MICHIGAN CONCRETE HOMES

Beautiful Homes. Built to Last.

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Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Beautiful Homes built to last,
that's the beauty of today's concrete.

Save on heating, cooling and insurance. Have a quiet healthy home.

Beautiful Homes. Built to Last.
With today's innovative concrete homebuilding systems you can build beautiful concrete homes in any style with all the added benefits like energy efficiency, safety, and peace and quiet.

Concrete is simply a better way to build a better home.

• Building homes in Michigan

Insulating Concrete Forms.

The system is superior.

The performance and value are extraordinary.

The concrete walls of an ICF home have high thermal mass, which buffers the interior of a home from the extremes of outdoor temperature during every 24-hour cycle. This reduces both peak and total heating and cooling loads.

ICFs Deliver for Timberlake Lodge The builders saved time and money by choosing insulating concrete form (ICF) construction for the Timberlake Lodge Hotel Event Center in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Kuepers Inc., the architect and builder, recognized the many advantages ICFs would bring to their project, a 10,500 square foot hotel with a water park and the capacity to handle groups as large as 600. ICFs simplified and accelerated construction. Additionally, their structural strength was superior to that of competing wall assemblies. ICFs were also chosen for their inherent performance benefits, specifically a superior fire rating between units (4 hour), high STC rating (55+), energy efficiency, and thermal comfort. ICFs were used in finishing the pool area because of their mold resistant properties. Because ICFs allowed construction to continue through the winter months without interruption, the entire project was completed in just nine months, delivering early occupancy and reduced lead time for materials.       Up to $7,500.00 off the purchase of all concrete homes   Concrete homes by Shafer Concrete Construction are safer, stronger, quieter, more energy efficdient, and more comfortable than conventional building methods. If you're considering a new home, the benefits of concrete constrcution are the answer; superior construction and a superior lifestyle.     * $2,500.00 off all contracts sigend with Shafer Concrete and Construction by June 30th 2009 * $5,000.00 heating credit paid to fuel supplier on contracts signed with Shafer Concrete and Construction by June 30th 2009 * 20%-50% more efficient * Stonger, safer, and more comfortable * Quieter-1/6 the sound infiltration * Flexibility-concretehomes can be built year round and can be completed with any interior or exterior finish of conventional methods. In fact, some options are more affordable * Concrete construction exceeds the new Michigan energy codes

Decorative Concrete for inside and outside of your home.

Beautiful garden area with decorative concrete.

There are a number of reasons to consider decorative concrete for your next projects:

Durability-When property installed, concrete is one of the most durable materials on earth. Properly maintained, decorative concrete will last for many decades.

Optimal Radiant Heating-Whether in a slab - on - ground or cement - based topping, decorative concrete is ideal for use with radiant floor heating due to its excellent thermal mass properties.

Health-decorative concrete is a great alternative to carpeting for people suffering from respiratory ailments and allergies.

Cost-decorative concrete floors compare favorably with wood, ceramic, or quarry tile floors when amortized over the life of the floor. When elaborate designs and complex patterns are incorporated, concrete can save money when compared to marble or slate.

Craftsmanship-decorative concrete installed by a quality
concrete craftsman offers an unlimited color palette. Every
application is unique and can be customized to meet the
desires of a homeowner.

ICF WOULD BE THE SOLUTION FOR THE NEW CODES.

Saturday, December 13, 2008  -  The Detroit News

Glenn Haege: The Handyman

Michigan has a new home energy code
It has been a long time coming, but Michigan has finally brought its residential building energy codes up to national standards -- a move that will save millions of dollars in energy costs during the next decade and beyond.

The new Michigan Uniform Energy Code (MUEC) originally took form in 2002, when the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Growth established a committee to review and update the state's energy code for new home construction.

Thanks in part to Gov. Jennifer Granholm's efforts, the new 2003 Michigan Uniform Energy Code was to become effective in 2005, but the Michigan Association of Home Builders (MAHB) filed an injunction in Ingham County Circuit Court in Lansing to stop the state from enforcing these new standards. The MAHB was concerned that the added cost to bring new construction up to these new energy codes would be too expensive for many home buyers and would have a negative impact on home building in Michigan.

The court recently ruled in favor of the State of Michigan and dismissed the lawsuit. As a result, the new MUEC took effect on Oct. 27.
"This new code really brings Michigan out of the dark ages and into code with the rest of the country," Irvin said. "It also brings us in line with the U.S. Department of Energy requirements for new residential construction."

The "dark ages" he was referring to was that in Michigan, homebuilders were allowed to use a much lower level of insulation in new homes than the rest of the nation. And while that made it cheaper to build a home, it added to the homeowner's energy costs.

The new code requires that home builders and remodelers must now use insulation that rated at R-49 in attics versus R-30; R-21 in walls rather than R-13; and R-10 for continuous insulation or R-11 for cavity insulation in basements instead of R-5.

When you listen to my radio show, you know I have always recommended using these higher levels of insulation for home improvement projects to save energy costs. By putting in R-49 in the attic will do even more than just save energy and help you stay warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. When there is insufficient insulation in the attic, warm air will infiltrate into the attic from below. As the warm air rises in the attic, it cools and causes condensation, which often freezes on the underside of the roof.

The water created by attic condensation moistens and degrades some types of insulation and makes the wood in your attic wet, which makes your insulation less effective and can cause mold growth. In addition to the obvious energy-saving benefits, bringing your attic insulation up to an R-49 value will also keep you from these encountering other problems -- such as mold or wood rot in your attic.

Now that this MUEC is in effect, any residential building plans submitted to the Bureau of Construction Codes, or building permits submitted to local municipalities for approval on or after Oct. 27 must be approved based on the new code. Any projects approved before that date may proceed based on the old code.
If you are in the process of building a new home in a development, it is important to find out whether the homes were approved before or after the new MUEC went into effect and what level of insulation you can expect. Yet even if the project was approved prior to the code going into effect, you can still insist the home's insulation being brought up to code. Typically, the cost to bring insulation up to code in a new home could be as much as $3,000 or more, depending on the size of the home. However, you can easily save hundreds of dollars annually by upgrading to the new code. This is something everyone should consider as energy costs continue to increase.

In addition to the obvious overall energy savings for homeowners, this new code will also have a positive impact by slowing the amount of energy use in our state, which will help Consumers Energy, DTE Energy, and MichCon keep up with demand, especially during peak energy using periods.

Utilities also realize the importance of having their customers get the "big picture" when it comes to energy consumption. MichCon offers a $250 rebate when homeowners have a professional Home Energy Analysis conducted.

Details on this and other programs are available at my.dteenergy.com.
If you would like more information on the new MUEC, visit www.masterhandyman .com and click on the "Energy News" tab on my home page.

Phone: 517-887-6016
Fax: 517-393-1791
Email: mwitt@cement.org

Contact US:
PCA Great Lakes Region
3130 Pine Tree Road
Lansing, MI 48911