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Cover Story
Safe
Homes Show Builders How to Weather the Storm
The NextGen home has all the amenities
and disaster-resistant features homeowners will come to expect.
by Howard Shingle
After the destruction left by hurricanes
Charley, Francis, and Ivan, builders will be looking for ways to brace their
homes against nature’s fury. Today’s building materials and techniques
make it possible to construct stronger homes that better resist natural
disasters than standard construction.
The 2005 NextGen Demonstration Home at the International Builders’
Show (IBS) January 13 to 16 at the Orange County Convention Center, Orlando,
FL, will teach builders about those materials and techniques. With “Safe
and Sound” as its theme, the home will showcase proven ways to build
a wind- and fire-resistant home that makes its owners feel a little more
secure when the next storm hits.
All American Homes, Rutherfordton, NC, will build the modular home to the
specifications of the Tampa, FL-based Institute of Business and Home Safety’s
(IBHS) “Fortified . . . for safer living” program. The Fortified
program is a set of structural specifications designed to strengthen a home
against natural disasters (see HP, Winter 2002, page 20). The specs vary
by region, but the Safe and Sound home will be fortified against two major
threats faced by Florida homeowners: hurricanes and wildfire.
“Now more than ever, it’s imperative that new home buyers are
aware of the Fortified home construction options that can help their families
to be better prepared when disaster strikes,” said Chuck Vance, IBHS
Fortified program administrator. “Safer homes that endure and survive
the devastating effects of natural disasters make communities stronger and
increase everyone’s quality of life.”
The 2005 NextGen Demonstration Home is a Zero Energy
Home (ZEH). ZEH is a Department of Energy program that helps builders
design and build homes that cost their owners nothing to heat and
light. These homes typically have tight, well-insulated building envelopes,
good ventilation systems, passive solar heating and cooling, lots
of natural daylight, water-saving appliances, low-energy lighting,
and solar electric or photovoltaic (PV) systems to generate electricity.
These technologies, along with smart design, make the home such an
energy miser that over the course of a year the PV system can generate
as much of the power as the home uses. When everyone’s home at
night, a grid connection supplements the PV; when they're at work
during the day, the utility buys any excess electricity the system
produces. The result is net annual |
energy bill of zero dollars.
And cost savings isn’t the only thing a ZEH has going for it.
Other advantages include:
• Improved Comfort: The energy-efficient building envelope
reduces temperature fluctuations.
• Reliability: The solar electric system can keep the lights
on even during blackouts.
• Security: A home that makes its own power protects its
owner from fluctuations in energy prices.
• Environmental Sustainability: By using less utility power,
a ZEH helps reduce pollution. |
BEYOND CODE
For a home to earn Fortified certification from IBHS, the specifications
must be verified by a trained inspector. These specs go beyond the building
code in most regions.
The Safe and Sound home’s disaster-resistant features include:
• Simonton’s StormBreaker Plus windows to keep deadly winds out
of the house. The windows’ laminated glass and steel-reinforced frames
can withstand flying debris up to 134 mph, as well as the extreme negative
and positive wind pressures experienced in a hurricane.
• Madden Mfg.’s .040 white aluminum storm panel will be featured
as an example of exterior opening protection.
• Metal strapping to tie the roof, walls and foundation securely together.
If wind does get into the home, they will help keep it from blowing the
roof off.
• Norbord WindStorm OSB sheathing to provide additional wall bracing.
The sheets are long enough to reach from the very top to the very bottom
of the wall: something standard sheathing won’t do.
• Decra stone-covered metal roof shingles for storm and fire resistance.
They won’t burn and are warranted to stay in place in 120 mph winds.
• A DuPont StormRoom with Kevlar, a residential in-home storm shelter,
to give people a place to hide during the deadly tornadoes spawned by a
major hurricane.
The 2005 NextGen home takes home entertainment to the
next level. The home will demonstrate the power and versatility of
a multimedia PC running the just-released Windows XP Media Edition
2005. The PC will serve as a digital entertainment hub serving up
audio, video and digital photos on demand. Handheld devices will let
the homeowner access this content wirelessly, or over a home network,
so they can enjoy it easily from any room in the house.
For those who prefer a full-immersion entertainment experience, the
home theater includes a large-screen LCD, hidden in-wall speakers
and sound-absorbing floor construction.
In conjunction with the entertainment system and electronics this
home offers a long-term, high bandwidth fiber-optic network. This
network can offer true |
triple-play services including high-speed Internet,
HDTV, video on demand, telephone and home security services.
The home’s electronics also serve more serious purposes including
a number of technologies that allow remote or automatic control of
home systems and appliances. The owners can turn the lights on and
off, reset the thermostat, even tell the oven to wait before starting
dinner. And all this can be done over the home network, a cell phone
or the Internet.
For builders wondering who will install all this advanced electronics
NextGen answers that question, too. As the official show home of the
Consumer Electronics Association’s (CEA) Tech Home division,
CEA's database of integrators in action will be available. This database
helps find a professional electronics installer. |
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TODAY'S LIFESTYLE
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Despite using the most advanced home and building technologies,
the 2005 NextGen home doesn’t feel like a Fortress or a spaceship.
The home’s design is one everybody will warm up to. On the
outside is an eclectic style that will look good in any neighborhood;
on the inside, a contemporary floor plan that makes the kitchen
the center of activity. That means those in the kitchen cooking
a meal can still take part in the conversations going on in the
breakfast and dining areas.
The home’s kitchen includes the amenities that discerning buyers
have come to expect such as solid surface countertops, solid wood
cabinets and high-end faucets. A variety of flooring surfaces, from
wall-to-wall carpet to laminated hardwood flooring, add visual contrast
between rooms. Low-VOC paints help keep the home’s air free
of unwanted chemicals.
The home's lighting controls let the owners program lighting scenes
for any occasson from a romantic evening by the fire to a lively
birthday bash. There's even a wine room, so they'll be ready to
entertain all those visitors.
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OTHER SYSTEMS
The home’s systems will also be cutting edge. As the official IBS
home of the Consumer Electronics Association’s Tech Home division,
it will showcase the latest in home automation and home control.
A knock-’em-dead home theater with a fiber optic feed to the home
will show the possibilities of on-demand entertainment. And the home will
have the latest in smart HVAC and home security controls, as well as connected
home appliances.
It will also showcase a new wall system that’s designed to ease the
process of installing high-tech utilities in a new home.
While wind, rain, and fire are real threats, a home is supposed to protect
its owners from other things, too. Crime, for instance. That’s why
the NextGen Safe and Sound home has secure door and window locks, and
an electronic home security system that can be monitored by a third-party
monitoringservice, or checked and controlled by the homeowner from anywhere
in the world. To make sure that the security system (as well as the home’s
other electronics) keeps working in any weather, the house features a
whole-house surge protector and a back-up electrical power generator.
Not all water damage comes from the sky. An automatic water shutoff valve
protects the home against flooding caused by burst pipes—and can
even call the owner’s cell phone to warn that a pipe has burst.
A whole-house water purification system makes sure the family drinks only
clean, healthy water while a state-of-the-art air cleaner helps them breathe
easier.
And when those storms do come, the home will include a new type of weather
radio that will automatically alert the inhabitants in time to ensure
the family is, indeed, safe and sound.
PUTTING IT TOGETHER
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GOOD NEIGHBOR HOUSE
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Preventing losses from ever happening just makes sense.
In Deerfield Beach, FL, stands a home purposely built in harm’s
way. The Good Neighbor House, designed and built by State Farm Insurance
in 2001, showcases hurricane-resistant materials and building technology
to show the visiting public ways to adapt existing homes and to build
future homes to better safeguard families. The innovations featured
in the house are the product of years of research and the analysis
of millions of property loss claims involving the destructive force
of high winds and hurricanes.
The project gives homeowners, builders, design professionals, building
code officials and others examples of what can be done to better protect
people and reduce property loss in the event of a hurricane, water
damage, fire or other perils.
“We have all seen the devastating effects hurricanes can have
in terms of loss of life and property. While insurance and federal
aid can help pay for property losses, they can’t take away the
inconvenience and the heartache,” said Jim Smith, State Farm
regional vice president. “It makes sense then to try to prevent
losses from ever happening, or at least to reduce them. That’s
not just an insurance company perspective, that’s a humane perspective.”
The Good Neighbor House is located at 1345 SW 11th Way, Deerfield
Beach. A virtual tour is available at www.statefarm.com.
The Good Neighbor House received the Corporate Award at the 2001 Govenor's
Hurricane Conference for it's loss mitigation efforts. The award is
presented annually to an individual or organization for the private
sector that has made a substantial contribution to hurricane preparedness
research or public education in Florida. |
The NextGen Safe and Sound Home project
is managed by Bellevue, WA-based iShow. The company was founded by an
experienced team of multi-media professionals who foresaw a demand for
value-added content services offering clients marketing solutions that
capitalized on the power of the Internet.
The group’s multi-media product (interactive show, or Internet show,
hence iShow), provides video programming that’s accessible online.
iShow President Paul Barnett says the NextGen Demonstration Home evolved
in 2003 as a standalone showcase home for the next generation of home
and building products. The following year, iShow teamed with the Consumer
Electronics Show and the International Builders’ Show for the NextGen04
home built on-site in Las Vegas, NV.
“What we do is to showcase products that will be available within
the next 12 months,” Barnett says. “Oftentimes we will have
working models, or beta versions, of products that will be introduced
in the next 12-month cycle.”
“What we’ve tried to do with each project is showcase these
products relative to a theme,” he continues. “In the case of
the 2005 International Builders’ Show there are many products that
are next generation products that tie-in to the Safe and Sound theme.
We don’t just go do a home helter-skelter. We really try to have
a theme that will match timely topics for builders, then work hard to
get an all-star team of participants to showcase their latest, or next
generation products.”
With the theme Safe and Sound, iShow’s timing couldn’t be better.
“We had planned this out 18 months ago and little did we know the
high-profile hurricane season would happen, but it has definitely made
everybody aware of the need of storm-resistant construction techniques.”
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FLASH home builds in protection
Not far from ground zero during last year’s
Hurricane Charlie, the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH),
the Collier Building Industry Association and Gulfstream Homes is
showcasing a disaster-resistant home. Built in Naples, FL, the home
was open for public tours in November 2004 to champion home safety.
FLASH has worked with the building and insurance industries for
more than six years to strengthen homes in Florida. Since 2002,
the organization has worked to add national partners such as The
Home Depot, International Code Council (ICC) and St. Paul Travelers
to take its message across the country. In fact, the Naples home
is the third showcase home that FLASH has sponsored. The previous
one, in Dallas, TX, was built by Myers Custom Homes with support
from the Home Builders Association of Greater Dallas.
FOLLOW THE BLUEPRINT
For the home in Naples, a number of wind- and impact-resistant products
were donated by FLASH partners DuPont, PGT, Simpson Strong-Tie and
Wayne-Dalton. The products coupled with the latest disaster-resistant
construction techniques create a safer home that meets the Alliance’s
strict Blueprint for Safety™ standard.
Blueprint for Safety is an educational and awareness program that
includes a collection of resources designed to help both homeowners
and builders determine the best ways to build or retrofit a home
to protect against natural disasters.
Resources include the following:
• Contractor’s Field Manual—The Contractor’s
Field Manual provides the basis for the Blueprint program. Its
content is tailored specifically for builders by providing easily
understood prescriptive construction techniques and features that
are known to make homes more resistant to the effects of floods,
hail, wildfire and windstorms.
• www.FLASH.org—The FLASH Web site provides an
online, one-stop shop for disaster and home safety information.
It offers access to a wide range of interactive tools, tips and
resources to help strengthen homes and safeguard families from natural
and manmade disasters.
Downloadable resources, including the Contractor’s Field
Manual, consumer-friendly FLASH Cards and homeowner checklists,
are available as well as animated homeowner how-to’s detailing
disaster-resistant best practices for home construction and maintenance.
• Technical Assistance—FLASH supports print and
online resources with free technical assistance available through
a toll-free hotline: (877) 221-SAFE. By calling this number, homeowners
and builders can tap into a wealth of technical knowledge from experts
in construction, engineering, emergency management and more.
KEY PARTNERS
The alliance leverages the collective strength of more than 70
government, corporate and non-profit partners nationwide. Blueprint
for Safety is supported by the Federal Emergency Management Administration
(FEMA); Florida CFO Tom Gallagher; Florida Divisions of Emergency
Management, Forestry and State Fire Marshal; Florida Fire Chiefs
Association; Florida Insurance Council; International Code Council
(ICC); National Weather Service and other national, state and community
partners.
FEATURES
Disaster-resistant features of the house include:
• Metal Connectors—Good structural connections
are necessary to create a continuuous load path that greatly imporves
the structural performance of a home in extreme wind events, like
hurricanes, tornadoes and severe stormms. Metal connectors such
as hurricane clips, straps and rods are needed to sedure connnections.
Simpson Strong-Tie Connectors were used throughout the house.
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• Reinforced Garage Door—Garage doors are the
most vulnerable to hurricane force winds for two reasons: the relatively
long-span opening they cover and the weak materials typically used
in their construction. Although their lighter weight makes them
easier to raise and lower, it also makes them less wind- and impact-resistant.
Garage doors should be equipped with steel bracing for better protection
of the home. A reinforced garage door was installed compliments
of Wayne-Dalton.
• Safe Room—A safe room, or storm shelter,
affords the ultimate protection from the most extreme winds for
people, pets and property. It can also serve as a multi-purpose
room such as a closet, bathroom, pantry, utility or storeroom. DuPont
provided a StoreRoom TMwith Kevlar for the Blueprint house.
Impact-Resistant Windows and Doors-Windows and doors
are susceptible to damage from flying debris during severe winds.
When windows and doors fail, debris, wind and wind-driven rain get
iside thhome causing extensive damage to its contents and leading
to psosible roof and wall failure. PGT WinGuard products were used
to protect the house.
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FIVE DANGEROUS MYTHS
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The Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) has concluded
that five alarming and dangerous myths about hurricane preparation
persist. These myths pose serious danger to both individuals
and homes.
• MYTH 1: Tape windows to prevent damage or shattering
glass. Some still believe that using masking tape on their
windows will protect them from the high winds of a hurricane.
REALITY: Taping windows will
not protect them from breaking if they are impacted by flying
debris. The tape will only help to keep the glass from dispersing.
For effective protection, all windows should be covered with
approved hurricane shutters or be impact resistant. Furthermore,
taped windows can create a false sense of security when families
shelter in place.
MYTH 2: Crack or open windows to allow wind pressure
inside the house to equal outside pressure.
REALITY: Opening windows to relieve
pressure is a myth that has perpetuated for some time because
of the way buildings have failed from high winds and a general
lack of knowledge.
However, for the past 15 to 20 years all the experts and wind
scientists now agree that the most important thing to do in
any windstorm is to keep all windows and doors closed. For
optimal protection, windows and doors should be covered with
an approved hurricane shutter system or be impact resistant.
• MYTH 3: Light candles if
the power goes out.
REALITY: Never use candles or
gas or oil lanterns during a storm. If a fire is started in
your home, emergency response teams might not be able to respond
to your emergency. Only use flashlights or battery powered
lanterns during a storm.
MYTH 4: You only need to protect
the windows and doors facing the ocean.
REALITY: Wind can come from any
direction, particularly with hurricanes and tornadoes. These
storms’ winds generally move in a circle, so depending
on where the eye of the storm is located, wind can come from
virtually any direction. Additionally, hurricane winds are
turbulent and may change direction quickly.
• MYTH 5: Sandbags can prevent
water from entering a home.
REALITY: Sandbags are effective
when used to channel or direct water away from a home, provided
they are properly filled and maintained. Fill sandbags only
half-full, tamp into place and limit placement to three layers,
unless a building is used as a backing or sandbags are placed
in a pyramid.
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