Structural Wall Design

Larsen truss wall systems are ideal for improving wall insulation when renovating homes & for building new homes with high performance insulation systems & double-stud walls. Larson truss wall systems for new green home building & renovations for max wall insulation A Larsen Truss is a type of lightweight & non…

Whether a house is worth rebuilding or is better torn down depends on a lot of factors, many of them personal, but also financial considerations like grants, sustainability & current condition of the building structure. Should I Renovate, Remodel or Rebuild? This very question comes up a lot for me during site…

Tips for preparing your house for winter: how to make your house more efficient to save money on heating, more durable to save disasters & maintenance issues & more comfortable to keep the family toasty through the winter. Top Tips for preparing a home for winter Extremely low temperatures over winter can test your…

All lumber for interior and exterior framing is FSC certified. All framing materials for the Demo House are FSC certified, and provided by our sponsor Kott Lumber. Kott engineered the plans for us , supplying detailed framing documents including a cut list for each framing member. We were also provided with a wood…

Dense-packed cellulose insulation in double stud walls offers high performance while maintaining a low carbon footprint. Here we bust some of the unfortunate myths and misunderstandings surrounding this type of wall construction. Dense-packed cellulose insulation - the History In 2005, Metric Homes of Carp, Ontario…

Solid wood & various wood-based products are used for framing, insulating & finishing homes. Here is how to choose different lumber products for framing & their proper construction applications when building houses. Framing lumber choices for building homes Framing lumber, also known as structural wood, is the grade…

Straw bale SIPS (Structural Insulated Panels) have all the benefits of traditional straw bale homes, but address all the risks. Straw Bale Homes, are they any good? Traditional straw bale home construction can be a low-tech and affordable route to a very ecologically responsible home . There are, however, some…

There are a number of ways you can up the efficiency of your home without spending much money. Here are our top 10 energy-saving home improvement tips with the greatest return. The best tips to save money and reduce bills? First of all, the best way to reduce bills & save money is to spend as little as possible for…

When it comes to choosing a building envelope there are many variables to consider: what climate zone you're building in, performance, durability, health, comfort, and of course, cost. What is the best wall system for a home? We're frequently asked which is the perfect wall system for high-performance LEED , Passive…

With the help of The Healthiest Home in Ottawa, a couple in Aylmer, Quebec are the first in the National Capital Region to build a home with an innovative wall panel system from a U.S. company called K-Tect. Brian Allemekinders and Deidre Yukich say that despite their new home being twice the size of their previous…