The ability to weather storms is another advantage of hiring a pro with up-to-date knowledge about building science. One often overlooked benefit of a high-quality new custom home is that it will better handle severe weather events and power outages. These are a fact of life in all parts of the country. Atlantic hurricanes routinely
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Why choosing the right air conditioning equipment is more important than ever. The health and comfort of a new home have a lot to do with it’s heating, cooling and ventilation equipment. High-quality equipment will do a better job, but only if the builder works with the mechanical contractor to choose the right equipment
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Shannon Pollard is committed to creating an environmentally sensitive community on the Nashville property his grandfather, Grand Ole Opry star and Country Music Hall of Fame member Eddy Arnold, called home. That’s why one day he found himself supervising the release of 6,000 minnows. The tiny fish will eat algae choking the ponds where his
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In ancient times—30 or so years ago—someone with basic construction knowledge could build a serviceable home. No more. Today, the combination of contemporary building materials and code-mandated construction practices have made homes more complex with less margin for error.
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It’s as much about the experience as the result. Some homeowners have asked: How does a builder know when a project has been a success? Well, there’s good news—the answer to this question is one of the things that defines a great builder. To a pro, every successful project crosses the finish line with three outcomes.
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Architecturally reminiscent of homes built in the late 1800s, the Nashville Symphony Show House evokes a nostalgic, yet timeless feeling. The home has a parapet clad entrance and deep reveal lap siding, making it a perfect example of Southern Contemporary Folk design. Though traditional in appearance, the home is constructed using the most up-to-date and
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Energy efficiency plays a central role in building any new home. Building a “green” home, however, requires energy efficiency and much more. “Green building” means taking a comprehensive approach to energy and resource efficiencies from design through construction and operation of the house. Certain components of a home’s construction contribute greatly to the success of such an
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When we hear the term “green building,” most of us think of energy efficiency and, increasingly, healthy indoor air quality. While those are certainly central components of high-performance housing — especially given our nation’s current energy prices — they are not the only factors that ensure a truly sustainable approach to home building. One of
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Healthy indoor air quality may be the most important aspect of building green. After all, what could be more important to your health than the air you breathe? Achieving healthy indoor air, however, depends on a comprehensive approach to high-performance building. There’s no way, for example, to make an indoor environment comfortable and healthy without
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Improving home energy efficiency and building more sustainable housing is no longer a trend — it’s mainstream. As a professional builder, we feel it’s important to keep up on emerging technologies that may soon help our clients save money, improve comfort and reduce our impact on the environment. In the spirit of learning about these
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It wasn’t that long ago that a window was a window … was a window. Basically, a hole in the wall fitted with a wood-framed pane of glass that allowed a view to the outside and provided a little bit of daylight into a house. Over the past 25 years, windows have changed dramatically. Not
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New homes are built to save energy, and a primary component of that goal is insulation. The definition of insulation, however, is rapidly expanding as homebuyers and energy codes demand even better energy-use performance from new homes. Today, there are far more options than those rolls of fiberglass you see on the shelves of big-box
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After a 40-year hiatus, solar energy is cool again. But for those who remember bulky aluminum frames awkwardly balanced on the roof, the current look, use, performance, and value of today’s solar energy systems has changed dramatically. As a professional builder, we keep a sharp eye on products and systems that are getting the public’s
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Most “green building” conversations emphasize energy efficiency. By contrast, the issue of water — its scarcity, purity, and significance to sustainability — is often overlooked or discounted. That’s because in North America, we take water for granted; not only is it cheap, it is relatively abundant and clean. But while an average bathtub may hold
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Just as the human body has a respiratory system, so a house has specialized equipment to bring fresh air inside, filter it, distribute and ‘exhale’ it. The respiratory equipment in a house is often referred to as “HVAC,” for “heating, ventilating and air conditioning.”
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In Nashville, a hundred-year-old Boy Scout troop congregates before every camping trip to gather gear and prepare for sleeping under the stars. Of the most memorable moments in scouting, camping trips inevitably top the list. Although these camping adventures offer education in self-sufficiency and leadership, the long-term benefits reach beyond learning how to tie knots
Castle Homes came away a big winner in Nashville Lifestyles’ Home Awards announced this month. The collection of awards garnered by Castle Homes included Best New Kitchen, Best New Bathroom and Runner Up for both Best New Home and Best Builder. “The Nashville home market keeps getting hotter, and the competition for Nashville Lifestyles’ Home
The trick is to choose the technologies you need, while ignoring those you don’t For some people, a new custom home is a chance to get the latest digital bells and whistles. The problem is that home automation can feel like a daunting topic and the wrong choices can lead to frustration. Which technologies will
How to Fight Escalating Lumber Prices The essential skill of value engineering Lumber continues to be THE big issue in homebuilding. As we write this in May 2021, costs for framing lumber and plywood are three times what they were a year ago. That’s right—they’ve tripled. It’s insane. They might go even higher. An April
Your home builder needs to navigate a maze of government regulations—homeowners can help make the process easier A successful new-home build is a predictable one, with no unpleasant surprises. Predictability comes from good planning, as well-planned projects tend to stay on budget and on schedule. Good planning includes making sure the home will meet all