Wardcraft's high performance modular homes are designed to meet or exceed the ENERGY STAR requirements. ENERGY STAR for homes is a US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program designed to raise the energy efficiency of homes built across America, by holding the builders to higher standards with third-party verified accountability. Participating in the ENERGY STAR home program will reduce your home energy consumption and utility bills.

The ENERGY STAR home program ensures homes are at least 15% more efficient than the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) or 30% more efficient than the Model Energy Code (MEC). Our high performance homes are designed to meet that standard, and depending upon your climate zone often exceed the IECC by 30%. With optional energy features your home can exceed 50% efficiency, meeting new initiatives at federal and local levels that are designed to reduce America’s dependency on fossil fuels. The ENERGY STAR program has saved billions of dollars since its inception ten years ago. In 2005, with the help of ENERGY STAR, Americans saved about $12 billion on their utility bills and reduced greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 23 million vehicles.

Wardcraft high performance modular homes are designed to meet and sometimes exceed the three required aspects of the ENERGY STAR for homes program;

1) National Builder Option Package.
2) Thermal Bypass Checklist.
3) On-site verification by a local Home Energy Rater.

1) The ENERGY STAR National Builder Option Package ensures every home includes high-efficiency heating and cooling equipment, high performance duct systems, which must meet a strict level of tightness for air leakage and efficiency, Low-E windows, an ENERGY STAR qualified thermostat, water heater, and a combination of lighting fixtures and appliances. The high performance duct systems makes a much more efficient system. Wardcraft Homes designs ducts entirely out of galvanized sheetmetal, including the supply AND return ducts. Most builders use vacant cavities in the wall for return air, surrounded by sheetrock and wood studs, which is extremely inefficient and loses a tremendous amount of conditioned air.

2) The ENERGY STAR Thermal Bypass Checklist is a list of required practices for reducing energy loss through a home’s building envelope. These practices eliminate air-infiltration felt as drafts, increasing energy conservation. 25% of a home’s energy bill can be lost through air leaks in the house. The Checklist requires an overall air barrier in addition to the thermal barrier (insulation). Our high performance modular homes are insulated with formaldehyde-free, blown fiber glass insulation that is hot-glued in place to eliminate any settling over the years. This insulation is designed to be blown around and behind wiring and plumbing, ensuring a tighter air seal, filling the entire wall cavity and completely eliminating any gaps, voids, or depressions typically left in batt installations.

3) The last component of the ENERGY STAR process is the Third-Party Verification performed by a local Home Energy Rater (HERS). Once the home is on the jobsite, your local Wardcraft Building Professional will complete your home to ENERGY STAR requirements and contact a local HERS rater. The HERS rater ensures that the home meets or exceeds the ENERGY STAR program’s strict requirements.

How Do Homes
Qualify for ENERGY STAR?
Homes that earn the ENERGY STAR are significantly more energy efficient than standard homes, incorporating:

Effective Insulation: Properly installed and inspected insulation in floors, walls, and attics ensures even temperatures throughout the house, while using less energy. The result is lower utility costs and a quieter, more comfortable home.

High-Performance Windows: Windows with Low-E glass help to keep heat in during the winter and out during the summer. They also block damaging ultraviolet sunlight that can discolor carpets and furnishings.

Tight Construction and Tight Ducts: Advanced techniques for sealing holes and cracks in the home’s "envelope" and in heating and cooling ducts help reduce drafts, moisture, dust, pollen, pests and noise. A tightly sealed home improves indoor comfort and air quality, while lowering utility and maintenance costs.

More Efficient Heating and Cooling Equipment: Energy-efficient, properly installed heating and cooling systems use less energy, which reduces utility bills. You can expect higher quality and greater durability backed by longer warranties now available on many models.

Independent Testing: While it’s easy for builders to claim that their homes are energy-efficient, ENERGY STAR partners back that up with a third-party inspection to verify the home’s energy performance. ENERGY STAR homes also undergo an additional comprehensive inspection of insulation and air sealing details to ensure that they deliver the full comfort and energy saving that they are designed to achieve.

Insulation
Wardcraft's high performance ENERGY STAR qualified modular homes are insulated to R-23 standard (most codes only require between R-13 and R-19). Wardcraft uses an innovative new product by Johns Manville called Spider Fiber in the walls. Spider Fiber is a blown fiberglass insulation, hot glued in place in our 2x6 exterior wall. This insulation system far out performs fiber glass batt insulation and other blown systems that introduce water into the building envelope. The glue used in this spray-in product introduces less than 10% moisture into the home. This approach allows a much tighter installation eliminating any gaps, voids or depressions typically left in batt installation.

Wardcraft's high performance ENERGY STAR qualified modular homes are built with R-50 standard in the attic. Most local codes only require R-30 in the attic. The R-50 we install is almost double the amount of insulation required by most codes. The system we use in the attic is similar to the Spider Fiber used in the walls, but uses fiber glass insulation that lofts in the attic space. The hot-glue is also used in the attic, with a lesser amount of glue needed due to gravity holding most of the fiber glass in place.

Using the innovative hot-glue fiber glass, with R-23 in the walls and R-50 in the attic combines to make an extremely efficient insulation package. Our outstanding insulation system exceeds the strict requirements of ENERGY STAR and the California Title 24 energy code. This ensures a quieter and more comfortable home for you and your family.

HVAC
ENERGY STAR requirements include the use of high performance HVAC and duct systems which must meet strict levels of tightness for air leakage and efficiency, and are designed in every high performance ENERGY STAR qualified modular home we build.

A 90% or greater high efficiency, sealed combustion furnace and a 13 SEER A/C by Payne (a Carrier company) are standard. Using the high efficiency furnace and A/C yields more energy produced per dollar you spend heating and cooling your home. Most builders use an 80% efficient furnace, which just meets code. Sealed combustion furnaces are standard so that no dangerous carbon monoxide can escape your furnace and endanger your family. An optional heat recovery ventilator (HRV) brings in fresh air from the outside, preheats the incoming air during the winter and precools the incoming air during the summer. It can provide clean fresh air every day while helping to keep energy costs low.

We design your duct system with specialty software, ensuring proper sizing to maximize efficiency. We maximize air flow by using all sheetmetal duct supply and returns, and by locating the furnace within the central 1/3rd of the home, which minimizes long duct runs that are less efficient. We minimize duct air leakage by sealing all connections with duct mastic that seals much better and lasts much longer then traditional duct tape (which typically only lasts 10 years before losing adhesion) used by most builders. The value to you will be reduced energy costs for your family month to month as long as you live in your home. As energy prices rise dramatically over the next decade you can rest assured that you made one of the best investments in your life with a Wardcraft high performance ENERGY STAR modular home.