Hot weather climates benefit from Tyvek®: A phoenix builder’s award-winning, energy-saving homes. Imagine you’re bidding on a 3,000 square foot home for the mayor of Phoenix, Arizona, along with every other custom builder wanting to promote that fact in their next sales program. Now, imagine that to differentiate your company from competition, you guarantee the mayor’s cooling and heating costs at 30% below average, and agree to pay the difference if it exceeds the guarantee! Classic Stellar homes, Inc., of Phoenix did just that. The company also offers guarantees for every one of its 50-75 custom and semi-custom, luxury homes they build each year. “It’s quite a guarantee, although with our exclusive super insulating building systems it’s not as risky as it sounds,” said co-owner, president and director of sales and marketing, Tom Dannenbaum. “We are an experienced builder of super tight homes with complete energy efficient systems to control every aspect of the interior environment, and as much of the outside environment as possible.” Classic Stellar has been in business for 10 years and has become one of the premier custom builders in a booming Phoenix market. Over 30,000 building permits are issued annually as the area continues to expand. There’s plenty of work for builders, but it’s very competitive, especially in the mid- to high-end custom market. Classic Stellar Homes begin at $300,000 and some reach the $1 to $3 million range. Tom Dannenbaum, along with partner and brother Ken, have taken a different approach to building. While the Phoenix climate is generally considered a “vacation climate,” it is actually rather extreme. Temperatures in summer exceed 100 degrees for several months, and desert nights can create huge temperature fluctuations. While cooling costs dominate energy concerns, heating can also be a factor. Building homes that stabilize the climate inside a home can be a challenge. Classic Stellar has designed a unique approach. Working with Bigelow Homes of Chicago, the Dannenbaums have taken cold-weather designs and adapted them for use in the extreme heat of the Phoenix desert. “Early on we thought we could learn from the construction of energy-efficient homes in more established building markets with climates that experience extreme cold,” said Dannenbaum. “They’ve been experimenting with the best materials and practices for years. And while hot and cold are obviously at opposite ends of the spectrum, the principles for building are the same – they are both extremes that need to be kept out of a home.” Classic Stellar builds an ‘envelope home.’ The entire exterior perimeter wall and roof system is constructed first. Foundations are insulated with an R-27 wall system, and the ceiling with R-40 batt and blown insulation. The entire wall structure is wrapped in Tyvek®StuccoWrap® as a second line of defense against the elements. The Tyvek® is covered with 1-inch, high-density, high R-value blue board. Up to 200 tubes of caulk are used on an average 3,000 square foot home to seal any cracks and exterior penetrations. The final, exterior stucco finish is then applied. When the house ‘envelope’ is completed, Classic Stellar builds a home within a home. They design interior wall structures specially to handle cooling, heating and ventilation systems. The interior design allows all the ductwork to be built within the climate-controlled living space, avoiding the extremes of hot attic spaces. According to Dannenbaum, “The systems don’t have to work as hard, or as long to create a comfortable environment. That means longer life for the systems, greater performance efficiency, reduced costs.” Classic Stellar homes are so tight when completed they include air exchangers, and electronic air cleaners. Stale air and gases are constantly being replaced with fresh, conditioned air, and air cleaners remove up to 95% of pollutants including dust, pollen, odors, bacteria, viruses and dust mites. “We’re constantly looking for and testing new materials and techniques to improve the efficiency of our homes. We don’t cut corners, we build better homes,” said Dannenbaum. “DuPont Tyvek® is a case in point. We took the time to research the product, test it, and specially train our installers in the important application procedures before actually using it on our homes. We’ve totally replaced the poly moisture barrier on the inside of the walls with exterior envelope of Tyvek® in every one of our new homes.” The local utility, Arizona Public Service Company, recently conducted blower door and infra red tests on Classic Stellar designs, as well as other homes throughout the area. The Classic Stellar home, wrapped in Tyvek, ® was the most efficient of all tested homes. Classic Stellar homes have earned many distinctions for efficient designs. Arizona Public Service awarded them a Comfort Certified Gold status, their highest distinction for energy efficiency and the only builder in the state to earn the award. Classic has been designated an Energy Star Builder by the EPA and is a member of Scottsdale’s Green Building Program for building environmentally sensitive homes. Honeywell has certified them as a Perfect Climate Home Builder, again the only builder in the state to earn the honor. Incidentally, the mayor didn’t stay in his 3,000 square foot Classic Stellar home all that long, despite the monthly average utility bill of just $124,00 versus an average $300.00 for comparably sized homes. He recently moved into a new 7,600 square foot Classic Stellar custom, luxury home.