ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 27, 2008 (VNS) – From windows to pipes and sprinkler systems, vinyl and chlorinated PVC (CPVC) products are showcased in the 2008 New American Home, built especially for the International Builders’ Show held here earlier this month. The house is filled with ideas and innovations to inspire the thousands of builders and designers attending the show.
This year’s house –the 25th in a line stretching back to the early ‘80s—contains 60 StormBreaker Plus® vinyl-framed windows from Parkersburg, W. Va.-based Simonton Building Products Inc. These impact-resistant windows can withstand the severe weather of Florida’s hurricane season, according to Mark Conde, coastal products manager for Simonton Windows®. Another plus is that, unlike other framing materials, vinyl does not get colder than the surrounding air, so it does not cause the condensation that supports the growth of mildew, a fact that was noted by “House Detective” syndicated columnist Barry Stone in the Jan. 6 issue of the Los Angeles Times.
The 2008 New American Home also contains FlowGuard Gold® piping for hot and cold potable water and the BlazeMaster® fire-sprinkler system. Both are CPVC products from Cleveland, Ohio-based Lubrizol Advanced Materials Inc. (The additional chlorine in CPVC gives the material higher impact strength and allows it to be used for higher-temperature applications than PVC.)
CPVC piping is more efficient to install than metal piping because the CPVC can be cut on site with a simple hand tool, according to Joey Glassco, Lubrizol’s market manager, residential. Further, she said, there is no soldering needed, thus reducing fire risk during construction. CPVC is durable and resistant to the potentially corrosive elements in water that can cause pinhole leaks in copper pipes. “As metal prices—particularly copper—continue to skyrocket, more and more builders are choosing CPVC piping,” Glassco said. She added that, unlike some other materials, CPVC is not stolen off the job site.
Quieter operation is another plus, Glassco said. Because FlowGuard Gold CPVC pipe is more amorphous than copper pipe, the system absorbs “water hammer”—the surge of pressure that can occur when a tap is suddenly closed, causing pipes to vibrate and bang against a wall or floor.
Products and materials for the 2008 New American Home were selected by a team comprising the owner of the building company, Robertson Homes, his architect and project manager, and employees of the National Association of Home Builders, which hosts the International Builders’ Show each year and cosponsors the New American Home.
The 2008 New American Home, set in an exclusive lakeside community in Orlando, is currently open to the public on weekends and is on the market for $4.5 million.
For more information on the New American Home, please see http://www.buildersshow.com/Home/Page.aspx?pageID=1436.