We are so excited. The walls are going up and the house is starting to take shape. John Fiery and his team of experts orchestrate the difficult job. Every thing is perfectly placed and fitted.
Our home is constructed using SIPS or Structural Insulated Panels.
The following article is from “Going Green†September 20, 2007.
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These high performance building panels, used in floors, walls, and roofs for residential and light commercial buildings, are typically made by sandwiching a core of rigid foam plastic insulation between two structural skins of oriented strand board (OSB). Manufactured under factory controlled conditions, they can be custom designed for each home, resulting in a building system that is extremely strong, energy efficient and cost effective.
The OSB used in SIP skins is made from small, plantation grown trees that can be sustainably harvested. Because engineered wood products use wood more efficiently than sawn lumber, it requires less forest acreage to build a SIP home than a conventional wood framed house.
SIPs have a high R-Value foam core but make no mistake, this is very different than the products that produced dangerous molds. The solid core insulation of SIPs is free of the voids, compressions, or thermal bypasses often associated with mold growth in wood frame, fiberglass insulated construction. Because SIP structures can be erected and dried more quickly than wood frame construction, there is less time for building materials to be exposed to the elements and therefore less moisture that must be removed from the completed building. Structural insulated panels are inert and stable, and do not release gas chemicals.
The degree of building tightness capable with SIPs enables better control over indoor environmental quality. SIP homes typically require mechanical ventilation. Mechanical ventilation allows all incoming air to be filtered for allergens. Air conditioning units can more effectively dehumidify indoor environments in a building with low levels of air infiltration. Neither mold nor dust mites can survive in low humidity environments. This results in the possibility that the sore eyes, throat and nose, headaches, increased susceptibility to viruses, and asthma-like symptoms may be a thing of the past.
With the planet’s resources depleting and the cost of energy rising, being “green†has gained an increased importance in the way we live. The environmental benefits of a green lifestyle can be incorporated into the design of our homes through the use of structural insulated panels (SIPs).
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Click on the picture above to see more photos of the panels and explanations of the process.
Click on the movie below to see a panel being installed.
Click To Play
For more information on OSB construction click
here.
