Post Construction Data

Now that the house is finished we will post our monthly energy bills. This 3650 square foot house is occupied with 4 people and it is located on a well for potable and irrigation service. The water pump electric and landscape lighting are included in these figures also. The air conditioning was started on June 5, 2007 and the thermostats are set at 77 degrees for comfortable day and night time temperatures. The relative humidity is around 50 - 55 degrees inside the home. We have set the thermostats to 73 degrees for heating. The ERV runs approx 30% of the time or 18 minutes an hour even if the air conditioning/heating system is not in use. The ERV will exchange all the air in the house every 24 hours providing clean / healthy fresh air inside. They are both hooked up to Honeywell's Programmable IAQ thermostat.

Since the house has qualified for the Federal Energy Tax Incentive Act of 2005, that says the house is 50% more energy efficient than a home of the same dimensions and parameters built with the code standards. The 50% improvement is based on being that much better than the 2004 Energy Code, homes being built this year in NC are held to the 1995 Energy Code, so it would be safe to say the home is more than 50% better than a code built house.

The REM/Rate program that was used for energy calculations on this house estimates $155/month average, if you limit the heat to 68 degrees F winter and 78 degrees F summer temperatures. If we add a buffer of 20% that would bring the average monthly energy bill to $185.00. If the house was built to code standards and using the same criteria as above it would be costing approx $310/month, and with a 20% buffer it would bring the average monthly energy bill to $372.00

MONTHLY ENERGY BILLS

PROJECTED AVERAGE MONTHLY BILL $185.00

(Total includes all fees and taxes)

1. June 5 to July 5, 2007 used 1950 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $201.99. (30 days)
2. July 5 to Aug 3, 2007 used 1860 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $193.34. (29 days)
3. Aug 3 to Sept 5, 2007 used 2365 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $241.92. (33 days)(Over 30 days of over 90 degree highs)
4. Sept 5 to Oct 3,2007 used 1587 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $160.54 (28 days)
5. Oct 3 to Nov 2,2007 used 1191 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $124.08 (30 days)
6. Nov 2 to Dec 4,2007 used 2141 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $211.01 ( 32 days)
7. Dec 4 to Jan 1,2008 used 2385 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $242.36 (31 days)
8. Jan 1 to Feb 5, 2008 used 2704 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $271.82 (32 days)
9. Feb 5 to Mar 5, 2008 used 2004 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $207.17 (29 days)
10. Mar 5 to Apr 3, 2008 used 1700 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $177.94 (29 days)
11. Apr3 to May 5,2008 used 1581 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $166.50 (32 days)
12. May 5 to Jun 4, 2008 used 1610 KWH with a TOTAL bill of $172.61 (30 days)

ACTUAL AVERAGE MONTHLY BILL FOR THE FIRST YEAR $197.61

Estimated ANUAL electric bill for code built house

$4,464.00 / year

Actual ANNUAL electric bill for this house

$2,371.00 / year

SAVINGS OF $2,093.00 / YEAR ON YOUR ELECTRIC BILL

(Not to mention the clean, non toxic, indoor air quality

that is achieved in the process.)

Finished House

The house was completed June 1 2007! We have met North Carolina Healthy Built Silver certification process and Energy Star compliance. A blower door test was performed on the house assuring it's future owners of a tightly built home. The following pictures show the finished product.

Community Club House and Marina

Encapsulated Crawlspace

ERV unit for fresh air intake and circulation

HVAC (Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning) unit located in encapsulated crawl space

Super Pro High Efficiency water heater with blanket

Composite Exterior Deck

Great Room

Great Room

Great Room

Breakfast Room

Kitchen

Kitchen

Kitchen

Kitchen

Master Bedroom

Master Bedroom

Master Bath

Master Bath

Finish Stage

As of this date 4/25/2007 we are in the finishing stages of the house construction. The house is set to be finished by May 30, 2007. The exterior tapered columns have been set in both the front and rear porches. The front deck has a slate tile finish where as the rear elevated deck has a composite deck instead of chemical pressure treated wood. Exterior will be mostly maintenance free except for the rail and columns which won't need a lot of upkeep. The dormers are stained cedar siding.
The interior and exterior painting is being done also. We used a low voc interior paint inside and we will use a water based polyurethane finish for the floors. The HVAC system is installed along with the ERV (Energy Recovery Ventilator) which will circulate the air in the house and exchange the correct amount of air changes so as to keep fresh air inside the house, since it is such a tightly constructed house. This unit will precondition the air coming in from the outside so as not to waste "conditioned" air as it exhausts the stale air.













As for the electrical, all the air tight recess cans will be using compact florescent bulbs. All the interior light fixtures and ceiling fans are Energy Star rated and will use up to 70% less energy than regular incandescent lights. All the bathrooms are equipped with special timer switches which will shut off automatically after a predetermined time frame. This is to encourage the use of bathroom fans after showering so as to exhaust the humid air to the outside. According to the RimRate program software, this house will use an average of $155.00 per month for all the energy needs for this 3,650 sq. ft. house!

Rough In II

The house is in the final rough in stage. The masons are working on the brick exterior and the inside of the house is ready for drywall installation. All the windows have been taped and sealed on the exterior to prevent water intrusion. On the inside all windows and doors have been sealed with expanding foam to prevent air leakage around them.



















All HVAC ducts have been located in conditioned spaces with the use of dropped ceilings and the ducts have been sealed with mastic and tape to make sure we have a very tight HVAC duct system. Also all duct openings have been protected to prevent construction dust and debri from entering system.













Extensive attention was paid to make sure that insulation was installed properly along with all thermal and pressure barriers. This makes the wall and ceiling insulation perform better increasing the insulation value. In normal construction this is not required by code and is not addressed during construction. I believe this is one of the most important issues that makes the house air tight and more energy efficient. It takes a lot of attention to details.













The wall insulation used is a blown in cellulose recycled product that will insulate the walls better than fiberglass batts because it fills the wall solid, where as fiberglass batts can leave voids or be compressed if not installed properly around pipes and electrical wires. More than 85% of the content by weight of AFT cellulose insulation is processed from recycled wood-based cellulose fibers. These fibers are chemically treated to create fire resistance. The additives are non-toxic, will not irritate normal skin, will not attract vermin or insects, and will not adversely affect other building materials.

Rough In I

With the house being in the rough in stage right now, this is a picture of what it looks like under the vapor barrier that will be installed in the crawlspace after all the trades are finished with their work. Right now we just have the perimeter attached and you can see how much moisture it is stopping from entering the crawlspace. A standard crawlspace that is built in NC does not have this membrane, hence all the moisture is coming up out of the dirt crawl space and through the floor system into the home.For every 700 sq ft of dirt under your home, 10 gallons of water vapor evaporate everyday. This combination of humidity and ground source moisture create enviroments that are conductive to growing mold and mildew.When we are finished, we will not have this excessive moisture entering into our house!

Crawlspace

These next 3 pictures are NOT Harrington Construction techniques or construction practices!

The following 3 pictures are examples of an open crawlspace system which is common construction in North Carolina. Vents are located along the perimeter of the exterior walls that allow air to come in from the exterior. Covering the dirt is not required and usually ductwork and sometimes plumbing is installed in this area. Exterior walls have concrete block "piers" with brick veneer on the exterior. The problem with an open crawlspace is that it allows high and low temperatures under your floor system which causes air movement into the house thru the floor system. In the summer 90 degree plus temperatures in the crawlspace while the house is 75 degrees and in the winter it's reversed, 20 degree temperatures in the crawlspace while house is 75 degrees. This can cause mold and mildew to form with these temperature differences.

The following pictures (from our house) show the construction of an encapsulated crawlspace. Notice that the walls are constructed of 8" concrete block with brick veneer applied to the exterior. Insulation is applied to the block along with a fiberglass reinforced poly membrane that is totally sealed together. All the interior piers are also sealed at the bottom. A base of dry screenings is applied to the dirt before the final membrane is installed. HVAC duct work can be installed in this area which will now be "conditioned". With the earth temperature in the Charlotte area around 70 degrees year round, we now have a comfortable temperature underneath our entire floor system, instead of 20 -90 degrees. The HVAC ducts are totally sealed and also enjoy the benefits of an ideal temperature instead of being exposed to extreme high and low exterior temperatures.

Foundation

Although not required by North Carolina Residential Building Code, we include steel rebar reinforcement in our footings. Concrete in itself has high compressive strength, but is very low in tensile strength. With the addition of steel reinforcement this will increase the strength of the footing in case of movement. With the weight of brick veneer walls, Harrington Construction believes that steel is a required item for sustainable construction.



















As in this particular case,sometimes it is necessary to use a mobile crane pump so as not to disturb or destroy more trees/land in placement of the footer

Site Opportunities

In clearing the lot, we have taken precautions in creating an erosion control plan with silt fences and straw bales, protection of existing trees, tree preservation plan,temporary planting of cover crops on disturbed land areas, and the milling of cleared trees so they could be recycled into lumber. Careful consideration was given in the placement of the house both for passive solar exposure and tree preservation.