LEADING BUILDERS Recognizing leadership in home building KEY FEATURES > Walls: R-13 cellulose insulation plus 1 /2 ” R-3
rigid insulation, house wrap, and integral foam insulated vinyl siding
> Floor assembly: R-30 batt insulation > Roof: standing seam metal roofing, site fabricated by owner
> Attic: R-38 cellulose insulation > Windows: vinyl frame, double-pane low-E, 0.31 U value, and 0.32 SHGC
> Heating: exterior heat pump 6.8 HSPF > Cooling: exterior SEER-10 Heat Pump > Water Heater: interior 40-gallon electric EF 0.90
> Piping: PEX with copper valves > Lighting: 22% fluorescents (60w/40w)
The Yakama Nation Housing Authority participated in the Building America Program to provide remodeled houses that are twice as efficient as the original units.
Old Concepts Return
The Yakama Nation Housing Authority goes back to roots of Native American sustainability. By Stacy Hunt
In 2005, the Yakama Nation Housing Authority teamed with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America Program to rehabilitate 25 single-family homes in its Adams View development on the Yakama Indian Reservation. Not only have these homes achieved a total energy savings of 47% (over the pre-retrofit homes) but the “system retrofit package” designed during this collaboration has been applied to more homes on the reservation and has the potential to be replicated across more than 4,300 homes built on reservations in the Northwest under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) 1937 Housing Act. “The project was very success ful,” says Clarence Moy, construction manager for the
Yakama Nation Housing Authority.” The 25 retrofitted homes are among 700 homes built on the Yakama Reservation by HUD since 1970. The 1,573-square-mile reservation is located in the Yakima Valley of south-central Washington State, a region known for hot, dry summers, cold winters, and strong winds.
Energy-Efficient Features The original homes were built to minimal energy code standards using 2x4 wood framing with R-11 batt wall insulation, R-19 batt attic insulation, and little insulation under the floor above the concrete vented crawlspace. The Yakama Housing Authority did a complete rehab, stripping out sheetrock, insulation, roofing, windows, plumbing, appliances, and heating equipment. With input from Building America the Housing Authority purchased a machine
for blowing in cellulose and trained staff in its use. “Now we insulate everything with blown-in cellulose,” says Moy. “Rodents don’t like it, and we can completely fill the voids
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BUILDER PROFILE
> Yakama Nation Housing Authority, Wapato, Wash.
> Established: 1981 > Number of Staff: 110 > Featured Project: Adams View, Yakama Indian Reservation
> Size: 25 homes > Square Footage: 3- and 4-bedroom homes
in the wall cavities.” Rigid foam insulation was added on all exterior walls to minimize thermal bridging and increase overall R-value. House wrap was placed over the insulated sheathing and under the vinyl siding to provide a continuous air barrier. R-30 fiberglass batt insulation was added between the floor joists. Old copper waterlines with lead solder were replaced with polyethylene (PEX) piping and copper stops and valves. In the attic, flex ducts were buried in
12” of cellulose blown over R-19 batt for an equivalent of R-38 insulation. Attic and crawlspace hatches were weather- stripped, and all ductwork was sealed with mastic. In the dry climate of eastern Washington, burying the ducts
September 2010 GreenBuilder 49
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