Sources: KB Home, Los Angeles; Builder Magazine, Washington, D.C.; National Concrete Masonry Association, Herndon, Va.
Concrete block supports the energy-wise “KB Home GreenHouse: An Idea Home Created with Martha Stewart,” timed with the 2011 International Builders’ Show, January 12-15, in Orlando, Fla. The 2,700-sq.-ft., single-level home features weatherized and insulated concrete masonry walls, plus fiber-cement siding, precast veneer stone, solar panel-bearing roof tile, and pavers from James Hardie Building Products, StoneCraft Industries, MonierLifetile and Boral Bricks.
“The KB Home GreenHouse embodies the [magazine’s] Concept Home philosophy of bringing together some of the best minds in the business to create a project that has broad appeal, incorporates innovative new products and ideas and will serve to educate other homebuilders,” said Builder Editorial Director Boyce Thompson, who joined celebrity homemaker Martha Stewart and KB Home CEO Jeffrey Mezger at a project unveiling the day before the Builders’ Show opening.
KB GreenHouse is the builder’s first net-zero energy home, meaning it is intended to produce more energy than it consumes over the span of a year. It carries a U.S. Department of Energy “Maximized Energy-Efficient Home” label, and attained Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star and U.S. Green Building Council [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] LEED for Homes Platinum ratings.