Black Mountain Custom Builder explains Stack Effect in homes

Stack effect in buildings

Since buildings are not totally sealed (at the very minimum, there is always a ground level entrance), the stack effect will cause air infiltration. During the heating season, the warmer indoor air rises up through the building and escapes at the top either through open windows, ventilation openings, or leakage. The rising warm air reduces the pressure in the base of the building, forcing cold air to infiltrate through either open doors, windows, or other openings and leakage.

Advantage Development Co. says it is critical that the entire building envelope is properly sealed to minimize the stack effect in homes. During the cooling season, the stack effect is reversed, but is typically weaker due to lower temperature differences.In a modern high-rise building with a well-sealed envelope, the stack effect can create significant pressure differences that must be given design consideration and may need to be addressed with mechanical ventilation. Stairwells, shafts, elevators, and the like, tend to contribute to the stack effect, whereas interior partitions, floors, and fire separations can mitigate it. Especially in case of fire, the stack effect needs to be controlled to prevent the spread of smoke. Totally ventilated natural fireplaces cause a huge stack effect in residential homes, sucking conditioned inside air to the outside world, thus wasting tons of energy. Energy efficient, forced ventilated, gas log fireplaces are the way to go says Advantage Development Co., an Award Winning Asheville NC Custom Green Builder with two decades of residential construction experience. Call us today at 828.215.9064 or visit our website at http://www.advdevco.com/ to see why we are the better builder.

Black Mountain Custom Builder likes benefits of Passive Solar Home Heating

Passive Solar Home Design

Your home's windows, walls, and floors can be designed to collect, store, and distribute solar energy in the form of heat in the winter and reject solar heat in the summer. This is called passive solar design or climatic design. Unlike active solar heating systems, passive solar design doesn't involve the use of mechanical and electrical devices, such as pumps, fans, or electrical controls to move the solar heat. Passive solar homes range from those heated almost entirely by the sun to those with south-facing windows that provide some fraction of the heating load. The difference between a passive solar home and a conventional home is design. The key is designing a passive solar home to best take advantage of your local climate. Advantage Development Co. is an Award Winning Black Mountain Green Home Custom Builder in Asheville NC building dreams since 1990. Call us today at 828.215.9064 for a free consultation or visit us at http://www.advdevco.com/ and learn why we build better homes in Asheville and the surrounding WNC area.

Black Mountain Custom Builder likes Poplar Bark Siding

How are Bark House Shingles Made?Our vendors start in the forest, alongside crews cutting poplar logs for the furniture industry and other uses. As soon as a tree falls, our small teams of craftsmen use coordination and strength, along with a collection of special antique tools, to loosen whole cylinders of bark from the trunk. The cylinders of bark are flattened and cut by hand into standard shingle length. After damaged or cracked sections are removed, the shingles are carefully stacked, and then placed under pressure to prevent curling. The stacks are kiln dried to the proper moisture content, sterilized and then stored in our climate-controlled warehouse until they are ready for use.

When properly installed, bark siding can last over 75 years without significant deterioration. For wear-testing purposes, Highland Craftsmen® monitors homes that were built with Poplar Bark Siding in the 1930s. In some areas, the patina of the bark is weathered, but still functional. There is no need for sealants or preservatives, bark siding resists all kinds of wear. However, using a wood preservative in areas of intense sunshine or exceptional moisture can help retard premature bleaching. Bark Shingles are a very green resource, and are used on many net zero homes as stated by Advantage Development Co.; an Asheville NC Black Mountain based Custom Green Home Builder. Call us at 828.215.9064 or visit our website at http://www.advdevco.com/ to learn why we should be your next builder.

Build it Tight using BioBased Foams says Black Mountain Custom Builder

BioBased Insulation® uses soy-based technology to replace a portion of the petroleum in its products. With this proprietary technology, BioBased Insulation® uses less petroleum than other spray foam insulations, reduces our country's dependence on foreign oil and utilizes soybean oil, a renewable resource grown by more than 600,000 American famers. In addition, because you'll reduce your energy usage each month, you'll be using less electricity and/or natural gas which is another positive benefit for the environment. BioBased Insulation® can help save building and home owners up to 50% on their heating and cooling costs when used in conjunction with other responsible building components. BioBased Insulation® more than pays for itself by providing you savings in each and every month’s heating and cooling bill for the life of your home or office. As an example, using BioBased Insulation® may increase your monthly mortgage by $15, but decrease your monthly utility bills by $65, providing a net savings of $50 month in and month out.Have you ever noticed that one of the rooms in your home or office is warmer or cooler than the rest? This is due to unconditioned air infiltrating your home.

According to the Department of Energy, this air infiltration accounts for up to 40% of the energy loss in a home or structure. By expanding multiple times its original size, BioBased Insulation® fills every crack and crevice creating an airtight seal of protection around your home or office. This airtight seal will help you keep all of your room temperatures at consistent and desirable levels. Another benefit is a quieter atmosphere. Traffic on a busy street or other airborne sounds can be greatly reduced. BioBased Insulation® not only gives you peace of mind, but peace and quiet, too. Advantage development Co. is an Asheville NC Custom Home Builder in Black Mountain that believes in the benefits of BioBased spray foam insulation. Call us at 828.215.9064 or visit us today at http://www.advdevco.com/ to learn just why we are the better builder in Asheville and the surrounding area.

Black Mountain Custom Builder likes Pervious Pavers

There is a lot of discussion about pervious paving and its contribution to the environment. Standard paving materials collect pollutants like oil, chemicals, and rubber tire particles from vehicles, pesticides, and dirt, only to have rain wash it off into our waterways, degrading our fresh water supply. Natural landscapes allow rain to percolate down through the soil, taking various pollutants with it, filtering and cleaning them as they flow down, typically arriving clean and clear by the time they reach the water table. We do need hard surfaces to walk, bike, and drive on, so what is the solution? Pervious concrete & pavers can be a great solution to traditional concrete products for drive way installations.

Pervious paving to the rescue. Available in many forms, pervious paving provides us with a surface both structurally sound and porous to water. Pervious concrete is similar to the standard product, but it's made with smaller aggregate and no sand. The result is roughly the texture of a Rice Krispy treat, with open pockets that allow water to flow through the surface to the ground below. Usually placed over about 12 inches of gravel and a geotextile base, pervious concrete can absorb all but the most severe rain events, eliminating almost all water runoff wherever it is installed. Other pervious products include expanded plastic mesh filled with grass and porous paver stones installed over a gravel base. Advantage Development Co. is a Black Mountain custom green home builder that uses pervious drive way pavers on many custom contract homes and clients absolutely love them. Call us today at 828.215.9064 or visit us at http://www.advdevco.com/ to understand why we are the better builder in Asheville and surrounding WNC.

Black Mountain Builder loves to use Typar House Wrap

Typar House Wrap delivers four key advantages you will not find with other house wraps:

Superior water holdout, and blocks water from entering the wall cavity. Exceptional moisture vapor transmission (MVT), it breathes so moisture can escape the wall cavity. Superior tear strength, proven to withstand heavy winds and is almost five times stronger than the leading competitive wrap. Optimal surfactant and UV resistance, reduces the damaging effects that oils and tannins from cedar siding, cement siding, stucco, brick and soaps from power washing can have on the systems ability to block bulk moisture penetration; stands up to the beating sun on the jobsite for up to 6 months without degradation.

Think of Typar House Wrap as an extra layer of protection to secure the building envelope. With Typar on the outside, homes feel more comfortable on the inside. Typar eliminates drafts in the wall, which helps reduce energy costs. And the Typar material itself will not support the growth of mold or disintegrate over time, for added confidence and reduced worries. Typar House Wrap offers superior protection that you can count on. Advantage Development Co. is a Black Mountain Custom Builder in Asheville NC uses Typar on a consistent basis, and likes the added benefits Typar offers over other house wrap systems. Call us today at 828.215.9064 or visit us at http://www.advdevco.com/ to see why we are the better builder.

Black Mountain Custom Builder talks about being a Water Miser

In 1992, congress reduced the maximum water consumption level of toilets from 3.5 gallons per flush to 1.6, and opponents were hopping mad. Plumbing contractors and consumers railed that the new toilets were ineffective and wasted water due to multiple flushes. The federal government warns that population growth and persistent drought will force at least 36 states into water shortages by 2013. Water conservation is now a national priority, which is why the EPA launched the voluntary Water Sense program to make it easy for consumers to identify and purchase water-efficient products. High-efficiency toilets were recently added to the program.

A high-efficiency toilet (HET) flushes with 20 percent less water than a standard unit. Such toilets may meet the criteria in one of two ways: A single-flush toilet must use no more than 1.28 gallons per flush, or a dual-flush unit must have a full flush using no more than 1.6 gallons and a reduced flush that uses no more than 1.1. With toilet flushing consuming about 30 percent of all domestic water use, ­manufacturers say they are committed to the water conservation movement. The question that looms, however, is whether or not that movement will make voluntary standards become law. With the eco-movement gaining steam, it very well could, so be prepared to install low flow heads, toilets, and gray water delivery systems. Advantage Development Co. is an award winning Black Mountain green builder in Asheville NC that understands what water conservation is all about. Call us today at 828-215-9064 or visit our website at http://www.advdevco.com/ for all of your green building needs.