Custom Builders are always learning

“When you start looking and keep your mind open – you’ll be amazed at the number of options you really have.”

This is something we learned on one of our remodeling projects. With green building, one really finds many viable and better alternatives if one looks long and hard enough. Take the case of this current project. One of the issues builders always face while building or remodeling is how to ensure stability of the house in a seismic zone like the one in Olympia. Using quality building material is, of course, a must -- but not enough. Conventionally we’ve been using cement-based stucco to go apply an exterior finish to ICFs, (insulated concrete forms) but since it is cement-based, it normally tends to crack in the event of movement which happens to all houses here in all the Northwest. We found the answer in Oro coating.

Oro coatings is a synthetic stucco system, that can be used in place of traditional stucco to provide great coating, finishing, stability, adhesiveness and pliability which makes it the perfect stucco system for homes that are prone to damages during settling, due to seismic shocks and due to thermal expansion. However, most of all, 48% of this system is made from recycled or reclaimed materials and is 100% acrylic resin-based with no cement. One of the four components of Oro coatings is reclaimed rubber which contributes to its pliability. The entire system consists of a base, prime and top coat in 24 different colors, three textures and custom colors. We realized later that using Oro coatings also helps us gain credits for LEED certification. Our designer Tessa Smith had us router some clover details on the walls, which look absolutely fabulous with the Oro stucco. To know more about the Oro coatings, you can visit their website: http://www.orocoatings.com

The other great thing we learned on this project was related to insulation. Traditionally, attics are hardly ever heated. With this home, the attic was quite small with a shallow sloping roof. There were three things that needed to be taken care of. First, the heat recovery ventilator was to be installed inside of the attic, which meant additional insulation for its duct work. Secondly, because the attic was small, it would be impossible to have use blown in insulation due to the limited access, which meant we would have to use batt style insulation , installed between the bottom cords of the trusses. No matter how good of a job your installers do, you always get air gaps with this type of instillation, which allows heat to escape. Thirdly, if the framing members, in this case the 2 x 4 bottom cords are not cover completely, which is always the case when you use batts, a thermal bridge is created. In the absence of proper insulation, heat escapes easily through the wood member. We solved all three problems together using 2 lb foam spray insulation to the underside of the roof deck. This created a conditioned space within the entire attic. Thus, there is no need for insulating the duct work for the ventilator, since the entire ventilator now lives with in the conditioned space. Next, it takes care of the gaps that will result out of the batt style insulation, since the foam expands as its applied, it penetrates into every gap in the framing members thus eliminating any and all air gaps. Thirdly, since it is five inches thick, it covers all of the plywood roof sheeting and the top cord trusses member , thus eliminating the possibility of thermal bridging. All in all, we have a very tight house that should be very inexpensive to heat.

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