Sustainable Home Construction
Green Spark Homes specializes in building energy efficient and sustainable homes.
Our standard package builds to Zero Energy Ready standards. These homes are designed to be extremely energy efficient, with the goal of being able to offset all or most of their annual energy consumption through renewable energy sources such as solar panels.
Zero Energy Ready homes generally consume 40%-50 less energy than similar homes.
For those who would like to further upgrade their energy efficiency, most of our plans can be built to Passive Home standards. Passive homes take construction standards to the next level and aim to consume roughly 90% less than similar homes.
Many Existing or Conventional Homes | Green Spark Zero Energy Ready | Green Spark Passive (coming soon) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
House Plans | N/A | Plan and materials designed and energy modeled for sustainability. | Plan and materials designed and energy modeled for sustainability.
| |
Framing Approach | Code Minimum | Advanced Framing for reduced lumber use and thermal bridging. | Advanced Framing for reduced lumber use and thermal bridging.
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Framing – Walls | Code Minimum | Staggered Studs for reduced Thermal Bridging | Staggered Studs for reduced Thermal Bridging
| |
Framing – Between Floors
| I-joists or Code Minimum
| Open Web Trusses for internal duct systems to reduce energy loss.
| Open Web Trusses for internal duct systems to reduce energy loss.
| |
Insulation – Interior
| Code Minimum
| Blow-In-Blanket within staggered studs for reduced thermal bridging and greater than R-23 Walls.
| Blow-In-Blanket within staggered studs for reduced thermal bridging and greater than R-23 Walls. | |
Insulation – Exterior | N/A
| N/A
| Panels of insulation between sheathing and siding to provide additional protection from heat and cold.
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Trusses
| Code Compliant
| Raised Heel Trusses for increased attic insulation above walls and corners.
| Raised Heel Trusses for increased attic insulation above walls and corners.
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Crawl Space
| Bare earth and plastic
| Conditioned Crawl with rigid insulation and concrete slab to mitigate heat loss, dust, vapor, and pests.
| Conditioned Crawl with rigid insulation and concrete slab to mitigate heat loss, dust, vapor, and pests.
| |
Heating and Cooling
| Code Minimum – may be inefficient
| High Efficiency Heat Pumps for heating and cooling.
| High Efficiency Heat Pumps for heating and cooling.
| |
HVAC Ducts
| Ducts that may leak into crawl and attic
| Ducts engineered inside Thermal Envelope with sealing and blast testing.
| Ducts engineered inside Thermal Envelope with sealing and blast testing.
| |
Water Heater
| Code Minimum
| Heat-Pump Water Heater for energy efficiency.
| Heat-Pump Water Heater for energy efficiency.
| |
Windows
| Code Minimum – usually double paned windows.
| Triple-Pane Windows for super efficiency.
| Triple-Pane Windows for super efficiency.
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Solar
| N/A
| Solar-Ready wiring. Home configured for solar positioning and gain where possible.
| Solar-Ready wiring. Home configured for solar positioning and gain where possible.
| |
Air Sealing
| Code Minimum or N/A
| Homes engineered and built to prevent leaks and maintain efficiency
| Homes engineered and built to prevent leaks and maintain efficiency
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Ventilation
| Code Minimum bath or range vents.
| Heat Recovery Ventilation systems for continual fresh air conditioned for energy efficiency
| Heat Recovery Ventilation systems for continual fresh air conditioned for energy efficiency
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Home Air Leak Testing
| No Testing | 3rd Party Blower Door Testing
| 3rd Party Blower Door Testing
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Duct Testing
| No Testing
| 3rd PartyDuct Blast Testing
| 3rd PartyDuct Blast Testing
| |
Certification
| No Certifications
| 3rd Party Energy Performance Score (EPS) and Zero Energy Ready Certification
| 3rd Party Energy Performance Score (EPS) and Zero Energy Ready Certification
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Green Spark Homes partners with the Department of Energy and is in the top one percent of builders in the country meeting the extraordinary levels of excellence in energy and performance specified in the national program requirements. The guidelines of the program creates homes that are at least 40%-50% more energy efficient than a typical new home.
Additionally, Green Spark Homes is an Energy Trust of Oregon Trade Ally. All our homes receive an Energy Performance Score (EPS) demonstrating the home’s energy efficiency.
This allows our clients to compare the way similar-sized homes use energy, review the features that make energy-efficient homes stand out, and even see your estimated utility costs.