EEBA's High Performance Home Blog

With the building sector contributing 20-40% of global emissions, homebuilders have an opportunity to reduce their impact. Award-winning Thrive Home Builders proves carbon neutral building is possible today. This compelling case study chronicles Thrive Home Builders’ journey towards carbon neutrality and reveals their step-by-step process for calculating, reducing and offsetting emissions to achieve certified carbon neutral homes. Real-world solutions like solar and battery storage installation, home performance upgrades, offset purchases and more enabled Thrive Home Builders to create an actionable net-zero framework. The case study details practical steps any production builder can take right now to start decreasing their carbon footprint and building healthier and higher performing homes. Key Takeaways Building more energy efficient is the logical first step to reducing your carbon footprint. Carbon-neutral building practices appear to give Thrive an... read more

As a member of the EEBA community, you play a crucial role in leading the way towards constructing homes that are high-performing, healthy, and resilient. Now aligned with this objective are the self-educated homeowners and prospective buyers who are demanding high-performance homes. Because of this, builders (as well as the raters and architects who support them) are looking for product solutions that: Add value to their customers’ investments Demonstrate a core commitment to being a “responsible” builder Differentiate themselves in a competitive marketplace Our hope at Stego (and the purpose of this article) is to help provide useful support and education so that EEBA builders can better understand vapor transmission at the first side of the home - the foundation - and the role below-slab vapor barriers play in achieving high-performance goals in new homes. No, we are not talking about commodity 6 or 10-mil poly sheeting. Minimum residential code (2021 IRC... read more

The challenges homebuilders face seem to grow every year. In addition to the business of designing, constructing and selling homes, there is a constant need to keep up with code changes, new regulations and consumer demands. Climate change is bringing additional pressures to build for efficiency and electrification and now, embodied carbon is yet another aspect homebuilders must factor into their business model. Change is necessary and there are a multitude of economic, performance, and emissions-reducing benefits builders stand to gain by tackling embodied carbon. And help is on the horizon. This April, RMI (founded as Rocky Mountain Institute) is launching the Homebuilders Carbon Action Network (HomebuildersCAN), with the primary purpose of helping homebuilders understand embodied carbon and learn how to measure and reduce it in a productive and profitable way. HomebuildersCAN was conceived as a “community of practice” where homebuilders and energy raters can engage with... read more

In an era where water scarcity is becoming an increasingly critical issue, Hydraloop presents a ground-breaking solution with its graywater recycling devices, designed to significantly reduce potable water usage in homes. Leveraging advanced technology, the Hydraloop calculator assesses potential water savings by analyzing daily household activities, such as shower lengths, frequency, and water volume, as well as the number toilet flushes, and laundry loads. The more individuals living in the home, the more graywater produced. This innovative approach not only optimizes water reuse for gardening, laundry, and toilet flushing, but also showcases substantial annual water savings, making it a compelling choice for environmentally conscious builders. By integrating a graywater recycling device, households can play a pivotal role in sustainable water management, ensuring a greener future with each drop of water saved. In this scenario piece, we are diving into the potential water savings... read more

Over the past year the Deltec team has been hard at work doing what we do best: reimagining the home. Today, we announce our largest new product launch in the company’s history: the 360⁰ Signature Collection. The new 360⁰ Signature Collection honors the legacy of our founder, Robert Kinser, and the innovative and exceptional panoramic design that has inspired Deltec homeowners for 56 years. This new line of homes captures the true essence of what living in a round home is all about: An extraordinary living experience An unparalleled connection to the outdoors Resilience to hurricanes and extreme weather conditions Naturally more energy-efficient and sustainable Better yet, because the homes in the 360⁰ Signature Collection are pre-designed and extremely efficient to manufacture and build, we are able to pass on significant price and time savings to our customers. The 360⁰ Signature Collection offers: 32 pre-designed floor plans carefully curated to reflect what... read more

Founded in 2010, Abrazo emerged as a local home builder during one of the most challenging periods in the industry’s history, following the 2009 crash of the housing market. Determined to make a positive impact, Abrazo’s founders, Brian McCarthy and Mackenzie Bishop, capitalized on a unique opportunity and embarked on a journey to build homes that exceeded expectations in the midst of an otherwise dim and uninspiring market. Drawing upon their collective expertise and passion for innovation, Abrazo Homes implemented new construction techniques, embraced sustainable building practices, and introduced smart home technology to the Albuquerque market. Abrazo wanted to create homes that not only met the basic needs of their clients but also exceeded their expectations, both in terms of efficiency, functionality and aesthetics. This formula for success proved beneficial over the years and subsequently, Abrazo has been recognized as one of the best places to work, one of the top private... read more

Extreme weather is on the rise across the country. Are you building homes to withstand the weather of tomorrow? Join Sunnova Energy's panel of experts on January 17 at 12 PM CST for a free webinar on building weather-resilient homes using solar + energy storage solutions. What you’ll learn: Recap 2023 weather events and patterns Discover how you can leverage incentives for energy storage solutions and solar Hear real examples of solar + batteries keeping the lights on during outages Get tips on building homes that are ready for extreme weather See how energy storage solutions can help meet homebuyer demands and improve their investment through added resilience and reliability The combination of solar and energy storage solutions helps you build homes that are ready for the weather of tomorrow while giving your homeowners greater peace of mind. Register now for Sunnova's 1/17 webinar to learn more! If you can’t attend, please register anyways and a recording ... read more

The role of the construction industry in combating climate change is a relatively new consideration, but one that is gaining prominence on sustainability agendas at a global scale. At the recent UN Climate Change Conference, the program included a day dedicated to buildings and cities, as well as the Build Better Now virtual pavilion, showcasing seventeen sustainable projects. In advance of COP26, the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) and Architects Declarehosted a Built Environment Summit, prompting a collective call to the built environment sector to embed, replicate, and scale up sustainable best practice designs. Similar to local recycling efforts, individual home owners, contractors, and developers each have a role to play in reducing carbon emissions at the residential scale. Here are five project examples that illustrate how you can build single-family housing sustainably, with style. Urban Eco Home Infill Non-profit development firm ​Midtown... read more

Compared to many other industries, the construction industry has traditionally been slow at technological development[1]. This is changing rapidly, and more than digitization and emerging technologies, Sustainability is going to become one of the dominant disruptive forces to transform construction industry, and specifically, housing construction, in this century. Clean energy transition will result in green net zero homes of the future that will actively reduce our carbon footprint. Existing buildings are responsible for approximately 40% of EU energy consumption and 36% of the greenhouse gas emissions, meaning they are the single largest energy consumer in Europe. By contrast, well-sealed, insulated, and energy efficient net zero homes of the future will produce as much renewable energy as they consume. They will be carbon-free and the energy bills of their residents will be zero. We may already be on this path towards net zero, but this journey depends on several factors as... read more

Why is Greywater Recycling so Important? Due to climate change and population growth, most regions of the world now face increasing periods of drought and lower ground water levels. In summer 2022, Europe suffered under the most severe drought in 500 years, while the American Southwest is forced to find new ways to leverage its remaining water sources like the Colorado River. Water scarcity impacts people and organizations in their daily lives. Business operations stagnate and people must adapt their lifestyles, so we need to transition towards a water smart society. If 50% of the world population would recycle its water at home, we could save 66 billion gallons of potable water use and 105 thousand tons of CO2 every single day. In the next 25 years, the world population will grow by two billion people and more than 60% of all people will live in urban areas. As a result, the global demand for clean water will grow by 55% – much more than the hydrological cycle can... read more