The EcoSmart Envelope

MORE HOME FOR YOUR DOLLAR

The EcoSmart Envelope Home is a new concept in home building for the Gulf Coast. Significant reductions in energy costs are achieved by super insulating and super sealing the home. Because of these savings on energy costs, we may be able to significantly increase the size of our home by transferring some of the costs generally associated with energy costs to loan repayment.

A COMMON SENSE APPROACH TO ENERGY SAVINGS

The EcoSmart Envelope Home insures barriers against both moisture and air infiltration around the entire perimeter or envelope of the building area.

Foam gaskets are fitted between the green plate or bottom member of the frame of the home and the slab or decking. Poly cell caulk is used to fill all penetrations inside stud walls and also air gaps at windows and doors. Foam gaskets are also fitted behind interior sheet rock walls to further diminish air infiltration into the home. Tubs are insulated with blown cellulose, as are all corner and tee framing members.

ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND

All attics are blown with approximately ten inches of cellulose insulation, our most Ozone friendly form of insulation. For fire retardation of cellulose, this material is treated with a form of boric acid, which also provides an excellent control for insects.

To make attics breathe easier, soffits are fitted with additional venting . Hip roof homes are then fitted with continuous ridge venting. By allowing cool air to be introduced at the soffit, the lowest point of the roof, and then exhausted at the ridge, the highest point of the structure, we achieve a cooler attic space through natural convection without the use of any motors or electricity - saving even more money.

Walls are insulated with wet application dense pack cellulose insulation. Cellulose is made from recycled phone books and newspapers. This same paper is the largest single type of refuse found in most landfills. Recycling these papers means we are saving precious landfill space and the energy and pollution caused by the manufacture of other types of insulation. An even more important advantage of wet application cellulose insulation is the way it flows around obstructions such as wiring and plumbing in the stud wall. Some insulations can have their effective R-value decreased by as much as 50% or more when crushed to fit around plumbing and wiring.

In addition to these packages, SmartHOMES now offers EnergyStar and Engineered for Life Energy Efficiency.