If you’re looking for green housing news or more information about green home building, check out what’s happening at the Sage Green community in Portland!
At Sage Green, we appreciate all the local and national coverage that the Oregon green neighborhood development has received. Stay tuned to this page for more information about the latest news and events occurring in the Sage Green community.
NEWS
March 8, 2010
Ply-on-foam walls increase energy efficiency
“Daily Journal of Commerce”
Read article >>
March 6, 2010
“Around the House” interview with Ben Walsh, Green One Construction Services
Newsradio 750 KXL
Listen to interview >>
February 23, 2010
Sage Green Achieves Net Zero Energy According to Energy Trust of Oregon’s Energy Performance Score
The Energy Performance Score (EPS), developed by Energy Trust, provides a clear and quantitative way to compare a home’s energy use and costs. The lower the score, the better—with zero being the best. A low score means an energy-efficient home with a smaller carbon footprint and reduced utility costs.
Click here to view the Sage Green Energy Performance Score >>
Discover the energy efficiency of a new home.
Energy efficiency, utility costs and environmental impact are important factors to consider when buying or building a home. The EPS now gives homebuyers a way to comparison shop between homes based on these factors. It also gives homebuyers a sense of how many energy upgrades were made to the house beyond what Oregon energy code requires, and how the home compares to an average home built in Oregon.
How does a home receive an EPS?
A home’s EPS is based on many factors, such as the home’s size, level of insulation, air leakage, heating and cooling systems, major appliances, lighting and water heating:
- Improved insulation and windows—Properly installed insulation and high-performance windows help keep heat inside during winter and outside during summer.
- Well sealed house and ducts—A house with tight construction and ducts reduces air exchange between the house, crawl space and attic. This reduces drafts and energy use, while improving indoor air quality.
- Efficient appliances and lighting—ENERGY STAR®-certified appliances use up to 50% less energy and water than standard models. Compact fluorescent lighting uses up to 75% less energy than standard incandescent lighting.
- Heating, cooling and ventilation—Efficient equipment, when properly installed, provides better heating, cooling and ventilation for lower energy bills, enhanced comfort and improved indoor air quality.
- On-site energy generation—Solar panels use the sun to heat your water or convert its rays into electricity to help meet your energy needs, reducing the amount of energy you buy from your utility.
Builders voluntarily work with us to receive our third-party assessment of their home’s features and construction techniques, which determines the EPS for the home.
Now you have the ability to shop for your new home based on features in addition to location, neighborhood and amenities. Choosing an energy-efficient home not only benefits the environment but also helps you save money.
Energy Trust is currently working on expanding the EPS for both new and existing homes to make it easier for homebuyers to compare and contrast homes relative to their energy efficiency, carbon impact and utility cost.
EVENTS
March 3, 2010 ~ 10 a.m.
Muddy-Boot Party
What: Green One Construction, Coy Framing, Shauna White (Keller Williams Realty) and Energy Trust of Oregon’s New Homes program invite you to come to a “muddy boots” tour of the new Sage Green project in Beaverton. You will see the assembly being built and learn about the net zero energy design of these affordable homes.
Where: 4900 SW 149th Ave., Beaverton, OR 97007. Click here for directions.
How Can A Wall Be Revolutionary?
What is so special about this “ply-on-foam” wall assembly? The construction process is completely conventional, except that the exterior ply sheathing (wood structural panel) is installed over a layer of rigid foam insulation board (expanded polystyrene) using 16p nails at 3”-on-center. This simple change improves the performance capacities of conventional walls in a few different ways. Most importantly, it transforms how walls behave in an earthquake. In an earthquake, the foam layer becomes a kind of shock absorber, protecting the ply sheets against destruction by the very nails that hold them to the wall frame.
How does this wall offer superior seismic performance? In recent code-standard testing, the ply-on-foam assemblies continued to get stronger to more than twice the displacement at which conventional (code-built) walls suffered catastrophic failure. We don’t even know yet the limits of their seismic capacities in this regard. We only know that they exceed the limits of the tests that underlie our building codes.
How does this wall offer improved energy performance? The placement of the foam interrupts the thermal bridging that occurs in standard construction. These “thermal breaks” combined with the 1.25” of rigid foam and the R-27 batting could increase this wall’s efficiency by approximately 50 percent over industry standard.
What does it cost to build this wall? In conventional light-frame construction, a framer can deliver ply-on-foam walls for under $0.50 per square foot. This includes the cost of the nails (3.25” instead of 2.5”).
Who Should See this Project?
Builders—Discover how simple and inexpensive it is to deliver a wall assembly that will help you exceed energy-efficiency requirements with a solution that costs a fraction of others.
Framers—Understand where your industry is going and how you can stay competitive in the marketplace.
Energy Stakeholders—Learn about the potential for energy savings from this next generation of walls and see how this development is combining revolutionary ideas, best practices, new technology and market mechanisms to achieve a net zero home that will sell for under $260,000. Plywood and Foam
Manufacturers—See how your product is being used in a green home to achieve outstanding seismic and energy performance.
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