Category: high performance homes

One of the most important, and often over-looked, comfort factors in any home is protection from unwanted noise. Sound energy created within and outside of the house can infiltrate your home environment, creating a noisy, uncomfortable atmosphere for you and your family. Unfortunately, today’s standard homes are incredibly susceptible to sound penetration. The truth is, if you’re building a new custom home, you should consider implementing some strategic building practices that protect your home environment from unwanted noise. The following Passive Home building practices demonstrate...


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Building a new custom home? Indoor air quality should be at the top of your mind. The average American spends 90% of their time indoors, and air contaminant levels inside the average new home are 2 to 5 times worse than the pollution levels outside. This may come as a surprise. You’re probably aware of the toxic contaminants like lead and asbestos that have made historical headlines and reshaped building codes. But did you know that new home construction presents its own list of contaminants and pollutants to worry about? The good news is that you can take steps to ensure that your...


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If you’re thinking about building a new custom home, you’ve probably spent a lot of time weighing your options. And if you haven’t already considered high-performance home building practices, you may be surprised at how the numbers add up. The truth is, the energy and cost savings realized in a green, high performance home mean an incredible return on your initial construction investment. Energy efficiency systems that minimize your reliance on utilities, conserve water, and foster a healthy home environment can create an annual return of 7% on your high-performance home. And, according...


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If you’re planning to build a custom home or renovate your current abode, you have an amazing opportunity to transform the way you live. There are an incredible array of energy-efficient home systems available today, and if you’re planning a new custom home, you should think high-performance from the start. At present, there is no universal definition of a “high-performing home” in the construction industry. However, there is some consensus in the way the term is used. At Clarum, we believe high-performing homes incorporate the principles of passive home construction, including: Lighter...


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Imagine being able to turn your household alarms on or off using nothing but your smart phone. Or being able to receive automatic alerts about problematic events like water leaks or unexpected access to your house, no matter where you are. How would your life, both inside and outside of your home, change? The fact is, capabilities that were once props for futuristic science fiction are available to the custom home builders of today. And if you’re thinking of building a custom home, you should be thinking high performance from the start. High performance homes lead the way in utilizing...


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With the incredible array of energy-efficient home systems available today, your custom home building or renovation project has the ability to transform the way you live. And if you’re planning a new custom home, you should think high-performance from the start. High-performance homes utilize the most advanced sustainable design and technology available today to realize immense energy and cost savings, prevent mold and mildew formation, promote exceptional indoor air quality, and ensure that you live in remarkable comfort. And a high-performance custom home only costs 5-10% more than...


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When you’re planning to build a new custom home, it’s easy to focus on your upfront expenses and costs of construction without thinking about your ongoing costs once the home is built. These operating costs of your home are equally important, and have huge effects on the lifetime return on your investment and on the health of the planet. Today, anyone planning a new custom home should think high-performance from the start. You have an incredible array of options including eco-friendly construction materials, solar electric power systems, energy efficient windows, and on-demand tankless...


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Note: This is the second in a two-part series on How to Develop a Timeline for Custom Home Building Construction. Click here to read Part I of this series, where we discuss the pre-construction timeline for your custom home building process. Establish an accurate construction timeline One of the first steps to building a new house is establishing a comprehensive and accurate timeline for completion. And if you’re planning a new custom home, you should think high-performance from the start. In this post, we give you an overview of what to expect during the construction phase, and why high-performance...


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Planning a custom home: budget, design, permit One of the first steps to building a new house is establishing a comprehensive and accurate timeline for completion. And if you’re planning a new custom home, you should think high-performance from the start. With all of the new green, sustainable technology available, you have an incredible array of options for building a new home that will greatly reduce your energy and water use. Plus, high-performance homes are healthier, smarter for the environment, and a great long-term investment. A number of factors before and during construction...


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In part one of this post, we asked if radiant under-floor heat makes sense for a high-performance, passive home. (Read Part One here.) The Overheating Debate Executive editor of Environmental Building News, Alex Wilson’s opinion is clear: radiant floors don’t make sense for passive homes. Overheating is one of many concerns: In a home with a tight envelope and a very small heating load, even a small amount of heat can cause overheating, and the thermal mass in a radiant floor system increases the risk. This is particularly true in buildings with some level of passive solar gain – the radiant...


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