Home Technology Design: How to Successfully Integrate Electronics Into Your Design

When designing a home with technology as part of the project a great deal of thought and effort goes into implementing a home technology design. Gone are the days of a phone jack here and a cable outlet there. Savvy clients demand home technology and many more know they should have it.

Successful projects start with asking several key questions such as:

How much technology is the client looking to implement in their home?
How will integrating technology impact the overall design?
And the most import, how can the team accomplish everything that the client has requested?

The hallmark of a truly successful project is the collaboration of many talented people and countless hours of brainstorming, coordinating, planning and designing. These design sessions need to include the client, the Building Designer or Architect, the Interior Designer and the Home Technology Integrator. This will ensure that all people on the design team are familiar with the client’s wants, needs and desires and how those decisions will impact each team member.

To start the process the first step is to partner with a company that specializes in Home Technology Integration. This company should have the experience and expertise in implementing projects from basic to very complex.

Most Home Technology Integration companies recognize the importance of educating designers and builders. Many are certified to teach continuing education and are more than willing to help educate you on working technology into your designs.

The most qualified home technology companies have the ability to understand the entire home design and construction process, and generate detailed CAD drawings showing locations and specifications of products that will be used in all facets of the project. They should also understand how these products will interact with the home’s overall design. Home technology should always blend with the design of the home and the décor of each room.

The integration of home technology can be as simple as how a flat screen TV above a fireplace can be concealed, to a complete home automation system that will allow centralized control of everything in the home from distributed audio and video, climate control, security, lighting, pool control and motorized window treatments.

Distributed Audio

One main area that more and more people are requesting is Whole House audio or distributed audio. This is the capability to have multiple music sources, i.e., cable box, satellite music, iPod or MP3 music players, accessible from any room in the house. The size and complexity of these systems can be from a very simple keypad to select the source and raise and lower volume, to a full color touch screen that will show all music information including artist, song title and cover art. As these systems become more and more prevalent in our homes, the manufactures of these systems have been listening and are now providing hardware that is easily concealed. One example of this is the in-ceiling / in-wall speaker.

We have all seen these nice little eye sores sticking out in all the wrong places. Image if you could, the ability to have that speaker be a 4” square with a grill that can disappear with the color of the ceiling or wall. Well these speakers are available now. Also the technology is there to allow the speaker to be concealed completely behind the drywall with no grill showing at all.

The one thing to keep in mind is that the more that you need to conceal the speaker the higher the cost. So on that next project, don’t think just because the client would like to have music in that elaborate study that it has to compromise your design. There are many possibilities and many options.

Another item that is becoming even more popular is what is called an Entertainment Server. This is a hard drive based system that will allow the home owner to place all digital media from Music, Movies and Photos onto a single system that can be accessed from any room in the house. When it comes to photos we have been living in that digital age to the point that we all have collections of digital photos scattered between computers and digital cameras, that we never have the opportunity to enjoy the last family vacation. With the advent of the Entertainment Server we can now enjoy those vacation photos along with our favorite music, all in the comfort of our Family Room that is easily accessed with a simple unified remote control.

With an Entertainment Server the main thing to keep in mind is the more information that needs to be stored will increase the price. Also, as the technology becomes more advanced, and more readily available the cost of these systems will come down. An example would be a recent manufacture of one of these servers has just introduced a more cost effective unit based on the same advanced technology that they provide in their $12,000 unit for a cost of around $3,500. This same manufacture has also just introduced the capability to control their server through an Apple iPhone or Apple iTouch unit. This means that the control of these systems is becoming easier and more user friendly.

Lighting Control

One of the fastest growing home technologies by far is lighting. Lighting design and Lighting control along with motorized window treatments is the most dramatic way to enhance the atmosphere, convenience and safety of a home, while adding eco-friendly energy savings.

A lighting control system allows the scenes created by the lighting designer to be easily recalled from a single button push, while simplifying ease of use and removing wall clutter. Each room can have multiple “looks” or scenes stored as a single button press. Many of our clients enjoy custom labeling the lighting controls with simple terms like “Read” or “Dine” or “Entertain”. Imagine pressing one button and having the room or the entire house smoothly transition from one scene to the next to match your exact needs.

Lighting systems can be integrated with your other control systems so when you press the movie button in the theater the lighting dims automatically, or when you drive into the driveway the path lights turn on and doorway lights switch on.

Motorized window treatments work together with lighting design and control to manage the amount of natural light allowed into a space. They also provide privacy, block damaging UV rays, and help reduce excessive heat.

Home Theater or Home Cinema?

Many clients are requesting a Home Theater to be designed into their homes. The term Home Theater generally refers to a large screen TV and Surround Sound, but these days just about anything with a TV and more than two speakers is called a Home Theater. Today a new term has evolved that is more akin to the experience of going to the movies, with picture and sound quality that surpasses commercial theaters, these spaces are being referred to as Home Cinemas.

The Home Cinema experience starts with a room dedicated to maximizing the true experience of watching movies while creating the suspension of disbelief. The room should allow the user to escape from the day to day barrage of demands and getaway to an area of their home that is truly relaxing and designed with the main intent of watching movies, sports or just enjoying a special event broadcast in high definition picture and sound.

No matter what the request, a skilled Home Technology Integration firm will have the right team of people to not only design a system that meets the needs of the client, but can deign a system that is easy to use and adds value and convenience to any home.

When it comes time to include home technology as part of your next project, reach out and contact a Home Technology Integrator and see how they can help make your next project truly successful for all parties involved.

Reprinted with permission from Design Lines magazine.

CEDIA is an international trade association of companies that specialize in designing and installing electronic systems for the home. The association was founded in September 1989 and has more than 3,500 member companies worldwide. CEDIA Members are established and insured businesses with bona fide qualifications and experience in this specialized field. For more information on CEDIA, visit the association’s website at www.cedia.net.

ICF Wall Systems Can Achieve a Tight Thermal Envelope

For many builders, continuous concrete and foam wall systems, such as insulating concrete forms (ICFs), can be an easier and less labor-intensive way to help meet the new, higher energy-efficiency benchmarks consumers are seeking. They may also help qualify homes for energy-efficiency tax incentives.

Properly installed ICFs and similar wall systems can help builders achieve a tight thermal building envelope that can help them achieve an Energy Stae efficiency rating for their homes.

When properly installed, ICFs can provide the insulation and air barriers — with no gaps, voids or compression — needed to complete the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s thermal bypass checklist required to earn an Energy Star label.

The added efficiencies can also mean additional points if a home is certified to either the NAHB Model Green Home Building Guidelines or the National Green Building Standard under NAHBGreen.

Air flow through insulation reduces its effectiveness and efficiency. In conventional framing, if batt insulation is not carefully installed tightly around air barriers, framing and finishes, or if it is compressed around electrical wiring, pipes or other obstructions within a wall, the thermal performance of the wall and building envelope can be degraded. A 5% gap in insulation coverage can reduce the effective R-value by as much as 50%.

A properly installed two-story ICF exterior wall section assembly has fewer areas requiring special consideration and inspection than traditional construction. Building with ICFs, removable forms, precast concrete or similar concrete and foam systems can eliminate critical coordination issues and construction details that would have to be addressed and verified when building typical Energy Star-compliant exterior walls.

As with conventional construction, care is needed to properly install ICFs and other concrete wall systems in order to achieve energy-efficiency goals.

Housing Rebound

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New U.S. housing starts unexpectedly rebounded in February, surging 22.2 percent, according to data on Tuesday that provided a rare dose of good news for the recession-hit economy and fractured housing market.

The Commerce Department said the jump in housing starts to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 583,000 units was the biggest percentage rise since January 1990.

That was also the first increase since April last year, when they advanced by 1.6 percent. January's housing starts were revised to a rate of 477,000, the department said.

Analysts polled by Reuters had expected an annual rate of 450,000 units for February.

Geothermal Testimony

Geothermal put into home use; Earth friendly: New Candler Park house's heating, cooling system will pay for itself.


KEVIN DUFFY; Staff
It's an energy source that's right under our feet, but hardly anyone uses it.

Geothermal taps the Earth's constant subterranean temperature --- in Atlanta that's about 62 degrees --- to heat and cool buildings. The system works by circulating water through underground tubes to move the Earth's heat to the home.

Margaret Olson and Scott McMahon are on to geothermal. It will be part of the home they're building in Candler Park.

The couple is spending $32,500 on their heating and cooling system. The geothermal upgrade was $16,000 to $20,000 of that cost, depending on what the couple would have spent had they gone with a conventional system.

Even with the premium price, "it's where you should spend your money," said Olson, an engineer with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Why? Because geothermal is inexhaustible, clean and quiet, and cheaper to operate. It doesn't use a fossil-fuel burning furnace.

The installer in Candler Park, GeoThermal Energy Systems of Norcross, says the couple's monthly energy savings will be about $60 greater than their loan payment on the system and that, over 20 years, they could save $26,000 in energy costs.

Another big plus of geothermal is the tax savings. The U.S. government offers a 30 percent credit with no cap; Georgia's credit is $2,000. Olson and McMahon figure their investment will pay for itself in five to eight years.

Fewer than 1 percent of households use geothermal, the U.S. Department of Energy estimates. The Obama administration is encouraging geothermal use in residences and commercial buildings as it tries to make America less fossil-fuel dependent.

Kenny Libby, president of GeoThermal Energy Solutions, said his company has installed about 40 systems since fall 2006.

Geothermal is more efficient than conventional heating and air conditioning systems because, rather than trying to cool hot summer air and heat cold winter air, it uses the Earth's steady underground temperature to make heating and cooling easier.

At the Candler Park site, GeoThermal Energy Systems dug two 400-foot wells to house the system's looping pipes. During the winter, water in the pipes will move the Earth's heat to the house, where it will be absorbed by a refrigerant, compressed to a higher temperature and blown into rooms. During the summer, heat will be withdrawn from the house and sent underground.

No air conditioner will buzz next to the house.

John Scheafbauer, who operates a foam insulation business, had geothermal installed while building a home in Decatur. He acknowledged the upfront cost scares off a lot of people, but "my bills on my 4,500-square-foot home are less than on my old 1,500-square-foot home by $150 a month during the high period of the summer."

With the help of their builder, Landmark Builders Group, and their architect, Jonathan Elmore of modHouse, Olson and McMahon will apply to join four houses in Georgia to be LEED-certified, a rating system designation of the U.S. Green Building Council that stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design.

Copyright 2009 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Federal Weatherization Program

A new partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will streamline federal home weatherization programs and provide $16 billion in economic recovery funds for state and local home weatherization and energy efficiency efforts. The interagency partnership not only will make it easier for homeowners to weatherize their homes, it also will foster a home energy efficiency industry, potentially creating up to 87,000 jobs.

"This partnership will help put Americans back to work while saving families hundreds of dollars on their energy bills," DOE Secretary Steven Chu said in announcing the effort.

DOE is investing $5 billion in the Weatherization Assistance Program, allowing an average of $6,500 per home in energy efficiency upgrades for low-income families. The State Energy Program will receive grants totaling $3.1 billion to fund rebates for home energy audits or other energy efficiency improvements, to develop renewable energy projects, to promote Energy Star products, to improve the efficiency of state and local government buildings, and for other money-saving energy efficiency initiatives at the state level.

HUD's funding includes $4.5 billion to renovate and upgrade public and Native American housing—largely through energy improvements—and $250 million for efficiency retrofits to privately owned, federally assisted housing.

To get the program under way and spur job creation, the DOE is releasing $780 million to states this month—the first of several payments states will receive. Additional funding will be released as necessary. There will likely be work available to contractors, remodelers, and builders willing and able to expand their repertoire of services to energy efficiency upgrades and home weatherization.

In addition to funding, the DOE/HUD partnership will develop guidelines and specifications for retrofitting public housing and privately owned, federally subsidized rental units. The agencies also will develop a common baseline for measuring home energy use and the gains from efficiency improvements, as well as develop and disseminate a tool that will give homeowners access to this information.

For information on DOE's Weatherization Assistance Program, click here; for more information on the State Energy Program, click here.

Valuable Homebuyer Credit

Cracking a Valuable Homebuyer Credit
By TOM HERMAN


The recently enacted economic-stimulus law contains an unusually attractive new tax break for many homebuyers -- if they can only figure out how it works.

The new law sweetens a provision known as the "first-time homebuyer credit." In essence, if you meet certain qualifications, such as buying a home from Jan. 1 through Nov. 30 this year, you may be eligible for a tax credit of as much as $8,000. You also have a choice of claiming the credit on your federal income-tax return for 2008 or 2009. A credit is typically more valuable than a deduction, since it eliminates your taxes on a dollar-for-dollar basis -- and in this case, you may get it even if you don't owe any taxes.

But Congress made the homebuyer-credit fine print so devilishly tricky that many Americans are likely to have to pay an expert for help in deciphering it. "We've had numerous calls because people are confused," says Claudia Hill, owner of Tax Mam Inc., a Cupertino, Calif., tax-services firm. "The problem is when things are this complicated, many people don't get the benefits that Congress intended for them."

Internal Revenue Service officials recently issued a revised form and instructions. Even so, Nancy Hays of H&R Block Inc., the Kansas City, Mo.-based tax-preparation company, describes the credit as "crazy complex."

Here are answers from IRS officials and tax advisers to some questions about the credit.

Q: Who can claim the credit?

A: In general, the IRS says you may be eligible if you bought your main home, located in the U.S., after April 8, 2008, and before Dec. 1, 2009 -- and if you (and your spouse, if you're married) haven't owned any other main home during the three-year period ending on the date of purchase. That means you might be eligible even if you owned a home for many years before that period.
However, there are numerous other qualifications.

Q: How much is the credit?

A: That depends on when you bought the home and other factors, such as your income and the home's price.

If you bought during the 2008 period and qualify for the credit, the maximum credit is generally $7,500. But it's only half that amount if you're married and filing separately from your spouse. Even though it's called a credit, it's really an interest-free loan. You generally have to repay it over a 15-year period, without interest, in 15 equal installments, the IRS says. (There are several exceptions to this repayment rule. We warned you this was tricky.)

The rules are more generous if you buy a new home during the 2009 period and meet all the qualifications. In that case, the maximum amount generally is $8,000, or half that amount if you're married filing separately. More important, you don't have to repay the credit at all unless that home "ceases to be your main home within the 36-month period beginning on the purchase date," the IRS says.

Initially, there was some confusion about whether the $8,000 maximum credit would apply if someone bought a home in 2009 and chose to claim the credit on their return for 2008. It's now clear the $8,000 maximum limit does indeed apply, says Mark Luscombe, principal tax analyst at CCH, a Wolters Kluwer business. Naturally, though, "this doesn't help people who actually bought homes in the 2008 qualifying period, and who are limited to a $7,500 credit that must be repaid," he says.

Additionally, the credit generally is limited to the amounts mentioned above -- or 10% of the home's purchase price, whichever is less. For example, if you bought a new home this year for $70,000, the maximum amount of the credit would be limited to 10% of that amount, or $7,000.

Q: How do the income limits work?

A: You may be eligible for the full amount of the credit if your adjusted gross income, with certain modifications, is $75,000 or less -- or $150,000 or less if married and filing jointly. However, the credit begins to disappear, or "phase out," if your income exceeds those amounts. You can't claim the credit at all if your income is $95,000 or more, or $170,000 or more if married and filing jointly, the IRS says.

Q: What if I built a new home? How does that work?

A: You are considered having purchased it "on the date you first occupied it," the IRS says.

Q: I own more than one home. How do I figure out which is my "main" home? And does it have to be a house?

A: The IRS says your main home is "the one you live in most of the time." No, it doesn't have to be a house. It can be "a house, houseboat, house trailer, cooperative apartment, condominium, or other type of residence."

Q: Are there are other qualifications?

A: Yes. You can't claim it if your home is located outside the U.S. You also aren't eligible if you're a nonresident alien, if you inherited the home or got it as a gift, or if you acquired it from a "related person," such as your spouse, parents or grandparents.

Q: Will the credit help me if I don't owe any tax?

A: Yes. The credit "may give you a refund" even if you owe no tax, the IRS says.

Q: What form do I use?

A: Form 5405. The IRS recently revised it and posted it on its Web site (www.irs.gov), along with instructions. Dean Patterson, an IRS spokesman, says "programming is being done to electronically process Form 5405" to claim the $8,000 credit for homes bought in 2009. The IRS "will be able to process these returns electronically beginning March 30" this year, he says.

Q: Where do I put the credit on my Form 1040?

A: Line 69.

Q: I've already filed my return for 2008. Can I still claim it? If so, how?

A: Yes. File what's known as an "amended" return. Use Form 1040X, and attach Form 5405.

Q: If I buy this year, should I claim the new credit on my 2008 or 2009 tax return?
A: That can be tricky, and you may need to consult a tax pro. In general, most people who buy this year and qualify for the new credit probably will want to take it on their tax return for 2008, says Tax Mam's Claudia Hill. "They'll get their money more quickly," she says.

But some people might be better off claiming the credit on their 2009 returns. These would include eligible homebuyers who buy this year, whose financial circumstances changed during 2009 and who might qualify for a larger credit on their returns for 2009 than the prior year. An example would be someone whose income was too high to get any of the credit for 2008 but who recently lost his job and thus would be eligible for the full credit on his 2009 return, to be filed next year.

Fellow Texan, T. Boone Pickens, to Speak

Financier and alternative energy advocate T. Boone Pickens will speak at the NAHB National Green Building Conference. Addressing attendees at the National Green Building Awards Dinner on Friday, May 8, Pickens is expected to speak about environmental initiatives and the important role that the home building industry plays in mainstreaming new technologies.

Dallas and Houston were just named two of the Environmental Protection Agency's top five most energy-efficient cities, due to their large number of Energy Star-rated commercial buildings. Can Texas take the lead in residential green building too?

As a leader in the local green building industry Elegance in Design will be presented with an award at the awards dinner, and will be in attendance for the break-out sessions regarding new initiatives and technologies.

Watch for updates on this blog about this years conference!