Lacking a paper facing, the product’s structural strength comes from cellulose fibers uniformly distributed throughout the gypsum. Hallcraft aggressively researched and tested the product for four months. At one point, he even submerged a panel in water for seven days and then pummeled it with a hammer. The panel neither broke nor split. Convinced of its benefits, the company plans to install Aqua-Tough in 165 houses in the Tucson and Phoenix area in 2006.
Although Aqua-Tough costs Hallcraft about 15 percent more per panel than standard wallboard, the company limits its use to areas within five feet of water. “On average, this means about $45 per house,” Ellis says.
BREATH OF FRESH AIR For efficiency to be optimum, it’s important to have a “tight” home. But if a tight home isn’t ventilated properly, indoor air grows stale. In 2003, Louisville, Colo., green builder McStain Neighborhoods tested the air exchange frequency of its homes and found that it took three hours to replace all the indoor air with fresh air. This was before ASHRAE 62.2 established a standard on the issue: three complete air exchanges per hour. “We knew we needed more exchange than we had,” says Jeff Medanich, special projects manager.
McStain’s solution? Lipidex AirCyclers, which attach to a home’s HVAC duct system. “A timer activates a motorized damper on the return side of the HVAC system,” Medanich says. “Air is temperature-conditioned and filtered before distribution into the house through the duct system.” McStain has installed Lipidex’s system in 800 to 1,000 homes since 2003.
With timed ventilation via the AirCyclers, air in the whole house is mixed. “This eliminates high-humidity and hot or cold spots,” asserts Jason Wolfson, Lipidex president. “It averages out any problems.” No special ducts are required for the Air-Cyclers, and the timer/controller unit costs a production builder about $200, including installation. For Medanich, the cost is no deal-killer, and McStain, to date, hasn’t attempted to pass it on to home buyers.
Wilshire Homes’ Binash says his company will address IAQ issues with Broan’s whole-house HEPA fresh air systems. Together with partner Wilshire Homes of Texas in Austin, the companies will include the system in nearly 1,000 homes in Austin, San Antonio, and Houston in 2006. “The system filters to such a fine degree that it really gets rid of nearly all contaminants,” Binash says. “It cuts back on dust and pollen.”
The fresh air systems, formerly known as Guardian Plus, can operate independently or attach to an existing HVAC system. “If put in during construction, it’s no different from putting in any other air-handling system,” Collins says. “There’s a little extra ductwork to install it.