How to build a home with a $30 utility bill
alexdavis@courier-journal.com
As energy costs head higher, some home builders in the Louisville area are taking new steps to keep heating and cooling bills as low as possible for their buyers. I recently visited with a couple of builders who showed me a few of their techniques:
Richard Miles of Dogwood Homes gave me a tour of a Homearama property at Locust Creek. The place was monstrous with about 5,200 square feet of space, but Miles said it will cost no more than $100 a month to heat and cool. He keeps utility costs low by installing high-efficiency windows, caulking between adjoining studs and using a dual-fuel heating system with an electric heat pump, among other things.
A few miles away, Abe Gilbert of Urbane Homes was using some of the same strategies for a smaller home off Flat Rock Road. Instead of plywood sheathing, the company wraps its homes with one-inch sheets of foam supported with steel braces, and it uses two-by-six studs for framing to fit extra insulation. The furnace and central air conditioning are tucked inside the second floors and, unlike my house, the ductwork never travels into the attic or exterior walls where energy is lost. Some of Gilbert's homes have projected heating and cooling costs as low as $30 a month.
Companies like Dogwood and Urbane won't save you any money at the gas pump, but their homes seem to be a big improvement over the way many of our current homes are designed. In some cases, their utility bills are less than half what a comparable home would generate.
To check out other area builders participating in the federal government's Energy Star program, click here
posted by Alex Davis at 8:44 AM 0 comments
Thursday, June 26, 2008
