Project Team: Coastal Habitats, Building Science Corporation
Location: Hilton Head, South Carolina
Description: 1,495 ft2 one-and-a-half story, three-bedroom, three bath single family house
Completion Date: September 2008
Estimated Annual Energy Savings: $426 per year with 50% source energy savings; with 6.5 kW PV array predicted source energy savings is 99%
Fairburn – the first energy-efficient, healthy, affordable, community in metro Atlanta. All of the adjectives in this description are important to builder Jay Epstein of Health-E Enterprises. “I used to use these three terms to make up a triangle representing the way I build,” says Epstein. “Working with Building America has changed my image to a diamond with the fourth critical element being systems engineering and design.”
Project Team: Building Science Corporation, Health-E Enterprises
Address: Atlanta, GA
It shouldn’t be a surprise that energy would be a hit in Texas—but 8,000 people on the fi rst weekend to tour a home that uses less than half that of a standard new home, and makes the rest itself? There is no magic in the technology and engineering, but clearly builder Jim Sargent and his systems thinking team have created something special at the Building America Zero Energy Home of Lone Star Ranch in Frisco, Texas.
Project Team: Greencraft Builders, LLC, Building Science Corporation
Location: Lewisville, Texas
Description: 2,409 ft2 one-story single family home
In 1986, Pulte Homes in Tucson was plagued by customer complaints and even law suits for construction and material defects in their homes. Today, customer satisfaction is above 90% and the Pulte division is the 2001 Energy Value in Housing Award (EVHA) Builder of the Year. What happened?
Location: Ellendale, Delaware
Project Team: Colter Construction, Building Science Corporation
Description: 1,280 ft2 one-story, three bedroom, two bath single family home
Completion Date: September 2009
The Old Colony public housing project underwent a major redevelopment that replaced 1940s-era brick low-rise housing units with new mid-rise and townhome apartments as well as a community center. As part of an integrated design and construction team, BSC provided consulting services on the durability, energy efficiency, and constructability of the building enclosure, beginning at the earliest stages of design. This included participation in design charrettes that established building enclosure goals and determined the particular assemblies that would meet those goals.
Historic New England owns and/or manages historic properties scattered throughout five states, with the goals of preserving and presenting New England heritage, and educating the public. They have consulted Building Science Corporation on multiple projects, typically looking at the goal of reducing energy consumption while without the use of irreversible methods on the historic fabric of the building, as well as not compromising durability. All of these projects involved a field evaluation of the building, followed by analysis and recommendations.