Monday, November 05, 2012

Cost-effective, energy-efficient homes go head-to-head

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The scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have put four advanced home design technologies head-to-head: all built at the same time right next to each other with the same square footage.  They tested structural insulated panel (SIP), optimal value wall framing (OVF), advanced framing with phase change materials (PCMM), and exterior insulation and finish system (EIFS). An overview of what these mean and the products used can be found in this pdf.  http://www.zebralliance.com/pdfs/Zebralliance_booklet%20(6).pdf

They computerized the homes to have the same daily use (electronically of course) for two years.  And the verdicts are in: SIPS was the most efficient and sealed crawlspaces are better than vented ones.   But all four of the homes were more than 50% energy efficient over conventional IECC (2006) code standards.

Here is a link to their findings and publications.

http://www.zebralliance.com/publications.shtml

Posted via email from Verdant Design

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