Newly completed, The New American Home® (TNAH®) 2005 sparkled from its private pool to each colorful mosaic tile at its evening press tour held on January 12, 2005. Media professionals came from across the country to learn about the latest in home products and innovations that make up the show home, which opened for the 2005 International Builders Show in Orlando.

The home received a certificate from ENERGY STAR, presented to the builder, Goehring & Morgan Construction, Inc., to commemorate the project’s achievements in energy efficiency. IBACOS was closely involved with the design, construction, and testing to ensure the home met its performance standards.

Learn more about the annual TNAH® project.

In December, IBACOS performed final testing. The home met its performance target for building airtightness of 0.35 natural air changes with a test result of 0.28 natural air changes (equivalent to 5.0 air changes per hour at 50 Pascals).

IBACOS continued work to install a Campbell Scientific Monitoring System that will measure the home's total energy consumption and the energy use of individual heat pumps. The system will also take data from sensors installed at various heights in specific rooms to study relative humidity and temperature stratification inside the home. Due to large doorways that could allow for high volumes of natural ventilation, the system was also designed to detect the opening and closing of these doors. Recently, crews have added elaborate details to the home, such as tile mosaics indoors, tile on the pool, hand-hewn timber ceiling beams recycled Douglas Fir telephone poles originally installed in California, and an impressive marble range hood in the kitchen.

Finishing work, such as this tilework, continued on the house. The walls and floor of the mechanical room continue to require foam sealing and insulating that will ensure the equipment is housed in conditioned space.

Finishing began on the inside of the house after the crew installed the drywall. Work progressed on creating an insulated and airtight mechanical room in the attic above the garage. Foam sealing and insulation along the walls and floor of the mechanical room will work to condition the space safely and efficiently.

The builder laid the red clay tile roofing material and began installing drywall. Foam insulation was sprayed throughout the house, including under the roof deck where it will act as an air barrier to create an unvented and conditioned space for the attic. IBACOS examined and tested the air distribution systems, which met system performance targets of 120, 200, and 80 cfm. We also installed wiring so that we can monitor the home’s energy use for one year after completion. The construction schedule is on track for a fall completion.

The duct system in this house is made up of sheet metal and flex duct. All of the connections are sealed with a UL-181 approved mastic to prevent air leakage into and out of the ducts. A zoned HVAC system provides controlled comfort for eight separate areas within the home.

The first floor walls of TNAH® 2005 are built of concrete block. This practice is regionally accepted because of the need for more structural stability during extreme weather, such as hurricanes. The second floor walls are framed using 2x8s on 24-in. centers. This type of framing system provides more space in the walls for insulation than typical framing systems and provides an equal amount of structural support.

To prevent moisture movement from the ground through the foundation slab, a vapor barrier is placed beneath the slab. The foundation walls for TNAH® 2005 are built up to approximately two feet above the natural grade line, providing a higher profile for the home consistent with other upscale homes in the community. The additional height can also decrease ground water management issues.