Use advanced framing in order to save money on your heating and cooling bills

I gave a tour of green buildings in Charlottesville a while ago to French students. They were amazed that our buildings were constructed of all wood instead of using stone and concrete. How are the buildings durable and energy-efficient they asked?

advanced framing

In order to keep the up front costs low for buildings we use advanced framing in wood frame construction. Ladder framed intersections allow for more insulation in the walls. Three stud corners allow for insulation in the corners. Insulated headers increase the insulation value of the wall assembly.

advanced framing

Doing all of these things can reduce the cost of wood for framing by 10% saving the client money. It can also increase the effective R-value of the overall wall assembly by up to 30%.

harrisonburg custom farmhouse

While there are ways to create a better wall system that is more energy-efficient than wood framed, for the lowest up front cost using advanced framing provides the best return. The question remains why do we still use wood-framed construction as our default in residential construction instead of looking at a longer term return on investment? I don’t have an answer, but as long as we use wood frame, advanced framing should be the default to maximize energy-efficiency.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Related Posts

We love Harrisonburg downtown

We love Harrisonburg downtown

Recently Harrisonburg has been getting national press for what we already know about our community: it's an ...
Ready Your Home for Winter Weather

Ready Your Home for Winter Weather

These cold mornings have me thinking about how much I appreciate the work done to make my old house more ...
Design Strategies to Make Your Kitchen More Functional

Design Strategies to Make Your Kitchen More Functional

Is your kitchen ready for the big day? Thanksgiving is coming. Turkey Day is upon us and that means some of ...
Finding Balance in Architecture School

Finding Balance in Architecture School

By Aliyah D. White.   Now that I have earned my B.S. in architecture, I want to shed some light on the effect ...