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Available in three sizes, all of the homes were built on slabs, with no air conditioning.


In places where structural overhangs were not practical, the designs include permanently attached awnings, an affordable and effective shading option.


 


Of equal importance was the team’s attention to the long-term durability and maintenance, while keeping costs down. For example, instead of installing expensive movable storm shutters or impact glass, the builder put storage racks in each garage, then had his crews carefully cut plywood panels for each window opening. The panels, ready for a storm emergency, are pre-drilled and carefully labeled, and cost far less than shutters.


The use of reflective “cool roof” metal roofing reduces heat gain, at the same time standing up well to storm winds.


Like most homes in the region, these are built slab-on-grade, with carports on most models that are supported by steel poles through bolted to the concrete.


On the exterior, the architect specified HardiePanel, which has a board and batten look, yet better long-term paint adhesion than wood competitors.


High-Value Perks
Some of the features that caught the eye of judges however, are among the least expensive. They aren’t even construction details, per se. For example, the inclusion of a “solar clothes dryer” (a clothesline), and a backyard garden for growing food and a compost area are something rarely included in most blueprints. “The idea was not just to include these things,” notes Sandomire, “but to lay out the house so that it’s just as easy to hang clothes on the line as it is to throw them in a dryer. You don’t want to bury your laundry area in the middle of the house. If you do, no one will ever make it to the clothesline.”

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