Building Innovation for Homeownership
Award Winners: Alabama

PROJECT: Green Valley Estates, Fort Payne Alabama

SUBMITTER: Warren Builders, Albertville Alabama

PROJECT DESCRIPTION: Green Valley Estates in Fort Payne, Alabama, is a development 20 completed homes and 17 lots available for construction. The homes feature energy efficient construction typically found in construction only in northern states. The 1,200 square-foot three -bedroom homes sell for between $60,000 and $70,000.

Green Valley Estate homes have wet-blown cellulose insulation to achieve R-14 walls and an R- 45 ceiling. Extensive caulking and air sealing, verified by blower door testing, further decrease the heat from entering or exiting the home. OVE engineering, used to reduce the quantity of framing materials, also reduces energy loss.

The homes are heated and cooled with a geothermal heat pump which moves heat between the ground and the home at efficiencies greater than conventional air-source heat pumps. A "desuperheater" extracts heat from the refrigerant of the heat pump and supplies half of the domestic hot water. This method decreases the use of costlier electric resistance water heating and further improves the efficiency of the heat pump. Hot water pipes running below the ground slab are fully insulated. Air distribution ducts are entirely located in conditioned space, providing both increased energy efficiency and comfort to the occupants. Monitoring of monthly heating and cooling costs documents an average monthly heating/cooling expenditure of $20.

PROJECT PARTICIPANTS: Warren Builders (builder)