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Concrete Homes Newsletter > 2006 > September/October
September/October 2006
Zero-Energy-Cost Home Relies on ICFs
Just off the Hudson River in New York, there is a beautiful home resting
peacefully on a hillside. And while it might seem slightly bigger than most
homes (3,160 square feet of finished space and 6,300 square feet of conditioned
space), it leaves a footprint smaller than just about any other home in the
state.
What is it? It’s an ICF home that utilizes both geothermal and photovoltaic
technology. Bill Reilly, the owner of the home, says, "With a geothermal
HVAC system and photovoltaic cells on the roof to generate electricity, we
have paid nothing for electricity since November 2005 when we moved in. Part
of the reason is that we are able to re-sell the excess electricity we generate
back to the utility company.” When the analysis was conducted, this
concrete home got the highest Energy Star rating in the state (93.3).
The homebuilder, Sunshine Tartter of J.O.Y. Enterprises, adds, “One
of the benefits of the ICF construction is that if the house had been stick-frame,
the home would have needed three or four wells for the geothermal. They only
have one!”
The energy savings alone would be enough to pique the interest of most homebuyers.
But the Reilly’s discovered there was something else their ICF home
could do for them. "Although we chose ICFs for their energy efficiency,
sound attenuation was a real bonus. We're located on the Hudson River with
a railroad track located between us and the river, 100 feet from the house.
Two major rail lines use the tracks, so we have many trains coming through
each day. We can barely hear the trains on the near side, and can't hear
them at all on the far side."
Concrete Alternatives Available for New Orleans Hurricane Victims
A coalition of New Orleans developers has revealed plans for a $15 million
project that would build more than 1,000 mold-resistant, eco-friendly, hurricane-resistant
homes in the Lower Ninth Ward. How can this be accomplished? They’re
made of concrete and one can be erected in 10 days.
Le Triomphe Property Group, headquartered in St. Francisville, will be
the lead developer on the project, with AAmagin Property Group of Baton
Rouge and Los Angeles-based Castle Homes. The developers are partnering
with North Hollywood, California-based Green Sandwich Technologies, a concrete
home manufacturer that opened a 30,000-square-foot facility in eastern
New Orleans in July.
Green Sandwich will design and produce foam panels made from 50% recycled
material, which will then be assembled in less than 10 days and sprayed
onsite with quick drying adhesive concrete. Contractors can finish electrical
work, plumbing, cabinetry and tiles in less than a month, says Cathy Kim,
Green Sandwich spokeswoman.
Stewart Juneau, lead developer for Le Triomphe, says he is waiting on
the allocation of tax credits from the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency,
which will happen in August or September, and the distribution of Community
Development Block Grant money from the Louisiana Recovery Authority. Juneau
says they plan to start construction in early January and finish all 1,050
homes within 18 months. Each home will cost about $138,000.
With the backing and guidance of William McDonough, a world-renowned architect,
environmentalist and Time magazine’s Hero of the Planet in 1999,
Green Sandwich and Juneau hope to jumpstart the Lower Ninth Ward’s
rebuilding efforts. “The biggest benefit outside of the obvious is
in the timing of the system, how quickly you can close on your units, which
in this case is incredibly fast,” Juneau says. “That’s
our challenge—to bring our employees home. We have to have affordable
housing.”
More than 300 developers have applied for $66 million in state-approved
tax credits during the next three years, according to Juneau. Until this
year, the tax credit hovered around $6 million, enabling only 1,000 homes
to be built per year. “But with the new tax credits we can build
33,000 housing units. [However] out of 300 applications, only 40 to 50
will be funded,” says Juneau. He was one of the first New Orleanians
to take advantage of the 1986 Affordable Housing Tax Credit created by
Rep. Bill Jefferson, D-New Orleans. Juneau built 4,000 affordable homes
in the area and has developed numerous condominiums and hotels, including
the Ritz-Carlton in the French Quarter.
Green Sandwich is one of two home concrete production companies banking
on housing-strapped needs in the New Orleans area. In July, Italy’s
M2 Emmedue opened a manufacturing plant in Kenner, Louisiana. M2 Emmedue
has produced more than 80,000 homes globally while waiting for the United
States market to catch on, says Toni Fernandez, M2 vice-president.
M2 is negotiating to build two commercial buildings, an 8-floor condominium
and 28-story high-rise, either in Metairie or the Central Business District,
says Scott Humbert, an independent developer in talks with construction
companies on behalf of M2. He expects to make a formal announcement on
the developments soon.
M2 and Green Sandwich have manufactured concrete construction components
for 40 years. Green Sandwich has produced thousands of homes in California,
Texas and along the East Coast. “Once we get going, we can make homes
by the thousands. It’s a very fast product. This could fill the housing
shortage gap in a quick time,” says Mehrdad Dabbagh, Green Sandwich
founder.
With tens of thousands of homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and faulty
levees, the New Orleans marketplace is ripe for quick yet sturdy housing,
according to Ivan Mandich, a New Orleans engineering consultant who has
followed the alternative home phenomenon for several years. “This
is probably the most advanced idea with the strength and capacity to take
on what we need now,” he says. “[The panels] reinforce one
side to the other like a cage,” offering a structure connected at
all points with better insulation and sturdier construction.
Traditionally, the drawback to concrete homes was construction costs,
which were often twice as much as traditional homes, says Humbert. And
although the structures are less prone to structural damage, a do-it-yourself
enthusiast can’t rewire electrical outlets or add a window.
M2 refutes the cost concern. Its 1,500-square-foot home costs just under
$93,000—$15,000 for the kit; an estimated $30,000 for the concrete
and foundation; and another $40,000 for plumbing, electrical wiring and
finishing work—says Fernandez.
Compare that to post-Katrina prices of $200,000 or more for the same home
and the idea could catch on, according to Toni Wendel, president of the
Home Builders Association of Greater New Orleans. “The most important
thing right now is the cost,” Wendel says. “New Orleans has
traditionally built with sticks and bricks. But are we willing to learn
something new? Yes. We will study it. We are open to anything new as long
as it’s cost-effective and safe.”
Thanks to Matthew Penix of New Orleans CityBusiness for this article.
World Changers Making a Difference with Concrete
In 2005, World Changers chose Lubbock, Texas, as a project site. Project
Manager Larry Williams met with Brad Reed, supervisor of the Community Development
Block Grant program in Lubbock. “When Larry Williams came for a preliminary
visit in April,” Reed related, “he was intrigued by the ICF home
he visited and our commitment to exclusively build ICF homes for our clients
because of the energy efficiency, durability and affordability ICFs provide.” Williams
then asked if his group could be involved in the construction of one
of these homes during their week-long project in the summer. Lubbock was
more than happy
to make that possible.
Over 275 teenagers, 14 families in need, and a community with open arms,
combined efforts during July to refurbish and repair homes in Lubbock and
build a new PolySteel ICF home as part of the World Changers mission to make
a difference. Donning hardhats, these kids stacked, braced and poured the
concrete on the project in three days, causing Williams to comment that,
among all of the homes the volunteers worked on during the week, the ICF
house was the talk of the entire group, and everyone wanted to make sure
they came by to see how this “cool” technology was put together.
Following the success of the 2005 project, World Changers came back in 2006
and took the city by storm. With another 265 kids from nine states arriving
in June, the clamor for ICFs pushed the city to provide three homes to construct,
and distributors Bill Gilles and Patrick Kelley contributed a tremendous
effort to make that happen. The kids also completed roofs, fences, siding
and other repairs on 17 additional homes, providing the city with over $100,000
of free labor in just five short days of dedicated work.
All of the homes in the Lubbock CDBG program are constructed, for profit,
by local builders who bid on each project. In addition, all homes include
a safe room integrated into the home design as a master closet, providing
these families with additional protection from severe weather. By combining
the city’s efforts with World Changers and the construction of better
homes for his clients, Reed has helped bring the community together in new
ways and shared his vision of better building with each and every participant
in the World Changers community.
Thanks to PolySteel for this article.
Concrete Connections Website Provides Concrete
Countertop Info
The Concrete Connections website (www.concretecountertops.org) launched
in July 2006. It is a resource for networking and information for a group
of professionals who currently construct or want to build concrete countertops.
The website provides members with information and virtual networking on the
discussion forums. The first annual Concrete Countertop Industry Conference
(www.CCIC2006.com) will provide those in the concrete countertop industry
with face to face information and networking. It will also feature product
exhibits and educational seminars on topics ranging from marketing concrete
countertops to sealers.
The company that is putting together both the website and conference is
The Concrete Countertop Institute (CCI). Up until July 2006, CCI provided
only intensive training classes. The website and conference are logical extensions
into the realm of providing information.
NCMA Summer Meeting Recap
NCMA members in attendance at the 2006 Midyear meeting in Victoria, BC participated
in a wide variety of committee meetings, decision-making and networking.
At the outset, Steve Doty, Chairman-Elect, led the popular Town Hall meeting
where all members are invited to raise and discuss any issues they want to
put before the membership.
The association’s marketing committee voted to carry forward the important
fire safety and mold prevention marketing messages at the 2007 Retail Construction
Expo sponsored by Retail Magazine, the 2007 Construct America Expo sponsored
by the Construction Specification Institute (CSI), the 2007 American Institute
of Architects (AIA) Exposition, and the 2008 National Association of Homebuilders
(NAHB) International Builders’ Show (IBS). The association’s
fire safety marketing message will be presented for the first time next month
at the International Code Council’s annual Expo in Florida and the
association will be exhibiting there in 2007 and 2008. NCMA will be a sponsor
of the 2007 Concrete Home Building Council’s Technology Tour in Minneapolis.
The association plans to exhibit together with the Interlocking Concrete
Pavements Institute at the United States Green Building Council’s (USGBC)
Greenbuild Expo not only in 2006, but also 2007 and 2008. NCMA will once
again sponsor the Student Block Design Competition in 2007 and 2008.
The NCMA Education and Research committee reviewed and approved a slate
of new grants: Life Cycle Inventory of Concrete Masonry Products, System-Level
Seismic Research of Concrete Masonry Buildings, Enhancement of Masonry Curriculums
through Virtual Laboratory Experiments, and Performance of Lap Splices in
Concrete Masonry Shear Walls. Most of these programs leverage support and
cooperation with other industry partners. Subsequent briefs will provide
more details on each program.
Thanks to the NCMA for this article.
Upcoming Events
• Insulating Concrete Form Association Fall Meeting
Milwaukee, Wis., Oct. 23-25, 2006 More
•
Gateway Builders Show & Conference
St. Charles, Missouri, Octtober 24-25, 2006 More
• Concrete Countertop Industry Conference
Raleigh, NC, November 6-7, 2006 More
• “Storm Resistant Concrete Homes and Buildings” seminars
Various locations, September-October, 2006 Check
Calendar for details
• "Home & Building Construction to Weather Louisiana's Worst" seminars
Various locations, October-December, 2006 Check
Calendar for details
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