EFFICIENT FOR LIFE Cont’d from page 135
Welcome Home
TODAY’S NEW HOMES COME WITH STANDARD FEATURES THAT WEREN’T IMAGINED A FEW DECADES AGO.
Along with a high standard of attic and basement insulation, R2000 homes typically have 1.5-inch rigid foam on the exterior, with R22 insulation batts on the inside, a combination that prevents the thermal bridging effect that allows heat to escape via wall studs. Triple-pane windows with argon gas between panes and proper caulking around the frames allow them to be bright without losing insulation value. And heating and ventilation are designed for efficiency, with different rooms having differently sized ducts depending on the room’s size and the direction it faces. In 26 years of home building, Milne has seen a lot of new innovations, including HVAC systems outfitted with mechanical ventilators to improve air quality, and geothermal heat pump systems that extract heat from the earth to heat a home, or return heat to the earth to cool it. Geothermal heat pumps can reduce heating energy needs by up to 70 per cent and cut water heating costs by as much as 20 per cent. Today’s new homes come with standard features that weren’t imagined a few decades ago. Hot water recovery systems, which recover heat from water going down the drain from the shower and dishwasher, are now part of the building code. So are low-flow shower heads and faucets and dual-flush toilets.
to this year’s Parade of Homes from your friends at
Other innovations are less common, but they’re catching on.
homebuilders.mb.ca
140 Parade of Homes FALL 2017
Powered by FlippingBook