most energy effective as possible is an excellent way of decreasing carbon emissions, helping the environment, and above all saving you cash.