Architect Hyland Fisher and contractor Robin Trenda (left to right) talk about some of the green building techniques being used June 3 in a home they are building in Butte Creek Canyon.(Bill Husa/Staff Photo)<p class='dotPhoto'>All Chico E-R photos are available <a href='http://chicoer.mycapture.com/'>here</a>.</p>
CHICO ? From the road, the house under construction down the gravel driveway doesn't stand out as anything different. But inside, this nearly 3,000-square-foot house in Butte Creek Canyon is uncommon, relying on a technique called "advanced framing" to lessen wood use and increase energy efficiency.
Scattered throughout the $400,000 project are construction techniques that are more like ones from the early 1900s, says Robin Trenda of Chico Green Builders, who has dabbled in these aspects in other projects but not to the extent of this one.
The owners, who asked not to be identified, felt strongly about making their dream house as green and efficient as possible, including investigating other processes, like straw bale construction, structural insulated panels, insulating concrete form, and rammed earth.
"They said advanced framing was the most affordable option that would allow them to build the home they wanted, within their budget, while minimizing the amount of lumber," said architect Hyland Fisher of Chico.
After years living in the canyon in a smaller home on the front lot, the couple has an appreciation for canyon-side views and the thick woods.
Advanced framing uses about 20 percent less wood than traditional construction, and costs 25 to 30 percent less, says Trenda, who also calls it "optimal-value engineering."
Instead of wood, insulation like Styrofoam is used to increase energy efficiency and reduce wood amounts.
Advanced
framing creates "load paths" that reach from the lowest levels to the roof. Studs in the three-story house ? upper, lower and basement ? are aligned, which increases the structure's strength.That in itself is a big difference of the house, and required extra planning.
"It's actually simpler, once you understand the process," said Trenda, who says the Department of Energy talks about the process as well.
In many houses, the placement of the studs is random, Trenda said. Contractors "just put them wherever they think they're needed. This is planned."
Fisher provided another unusual aspect of the house. He created a computer-generated three-dimensional image of the house, built on what the owners requested.
That's where the early planning came in between owners, Fisher and Trenda, who has worked previously with the architect.
"He knew what he wanted to see from his house," said Fisher of the owner and used Google Earth for the right positioning of the house and its canyon views for the 6-foot-plus man.
"The owner had been looking at the canyon for 15 years at this site and knew what he wanted to see from the windows," said Fisher, who's been in the business more than a dozen years.
Above those windows (some of which are extremely large) as well as over doors are specially built headers that demonstrate advanced framing.
Used for support, typical headers are extra thick, sometimes made from old growth wood, according to Trenda.
In this house, the headers are made of several layers of wood that are less expensive, and that flank a Styrofoam core, making it strong but light.
Other elements include a silver-colored radiant barrier lining to the roof that prevents summer heat from invading the house. And once the family has moved into the new house, the old one will be torn down and photovoltaic panels erected there to provide electricity.
A heat pump is also part of the plan, as well as an environmentally approved woodstove, and high-efficiency heater and air conditioner.
Trenda has been in construction for years, but ended up in the late '70s as director of the Wall Street Center for the Arts in Chico, where he became more publicly visible. He was hired to remodel the center's building, and then grew interested in the program, taking over its leadership. He returned to construction after a few years.
Current building trends had roots after World War II when houses became mass produced in subdivisions, and often untrained labor was used, he said.
"Builders then just threw wood at a project."
With the price of lumber, housing materials and government fees on the rise, cost-saving techniques like this kind of framing are significant, Trenda believes.
The U.S. Department of Energy has a downloadable brochure on advanced framing at www.eere.energy.gov. Search for "advanced framing" in "Search EERE" window in the upper right.
Reach Laura Urseny at 896-7756, lurseny@chicoer.com, or on Twitter @LauraUrseny.
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