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09/23/2002
Homebuilder finds building ‘green’ yields savings of green
By Grady Johnson, Associate Publisher
Rich Estes, president of local residential construction company
Palladio Homes Inc., was looking for ways to reduce his company’s
overhead—and ended up “going green.” “We didn’t start out thinking
specifically about being environmentally friendly. We were just
trying to cut costs,” Estes recalls.
One of the first steps the company incorporated as a cost-saving
device was the use of pre-fabricated “panelized” walls. Because
they arrive at the building site ready to install in 8-16 foot
sections, they save construction time and reduce the waste associated
with walls framed in the conventional, on-site “stick built” method.
Estes reports that his crew can frame a house in half the time
with panelized walls. However, what Estes didn’t realize at first
is that these panelized walls are considered environmentally friendly.
First off, they are pre-fabricated in a controlled environment.Secondly,
they’re also made of OSB (oriented strand board), an alternative
to plywood that utilizes recycled wood chips. The studs used in
the walls are FJ (finger jointed) studs made from recycled pieces
of 2x4s.
When Estes and his partners began investigating green methods
and found they could use them to their advantage, they began incorporated
more of them. For instance, Palladio Homes is now constructing
houses using raised slabs instead of a crawlspace. To construct
the raised slab, a reinforced masonry wall is built, then filled
with compacted dirt and covered with a cement slab. “The floors
of the house sit on the slab, so we don’t have to waste all of
that good lumber creating a crawlspace and sub-floors,” says Estes.
Because the slab is raised, it mimics the look of a house with
a crawlspace. And according to Estes, homeowners end up with fewer
moisture problems. Going green with these two methods alone has
resulted in a one-third reduction of waste, says Estes. “We would
normally haul away three 30-yard containers of waste from a building
site. Currently we’re using only two. We’re also working with
Cannon Containers to see if we can further reduce our construction
waste by hauling the containers to a separation site and re-cycling
everything we can to keep as much of it as possible out of the
landfill.”
Palladio has taken steps in other areas in order to build green.
The company is using recycled cellulose insulation even though
it costs more than traditional fiberglass insulation. Estes says
these costs can be offset because there is virtually no waste
and the increased insulating properties of the cellulose allow
for a smaller heating and air conditioning unit. Palladio has
also adopted a conservationist approach to site planning in order
to save trees. While current requirements mandate that trees 24”
in diameter or greater not be cut down, Estes says Palladio is
marking trees 10” and above. “Our site engineer takes more time,”
says Estes. “It would be easier to come in and just wipe the trees
out, but they would all end up in the landfill and the new homeowner
would have to spend money on landscaping anyway.”
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