If you thought that buying a “Green” home meant changing your lifestyle or paying for expensive new technology and building materials, think again. Since the inception of modular construction, modular home builders have been practicing many of the construction techniques that are now identified as “Green” or “Sustainable”.
Reducing waste, improving efficiency and enhancing indoor air quality are the primary aspects of building Green.
The efficient use of materials and resources is one of the primary advantages of modular construction. These practices are in place because, as a modular home builder, they are central to our business. While we can’t completely eliminate waste, we are able to reduce it and manage it better than site builders.
We are able to reduce it and manage it better then traditional site builders, by purchasing specifically dimensioned lumber, sheathing, decking and drywall. All materials are stored under cover until they are assembled inside an environmentally controlled manufacturing facility. So, unlike traditional site construction, there is virtually no waste generated from weather damaged materials, vandalism or theft.
We can typically have the modules built for several homes in one day. With such concentrated construction, managing the waste is a relatively simple process. Recycling containers are located throughout each manufacturing facility where the key elements of construction waste – cardboard, gypsum, lumber, copper and vinyl – are collected for recycling.
When you compare this to a typical site built job site with only one home under construction on a site, it isn’t economically feasible to gather up all of the waste and separate it for recycling purposes. They would have to haul of the material from job site to job site just to collect enough to for recyclers. This is the primary reason why site built construction waste is the largest contributor to landfills!
Green certification programs focus heavily on the key elements of a home’s energy performance, so insulated doors, windows, wall/floor/roof insulation and high efficiency HVAC systems are central to Green construction. What makes modular construction different is the ease in which we are able to build a tight building envelope and minimize air infiltration. While site built homes are built from the outside in, modular construction allows the home to be built from the inside out. This allows us the manufacture to seal around exterior wall penetrations, such as light switches, receptacle and light fixtures prior to the insulation being put into the wall and ceiling cavities. The use of special equipment and tools also allows large sub-assemblies to be built. This results in the ability to purchase materials in dimensions not practical for site builders. Larger sheathing and gypsum panels result in fewer seams, which results in fewer chances for air leakage.
The quality of indoor air is another important component of Green construction. One of the biggest threats to indoor air quality is mold. It can be insidious and difficult to eliminate one it has a foothold. Your new modular home is constructed inside an environmentally controlled facility and the materials are stored under cover from the elements. Think about the last home you saw built on site. The partially constructed structure may have stood unfinished, exposed to rain and snow for months. The sheathing, sub-floor and studs may have become wet several times, absorbing moisture into the structure. Then when it was finally completed, some of this moisture may have been trapped inside the finished home. While no construction technique can promise 100% protection against mold, we take great care to insure your new home is protected during the construction process.
