ZIP System® Roof and Wall Sheathing Lead to Platinum LEED Certification in South Carolina
Harry and Julia Kurtz-Frugoli have traveled a long and challenging road to platinum LEED for Homes certification status on their 3,086-square foot home in Central, S.C. When they began construction in 2007, LEED for Homes standards in South Carolina were less than a year old and no home had been certified at any level. In fact, at that point there were only about 1,000 homes certified nationwide since the residential LEED for Homes program was established by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) in 2006. The Kurtz-Frugoli’s contractor, Paradise Upstate made a critical decision at the beginning to use ZIP System® roof and wall sheathing to build what is now one of the few LEED certified homes in the Southeast and only the second with platinum status in South Carolina.
LEED for Homes was established to promote a more environmentally-friendly residential building industry, an issue that drove the two Clemson University professors to pursue certification on their new home. Understanding that the LEED for Homes Rating System is complex, the Kurtz-Frugoli turned to Paradise Upstate and sustainable architect Bob Bourguignon to maneuver through a strict process that awards points based on performance in eight distinct categories. After considering several options, ZIP System roof and wall sheathing were selected by Paradise Upstate because it most effectively generated points in the air-quality and energy-efficiency categories that were critical in reaching the 90 points required for platinum LEED for Homes status.
“We considered structural insulated panels and various wraps, but had concerns with cost and performance,” said Wendell Miller of Paradise Upstate. “The blower door test is a significant factor in the certification process, so we had to know the house was tight. The ZIP System products gave us the air resistance and water resistance needed to secure points on our way to platinum status. In fact, the ZIP System products probably factored into about a third of the overall points we were awarded in the certification process.”
The ZIP System roof sheathing is a structural panel that has a built-in moisture barrier called Precipitek™ and ZIP System wall sheathing is a structural panel with a built-in water-resistive barrier called Stormex™. The seams of the panels are taped using a proprietary tape to create moisture resistance for seams, valleys and ridges. The combination of these factors demonstrated reduced air flow which improved energy efficiency performance during testing to secure platinum certification on the Kurtz-Frugoli’s home.
In addition to assisting with LEED for Homes certification, the ZIP System roof and wall sheathing also reduced the Kurtz-Frugoli’s home construction time.
The ZIP System roof and wall sheathing did not require felt or housewrap, due to the fact that the ZIP System panels are code recognized as wood structural panels with water resistive barriers combined in one product. The ZIP System panel and ZIP tape combination expedited installation and prevented rework. Paradise Upstate installed nearly 98 4-feet by 8-feet panels of ZIP System wall sheathing and 175 4-feet by 8-feet panels of ZIP System roof sheathing on the Kurtz-Frugoli’s house in less than one week.
“Housewrap can trap moisture between the housewrap and the sheathing, causing hidden problems like warping and swelling,” said Miller. “The ZIP System products use a special tape to create a very tight barrier, but the wall can still breathe. It took a couple days to install the walls and roof, but the real benefit was the ability to move onto interior construction faster because everything was dry even though we were getting a lot of spring rain. It was also nice not to have housewrap blowing off of the house or discolored oriented strand board showing.”
Harry and Julia now enjoy the most sustainable home on the block and hope it inspires others to follow their environmentally-friendly lead towards LEED for Homes certification.