Affordable yet high-quality housing, a long-standing mission of the concrete home industry, will now be a reality for four families in New Orleans. Using an innovative concrete wall system, the New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity has built four concrete homes, all to be occupied by the end of this month. Another 10 planned for the city in 2002.

Project officials note that concrete homes are 66 percent quieter than comparable wood frame units and can save owners up to 44 percent on energy bills — two benefits that make concrete homes a solid investment for any family. The New Orleans homes achieve high levels of energy efficiency with a concrete wall system that combines the insulating power of foam with the strength, durability, and thermal properties of concrete. As in conventional New Orleans construction, the first step involves pouring a concrete slab that forms the foundation and floor. Next, workers begin building the perimeter walls by positioning and tying in vertical reinforcing-steel cages around the slab. Foam panels are then placed inside the reinforcing steel. Aluminum forms for the concrete are locked into place on both sides of the steel-foam assembly.

Concrete is poured into the aluminum forms on either side of the foam — creating an 8-in.-thick, reinforced concrete-foam-concrete sandwich panel. The forms are later stripped away and used on the next house. The resulting exposed concrete surface can be finished to meet the homeowner's preference. Options include finishing the concrete itself — to look like brick or other finish styles — or adding vinyl siding, stucco, real brick and more.

Construction costs are comparable to those of traditional wood-frame houses, say form and concrete producers. As in all Habitat projects, construction relies on volunteer labor, donated materials, and industry sponsorship.

“New Orleans Habitat is especially pleased with the energy-efficiency and durability of concrete homes,” says Jim Pate, executive director of New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity. “Every dollar saved in energy or maintenance costs by our Habitat homeowners is another dollar they can use for family emergencies or educational opportunities.”

Some of the savings are immediate, thanks to programs of the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources designed to promote energy-efficient building practices. These concrete homes qualify for HERO — Home Energy Rebate Options — which offers up to $2,000 in cash for highly efficient homes. To qualify, the homes must meet the standards of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for Energy Star Homes: 30 percent more energy-efficient than the requirements of the 1995 Model Energy Code. The concrete Habitat houses easily exceed this standard.

The homes also qualify for more favorable mortgage loans under state and federal programs. Because heating and cooling a home is the highest cost of ownership after the mortgage payment, lenders take energy efficiency into account when making home loans. Borrowers qualify for higher debt-to-income ratios, making homeownership possible for some and allowing others to buy a higher-quality home.

Spreading shelter

Located in the Little Woods area of New Orleans, the homes are part of a national effort by the concrete home interests to collaborate with the Habitat organization. So far, other concrete homes have been built — or are planned — in Atlanta, Houston, Las Vegas, and Omaha. Numerous national and local companies and organizations are collaborating on the Habitat homes:

• New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity
• Portland Cement Association
• Concrete & Aggregates Association of Louisiana and member companies
• Western Forms
• Dow Chemical/Thermomass Systems
• Lafarge Construction Materials
• Lafarge Cement
• S. Central Cement Promotion Assn.
• Master Builders Inc.

“We're excited about our partnership with the Portland Cement Association and the concrete industry,” Pate affirms. “Our Habitat homeowners are hard-working, low-income families. Due to the generosity of donors and sponsors, we are able to provide homeownership to these families. Our families put in over 350 hours of ‘sweat equity’ on other Habitat homes and their own in lieu of a cash down payment, and Habitat provides the permanent financing at zero interest, making homeownership truly affordable.”