Roof on, foam spray insulation in, tile out and a wall down... it was a good week!

Things are moving right along. One of the first things we knew we were going to have to when we purchased the Mackinaw House was replace the roof. No complaints here, because it gave us an opportunity to make our first big energy efficient upgrade! We decided on a product from CertianTeed called Landmark Solaris Solar Reflective Shingles. These shingles are Energy Star rated and according to the CertianTeed web site they can reduce your roof temperature up to 20% in the summer. They are energy efficient, looks great and qualify for an energy tax credit of up to $1500 under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. They also qualify for points towards making your home NAHB Certified, which is a big goal we have for the Mackinaw House. How can you go wrong? Check out our new roof in Dusky Clay.

Thanks to our contractor Gary L Knapp Jr LLC for completing our new roof!

Another big step done just yesterday was having foam insulation sprayed into all conditioned areas exterior walls. We found after we bought the house that there was no insulation in these areas whatsoever. Again, what an opportunity to show off an energy efficient product. With the many options available we decided Tripolymer spray in foam insulation was best for this home. It was an easy choice since it has the highest R-value of any retrofit insulation around, 5.1 R per inch at 70°F, which is 36% higher than fiberglass and 25% above top of the line blown cellulose.

In addition to those two major items we would regularly recommend to our customers, we have also completely gutted the basement, removed some old tile from the kitchen and knocked down one of the kitchen walls. The basement definitely needed some TLC. Because it has some moisture issues we'll be repairing the tile drain and sealing the brick to avoid future problems. The gutted basement looks a little something like this...

The basement sans old gross carpet and paneling.

The tile in the kitchen/entry way wasn't in great shape and we wanted the opportunity to feature a beautiful renewable flooring option; cork. Cork flooring is made from cork bark, which can be peeled off without cutting down or destroying the tree. It takes just nine years for the tree to grow enough to be harvested again.

Removal of the old tile in the kitchen/entryway/half bath.

We also removed a wall in the kitchen! This is another one of those things we wouldn't recommend to energy audit customers, but again we saw an opportunity. The goal here is to open up the floor plan between the kitchen and dining room and take advantage of all the natural light coming in the two large dining room windows.

Looks like a good spot to add a peninsula.

We are very excited to have things moving on the Mackinaw House. Thanks for checking it out. For more information on home energy audits and how Phoenix UR can being new life to your home please visit our official web site.