Better Builder Magazine, Issue 46 / Summer 2023

WINNERS
OF THE
2023
CROSS
BORDER
CHALLENGE
PUBLICATION
NUMBER
42408014 ISSUE 46 | SUMMER 2023

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BETTERBUILDER.CA | ISSUE 46 | SUMMER 2023
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
2
Lessons on Calibration
by John Godden
THE BADA TEST
3
Is Code No Longer King?
by Lou Bada
INDUSTRY EXPERT
5
Spring Training Camp 2023
by Gord Cooke
INDUSTRY NEWS
8
Building Buy-In
Lindvest Homes took home the
big prize in this year’s Cross
Border Builder Challenge.
by Rob Blackstien
BUILDER NEWS
11
Toronto Laneway LEED Home
by Marc Huminilowycz
BUILDER NEWS
14
A Tradition of Building Better
BUILDER NEWS
16
Award to Canadian Low-
Volume Builder Dietrich Homes
by Alex Newman
BUILDER NEWS
18
Ground Zero for Zero Net Now
by Rob Blackstien
INDUSTRY NEWS
21
Time to Pump it Up Q and A
Paul De Berardis and Mike Martino
INNOVATION AWARD
27
Minto Dreaming Big
BUILDER NEWS
30
Heathwood Home at Last
BUILDER NEWS
31
A Family Affair
by Alex Newman
BUILDER NEWS
32
The 2023 Cross Border Builder
Challenge Golf Tournament
BUILDER NEWS
34
Aiming High, Building Low
by Better Builder Staff
FROM THE GROUND UP
35
Working with Wind
by Doug Tarry
5
1
32
ISSUE 46 | SUMMER 2023
Images internally supplied unless otherwise credited.
18
Cover and award photos by Mike Day, theartofweddings.com
The 2023 Cross Border
Builder Challenge

Lessons on Calibration
From the Cross Border Builder Challenge
“A vegan in a Hummer has a lighter carbon footprint than a beef eater in a Prius.”
— Michael Pollan, science journalist and author
P
ollan’s comparison is germane to our challenge of counting carbon emissions for
houses. The image of the two vehicles is misleading as the footprint mostly depends
on the dietary choices of the driver. Similarly, occupants who consume large
amounts of electricity may worsen their home’s energy efficiency from an operational
standpoint. If any total comparison of energy use or carbon emissions is to be made,
there must be a standard approach to measurement.
Initial analysis of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association’s (CHBA) net zero
indicates that 13 homes consume, on average, 39% more energy than predicted. Three
reasons for this are (1) differences of occupant lifestyle, (2) the solar panels produced less
energy than modelled and, most importantly, (3) the measurement tool may not measure
occupancy loads (plug loads and hot water) accurately.
It makes more sense to use a standards-approved software that accounts for occu
pancy rather than software that defaults all houses to the same operating conditions. As
52% of energy use in current Code homes is attached to occupancy loads, any attempt
to reach a “net” must recognize the behaviour of occupants. In the U.S., there are many
competing software providers, so HERS-based software is very accurate, user friendly
and under continuous improvement when it pertains to measuring zero.
HERS-based software is the first in North America to include standardized carbon
ratings (ANSI 301 2019). On the road to low carbon (no carbon does not exist), HERS
ratings provide the continuum for operational reductions.
This year’s RESNET/CRESNET Cross Border Builder Challenge reminds us that interna-
tional co-operation is key for any success. The challenge is a friendly annual competition
between American and Canadian homebuilders to determine just how energy efficient
builders can build. The rule is simple: the lowest Home Energy Rating System (HERS)/
Energy Rating Index (ERI) score wins. Lindvest Homes (page 8) and Zero Net Now (page
18) were the big winners of the President’s Award on either side of the border. All the win-
ning Canadian builders are graduates of Enbridge’s Savings by Design (SBD) program.
This year’s winners also surpassed the HERS 46 score recommended for Ontario under
ASHRAE 90.2, Energy-efficient Design of Low-rise Residential Buildings. Well done!
The international theme continues with Gord Cooke sharing lessons from the tenth
annual Building Knowledge Spring Training Camp, featuring expert presenters like Robert
Bean from the U.S. (page 5). Back home, Lou Bada describes the collaboration from the
Low Carbon Homebuilder Coalition, whose members have constructed 3,724 zero energy-
ready homes over the past three years (page 3). Lastly, Doug Tarry outlines potential
upcoming changes to structural requirements for the Ontario Building Code (page 35).
Returning to our comparison of cars and drivers, the right answer is not always
evident. For example, General Motors offers a Hummer with an electric vehicle option
– but the battery in it weighs more than a Honda Civic. In terms of energy efficiency, the
Civic may be the better choice. The way that we measure carbon emissions in residential
homebuilding must use a standardized accounting process, like the HERS/ERI used in
the Cross Border Builder Challenge. So where’s the beef? BB
publisher’snote / JOHN GODDEN
2
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levied on natural gas at $0.10 per cubic
metre. To put this in perspective,
someone driving a four-cylinder car
and living in an Energy Star home will
pay $421.77 in carbon tax annually.
In the summer 2022 issue, I intro
duced the hybrid house approach.
The hybrid house approach advocates
reaching a HERS 46 for the point of
diminishing marginal returns and
using a combination natural gas
heating system and a three-season
heat pump or supplemental heating
using off-peak electricity in the
shoulder months. Adding solar panels
should be undertaken only after
battery is considered (see Figure 1
above). The hybrid home can reduce
carbon emissions by 50%.
If HERS is no longer a compliance
path in the OBC, then the likelihood
of using it as a method to comply with
local standards is diminished.
The Low Carbon Home
builder Coalition (LCHC)
The idea behind the Low Carbon
Homebuilder Coalition (LCHC) is to
annually benchmark as many homes
T
he usefulness of a singular
Ontario Building Code (OBC) by
which we are governed cannot
be understated. It gives predictability,
transparency and accountability.
It allows us to build with the
confidence we need to address our
current housing supply crisis and
develop labour and supply chains to
move Ontario forward. One Code,
administered with common sense
by people of goodwill, would be best.
Unfortunately, this is not our case.
As homebuilders, we’ve (unfor-
tunately) become accustomed to
being a slave to many masters. As
many builders are aware, there is an
ongoing effort underway to harmo-
nize the latest proposed iteration of
the OBC with the National Building
Code (NBC). There maybe some good
reasons for this, but why strive for
harmonization if individual munic-
ipalities can impose their own local
green building standards on us? As
it stands, a builder cannot take an
approved plan by one municipality
and use it across the street (literally)
to build a home in another municipal-
ity. Maybe I don’t understand harmo-
nization as a concept.
More importantly, if harmoni
zation means less flexibility to enable
a builder to meet municipal green
building standards, I am really
perplexed.
Currently, SB-12, Chapter 3 recog
nizes the use of both the EnerGuide
Rating System (ERS) and Home
Energy Rating Scale (HERS) rating
systems. It already accommodates the
application of NBC 9.36.5.
The current harmonization drive
may codify the ERS only – not to
mention the ERS is also a proprietary
system. Having a single rating system
stifles innovation. EnerGuide is
fuel agnostic; however, the OBC
discriminates between different
fuel types. Ontario has its own peak
electrical challenges, so balancing the
wise use of natural gas with the need
for electricity for electric vehicles is key
for future success.
Starlane Homes participated
in the original ERS pilot in 2002.
Starlane decided we could not use
that EnerGuide rating to market its
houses. My company was an early
adopter of Energy Star in 2005. Starlane
prefers to use HERS as an alternative
rating system for equivalency under
local green building standards. 226
houses have been third-party verified
using this system over the past five
years, largely due to local green
building standards. HERS allows
for rating operational carbon with
a scale similar to the HERS energy
scale. Measuring operational carbon
is very important with the advent of
the carbon tax. Currently, the tax is
3
thebadatest / LOU BADA
Is Code No Longer King?
4
1
4
R60
R27
R20
2 2 3
NATURAL GAS CONNECTION
SUPPLEMENTAL
5
FIGURE 1: HYBRID
HOUSE FORMULA
=
Thermal design 1 to
HERS 46 (ASHRAE 90.2)
+
Combination heat 2 2
(20% reduction) (could
be two-stage furnace)
+
Three-season
heat pump 3
+
Battery storage 4
with inverter 4
and critical circuits
+
Modest solar array 5
(5-7kW)

4
America over eight climate zones.
Last year, 337,962 American houses
were rated. In Canada, 1,834 homes
were rated, largely in Ontario (GTA)
with some in Quebec. In the past
three years, GTA LCHC builders using
HERS have rated 3,724 homes at a
HERS 46 or lower (see chart above). In
comparison, approximately 990 net
zero-ready homes have been rated
over the last 10 years.
The key question is: Why do
most local green building standards
reference net zero-ready homes with
no mention of zero energy-ready
homes (HERS 46)? Why would Ontario
use only the ERS as a method of Code
compliance?
The coalition promotes choice to
allow builders the tools to innovate.
Ontario has a proven system which has
worked over the last 10 years, and Code
harmonization should not mean the
elimination of choice. It must identify
other systems for energy performance
in the body of the Code, as is currently
the case.
The current SB-12 is well
understood by building officials across
Ontario. It allows choice and flexibility
so that Ontario can lead Canada
and North America in constructing
low-carbon, sustainable, affordable
and resilient housing. The coalition
is working hard to ensure that code
harmonization allows for innovation
to meet the challenges of the future.
Any builders interested in joining
the coalition should contact Paul De
Berardis at RESCON (deberardis@
rescon.com) to have these projects
benchmarked for carbon.
The OBC should be “king,” specific
to Ontario’s needs. We should be able
to build the same home no matter
where you live in an Ontario climate
zone. If the government wants us to
meet ambitious carbon reduction
goals, they need to please take the
ERS straitjacket off. BB
Lou Bada is vice-
president of low-rise
construction at Starlane
Home Corporation
and on the board of
directors for the Residential Construction
Council of Ontario (RESCON).
as possible to see how progress in
new home construction is stacking up
against federal commitments – a type
of report card for residential builders.
This information can then be shared
with governments to inform their
decision making and timing of
building code updates. (Refer to
last year’s results: 2,506 tons of CO2
reductions with 527 cars off the road.)
As a member of RESCON and a
participating builder in the LCHC,
I recently met with the Ministry
of Municipal Affairs and Housing
(MMAH) to make them aware of the
coalition and our need to retain HERS
as a method of Code compliance.
Comparing ERS and HERS
ERS defaults (assumes) occupancy
loads for hot water and electricity
use. These loads account for 52%
of a home’s energy consumption.
Only envelope losses including
airtightness, increased insulation
levels and triple-glazed windows
count in ERS for reducing CO2
emissions. This means that ERS does
not accurately reflect true carbon
emissions reductions. Many net zero
houses end up consuming more
energy than predicted because energy
modelling does not capture the true
load created by the occupants.
On the other hand, zero
energy-ready homes, which I have
elaborated on in my previous article,
target a HERS 46 under the ASHRAE
90.2 standard, which describes
the point of diminishing marginal
returns for our weather zone 6.
This rating approach is used by the
International Energy Conservation
Code (IECC) and has been used to
rate over 3.6 million houses in North
NUMBER OF HOMES ACHIEVING
A HERS 46 OR LESS PER
BUILDER 2020–2022
YEAR
2020 2021 2022 TOTAL
HOMES
24
HERS
BUILDERS
138 205 80 423
57 35 61 153
4 17 1 22
0 13 9 22
0 6 24 30
841 559 428 1828
3 1 0 4
0 12 76 88
18 63 76 157
14 7 17 38
1 42 123 166
0 7 0 7
0 1 0 1
2 0 0 2
31 46 28 105
31 130 40 201
45 0 0 45
2 2 66 70
1 20 0 21
94 16 1 111
10 89 60 159
0 25 7 32
17 1 21 39
5 9 0 14
TOTAL
1309 1297 1118 3724

I
n April, we were proud to host our
tenth annual Spring Training Camp.
This year, we held it in Stratford,
Ontario for two specific reasons.
We partnered with the Canadian
Home Builders’ Association (CHBA)
Net Zero Leadership Summit and
they organized tours to three sites,
including the Sifton West 5 Net
Zero Energy community in London.
The Stratford location provided a
convenient distance between the
Toronto travelling hub and the site
tour locations.
Moreover, the mash-up with CHBA
expanded attendance to over 200
people, and Stratford hotels were able
to accommodate this larger group of
enthusiastic builders, manufacturers
and industry influencers. We
were pleased that, even with the
larger crowd, participants engaged
proactively in panel discussions,
debates and demonstrations with the
over 20 presenters and facilitators.
The Camp agenda was extended
over a three-day experience to allow for
the site tours and workshops offered
by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan)
on new software tools available in the
energy modelling realm.
This year’s experiment with the
CHBA collaboration is consistent
with our vision of Camp to encourage
conversations with as wide a range
of industry participants as possible:
builders, manufacturers, utilities,
all levels of government, energy
advisors and consultants. We need
that depth of co-operation to tackle
5
Spring Training Camp 2023
industryexpert / GORD COOKE
Even with the larger
crowd, participants
engaged proactively
in panel discussions,
debates and demon
strations with the
over 20 presenters
and facilitators.
Gord Cooke (left) and
Alexis Minniti of Building
Knowledge and John
Straube (right) of RDN
Building Science after
sharing a presentation on
the carbon implications of
high performance walls.

6
the compelling challenges for the
industry. Specifically, this year’s focus
was on the intertwined imperatives
of housing affordability and supply,
resiliency, greenhouse gas (carbon)
emission reductions and healthier
indoor environments.
Not surprisingly, these themes
were explored by Brad Carr, CEO
of Mattamy Homes Canada. Brad
noted that Mattamy is now one of
the largest independently owned
new homebuilders in North America,
with divisions across Canada and
the southern U.S. He outlined their
corporate journey as the largest
Energy Star-qualified homebuilder
in Canada (with over 20,000 certified
homes), their involvement in the Net
Zero Energy pilot in 2015 and the
recent Net Zero Ready community in
Markham that includes a geothermal
district heating system. They are
now committing to a comprehensive
carbon reduction plan across all
divisions in North America.
When questioned about the
impact on affordability of homes, Carr
noted the industry’s responsibility to
simultaneously address the housing
availability crisis in Canada without
compromising the impact on climate
change. He challenged participants to
collaborate with all industry sectors,
including finance partners, to solve
these two challenges.
The technical portion of the
agenda started with the ever-thought-
provoking Robert Bean. Bean, an
ASHRAE Fellow, expanded the
audience’s understanding of energy
efficiency to the deeper discussion of
“exergy.” He noted that while society
has an intuitive understanding of
energy efficiency, exergy describes
the quality of the energy and its
potential capacity to do work. In this
context, he noted that burning natural
gas to create a flame at over 1500°C
should not be used solely for heating
houses – that flame has the capacity
for much greater work. The analogy
of using a chainsaw to cut a slice of
cheese was used. Bean reminded
Campers that, as we look to solve the
climate change crisis and even the
affordability challenge, understanding
the quality and value of energy sources
will be very helpful.
The discussion of appropriate
decisions for energy sources provided
a perfect segue to two sessions
on heat pumps. Specifically, John
Siegenthaler of Appropriate Designs, a
leading North American authority on
hydronic heating solutions, introduced
the audience to the “new frontier of
heating, cooling and domestic hot
water”: air-to-water heat pumps.
Siegenthaler noted the trend towards
net zero energy homes supports the
emerging market for these pumps,
stating that “they don’t have the
liability associated with fossil fuels;
they’re less expensive and disruptive
than geothermal.”
Then, Gary Proskiw of Proskiw
Engineering Ltd. headlined a panel
discussion on testing and in-field
performance of air source heat
pumps. Proskiw noted that the early
experiences with air source heat
pumps in net zero energy homes
show issues of inadequate airflow,
excessive cycling and incorrect cut-off
temperatures. There is work to be done
to improve design, installation and
control of heat pumps moving forward.
Dr. John Straube of RDH Building
Science Labs is always a featured
speaker at Camp, and his presentation
this year highlighted both carbon
reduction and resiliency as it relates
to the building science of high-
performance walls. With the help of
demonstration walls built with support
from NRCan’s LEEP team, using their
training videos and guides, Straube
was able to show and comment on
new wall details that can meet high-
performance objectives in a buildable
and cost-effective manner.
We feel Camp should always high
light the experiences of builders. To
this end, three leading builders –
represented by Carl Pawlowski from
Minto Group, Stefanie Coleman of
Doug Tarry Homes, and Oding and
Phillip Santana from Mattamy Homes
– were asked to share their carbon
reduction strategies and experiences in
a panel discussion. They each outlined
the work they have undertaken so far,
as well as their one-year, five-year and
10-year plans. They also offered their
advice of first steps for other builders.
Each company has undertaken a
benchmarking or baselining of their
current building practices and engaged
with employees, trades and customers
to learn their expectations as they set
their future goals.
Our goal at Camp is to highlight problems and
challenges the new homebuilding industry is
facing, provide insights from the leading experts
in the field that are researching these challenges
and encourage discussion from builders who
have found solutions to these problems.

We were very pleased to have
Mike Memme of Mountainview
Building Group and Andy Oding of
Building Knowledge Canada revive
the most popular session from 2022:
the Home Builder Night in Canada
segment. Memme went over the
top 10 things that keep him up at
night. No surprise that it starts with
the basics to avoid costly warranty
defects, such as flashing, airtightness
and framing missteps. In addition,
Memme captured the approval of
the audience as he expressed his
concern for practices to ensure the
safety of his employees, trades and
homeowners. Finally, he noted the
angst of swimming upstream in trying
to change and do things differently to
improve productivity.
Our goal at Camp is to highlight
problems and challenges the new
homebuilding industry is facing, pro-
vide insights from the leading experts
in the field that are researching these
challenges and encourage discussion
from builders who have found solu-
tions to these problems. We are so
appreciative of the presenters and pan-
ellists who shared their insights and
experiences. We are thankful as well to
both the regular and first-time Camp-
ers from across Canada and parts of
the U.S. who actively engaged in the
discussion and then generously helped
us raise over $10,000 for the Stratford
United Way Affordable Housing Initia-
tive through a charity auction. Thanks
to all of those who donated and bid on
auction items. BB
For the full agenda and copies of
presentations from this year’s Camp,
go to www.buildingknowledge.ca/
spring-camp.
Gord Cooke is
president of Building
Knowledge Canada.
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8
industrynews / ROB BLACKSTIEN
O
ver his nearly three-decade
career in housing, Anthony
Martelli has always been a
big proponent of green building. “It’s
what I believe in,” he says.
This philosophy has taken him
from Greenpark Homes to LIV
Communities to CountryWide Homes
and, since 2018, to Lindvest, where
he took over as CEO at the beginning
of last year and has now guided the
Toronto-based builder to the most
coveted award available in the Cross
Border Builder Challenge – the
CRESNET President’s Award.
Lindvest earned this honour for its
Klein subdivision in Vaughan, Ontario,
scoring an average fleet HERS score of
45. But, the truth is, the homes in this
development weren't necessarily any
better than Lindvest’s usual offerings.
That’s because, as Martelli says, the
company pretty much uses the same
specs across all its projects.
Among the features the builder
employed to help win this award were:
• Airtightness is very important to
them, he says, and “we’ve found
the best way to achieve that is
through care and attention during
the build process.”
• A finish-ready basement (FRB)
with ROCKWOOL on the outside
of the framed wall, plus as much
insulation as possible between
the studs (R-22 or R-24). They
really try to push up that R-value
on the outside as high as they
can, Martelli says. Many Lindvest
homes have FRBs including R-10
under slab insulation.
• In terms of mechanicals, they use
drain water heat recovery for pre-
heating (PowerPipe) with energy-
efficient hot water tanks, furnaces
and air handlers. Lindvest prefers
energy recovery ventilators (ERVs)
over heat recovery ventilators
(HRVs) and heavily employs water-
saving devices throughout the home.
For the Klein subdivision, Lindvest
participated in Enbridge’s Savings by
Design (SBD) program and echoed the
sentiments of countless builders who
have graduated: the most valuable
aspect of the initiative is the charrette,
which offers a fantastic opportunity
to strategize over building technique
innovations and ensure the entire
team is on the same page. “I think the
best part of it was bringing everyone
into the room and getting real-time
feedback,” Martelli says.
For instance, if the company
proposes a new spec for a particular
project when the stakeholders are
all there, they can get opinions or
comments on it right away, and
that’s invaluable from an efficiency
standpoint. “What appears to be a
good idea in the boardroom doesn’t
always make its way to becoming a
good idea in the field. So having them
there to help vet some of the proposals,
I think, was very beneficial.”
He adds that this process really
helped drive buy-in, because the key
stakeholders (building supervisors,
key trades, etc.) understood what
the company was trying to do. “And
that’s part of the reason we’ve been so
successful.”
In fact, Martelli maintains that this
buy-in is what differentiates Lindvest
from other builders. The company
takes a top-down approach to ensure
their outside team gets very involved
in understanding what the builder’s
Building Buy-In
Lindvest Homes Takes Home the Big Prize
45
2017 SB-12 REFERENCE HERS 52
HERSSCORE
Richard Lyall of RESCON presents the
President’s Award to Dan LaCroix (left)
and Jason Morin (right) of Lindvest.

goals and objectives are. “If they don’t
understand it, how can they oversee the
trade partners that are coming onto the
job site to make sure that every house
is going to be built to the best level
that we can possibly achieve?”
Information sharing and training
is key to this process, but they don’t
just shout into a vacuum – great care
is taken to ensure that every
thing is
clearly understood.
Generally speaking, Martelli says,
when it comes to creating energy-
efficient homes, the specs are
likely going to be quite similar
from builder to builder. So how
can you truly differentiate
your housing offerings from
the pack? “I think it comes
down to the execution and the
commitment of the people doing the
execution,” he explains.
Looking forward, Lindvest is
considering building a demo home
in Klein with the hopes of driving
down its HERS score through the
use of renewables. The builder is
participating in SBD’s new Zero Energy
Ready Program. “We can’t be satisfied
to stay at 45, so we’re certainly looking
to drive that number down.”
Of course, how much lower will
be based on the specs they consider,
and those are still being written. But
Martelli says, “I would love to get
under 40 without solar PV.”
Speaking of the future,
Building Code changes that will
affect all industry players are
coming next spring, but Lindvest
9
is confident that it’s well-prepared for
the new regime. “This is something
we’ve been working on for a few years
now, always trying to be ahead of the
requirements,” he says. “We feel that
we’re very well positioned.”
Still, Martelli says the company
would like further clarity on what’s
being planned down the road, so it can
continue to be ahead of any changes.
“We’ve always been 20% or more better
than code,” he states. “If the code is
changing – well, we don’t want to sim-
ply comply, we want to look at oppor-
tunities to still be better than code.”
Now that sounds like the mindset of
an award-winning company. BB
Rob Blackstien is a Toronto-based
freelance writer. Pen-Ultimate.ca

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S16008WA

A
state-of-the-art, LEED
Platinum home on a tiny
25-feet by 25-feet laneway
property in the downtown Toronto
neighbourhood of Leslieville has
won a Zero Energy-Ready award in
the Annual Cross Border Builder
Challenge, achieving an impressive
HERS (Home Energy Rating System)
score of 35.
The project, built by Toronto
builder Barbini Design Build in
partnership with leading high-
performance home product
manufacturers, features the very
latest in energy efficiency, indoor
air quality and water conservation.
“We are very honoured to receive
this award. It’s been a fascinating
project with lots of support from
a number of valuable partners,”
says Amedeo Barbini. “When it’s
complete, the home will be a real
showpiece, demonstrating the best
in energy efficiency and design.”
The laneway project is not
Barbini’s first foray into sustainable
building. “Always doing our best to
achieve low carbon in the homes we
build, we got into a LEED approach
to better indoor air quality (IAQ)
20 years ago with the help of John
Godden at Clearsphere,” he explains.
“Building green and better IAQ is
really a parallel path. It’s always
been a modelling process with
checkpoints throughout the project.
With LEED Platinum certification,
there are a lot more boxes to check
– with more things, like radon
mitigation, in the basket.”
High on the LEED list for indoor
environmental quality (IEQ), the
mitigation of radon gas (prevalent
in most of southern Ontario) was
achieved in the home with an
integrated radiant floor radon
mitigation system from building
partner Amvic Building System,
including Amrad R-12 in-slab vapour
mitigation and insulation and
SilveRboard reflective insulation on
the inside of the foundation wall.
“We’ve integrated radon mitigation
and the latest in IAQ technology into
the house so that it works better,” says
Barbini. “When you walk into a home
like this, you really feel the difference.
It’s not just glam and fancy finishes or
boasting that the house has A, B and C
features. It’s an experiential attribute.
The LEED program lets you do this.”
Another key partner in the project’s
quest for better IAQ and energy
efficiency was Panasonic Canada,
who helped with the design of the
mechanical system to make the home
fossil fuel-free. “They were a top-shelf
11
Toronto Laneway LEED Home
Zero Energy-Ready Award
buildernews / MARC HUMINILOW YCZ
11
35
HERSSCORE
Sonny Pirrotta, Jesse
Davidson, Chris Barbini
and Amedeo Barbini.
“The Leslieville LEED
home has been an
exciting project with
amazing partners and
trades enthusiastically
on board, resulting in
a sustainable, well-
designed, healthy
and resilient home.”

12
company to work with,” says
Barbini. “All of their divisions
were tremendously helpful,
designing and contributing
Panasonic Breathe Well
products such as zoned
heat pumps, ERV, NanoeX
air purification, Whisper
Air Repair air purifiers and Swidget
air quality monitoring smart controls
for monitoring, management and
automation throughout the home to
bring the whole system to life. On top
of this, Panasonic gave workshops on
their products to our trades at their
location and on-site.”
In order for the Leslieville home
to meet LEED standards – and win
the Zero Energy-Ready award –
Panasonic also contributed as many
solar panels that could fit on the
home’s limited 600-square-foot roof
space (due to its small footprint). In
addition, the company connected
two batteries to the 4 KWh system for
energy storage, to be used both as a
backup in case of power outages and
for “peak shaving” – economizing
electricity rates by charging during
off-peak times and using the
batteries during on-peak periods.
Water conservation was another
key component of LEED building.
Coming to the aid of the project was a
name that is synonymous with quality
home water fixtures and management:
Moen Canada. The company gener
ously contributed all of the plumbing
fixtures (low flow, of course); a smart
shower water temperature system
with the ability to remotely preheat
the water from a smartphone; and
its FLO water conservation system,
installed where municipal water enters
the home, which detects leaks in the
home’s plumbing. The home includes
a Greyter greywater recycling system,
which recycles shower water and
uses it for the toilets.
Accounting for a significant
percentage of global CO2 emis-
sions, embodied carbon refers to
the greenhouse gas emissions
from the manufacturing,
transportation, installation,
maintenance and disposal of building
materials. In order to address this con-
cern, the home’s construction involved
the use of low- carbon building mate-
rials as much as possible. Project part-
ner ROCKWOOL contributed its stone
wool insulation and Building Products
of Canada supplied R-5 XP wood fiber
structural insulation panels.
“The Leslieville LEED home has
been an exciting project with amazing
partners and trades enthusiastically on
board, resulting in a sustainable, well-
designed, healthy and resilient home,”
says Barbini. “Showcasing the latest
in high-performance green building
technology, such as the Swidget
system – I’m really excited to see how
it works – the home will demonstrate
what a low-carbon home can look
like and how simple it is to operate.
And the owners of the property,
Skye Mainstreet Properties Ltd., are
really on board. They have a website
devoted to the home [leedhomes.ca],
and they’re planning to host public
events to show off its award-winning
attributes.” BB
Marc Huminilowycz
is a senior writer. He
lives and works in
a low-energy home
built in 2000. As
such, he brings first-hand experience
to his writing on technology and
residential housing and has published
numerous articles on the subject.
This rating is available for
homes built by leading edge
builders who have chosen to
advance beyond current
energy efﬁciency programs
and have taken the next step
on the path to full sustainability.
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Email info@clearsphere.ca
or call 416-481-7517

14
S
ince its establishment in 1984
by Vaughan, Ontario builder
Frank Carogioiello, Royal
Pine Homes has earned a stellar
reputation for building high-quality
luxury single-family homes and
communities. In more recent years,
the company has been actively
working to reduce the carbon
footprint of its homes using several
energy-saving building approaches.
Back in 2007, Royal Pine Homes
became one of the first builders
to construct Energy Star homes in
Ontario as part of a Town of Vaughan
project named Block 39. “The town
incentivized several builders,
including our company, to label all of
their homes in the project as Energy
Star,” says Royal Pine vice president
Steve Carogioiello. “In return,
our subdivision approvals were
expedited.”
A few years later, Richmond Hill,
Ontario was experiencing issues with
its existing infrastructure, specifically
its sanitary sewer capacity. To help
meet the challenge, Royal Pine Homes
entered into a subdivision agreement
with the municipality to construct
its 112 homes to exceed Energy Star
using the Home Energy Rating System
(HERS), as well as equipping each
home with solar hot water heating.
“Working with John Godden from
Clearsphere, we asked ourselves
how we could make Royal Pine
homes better, and came up with this
solution,” Carogioiello explains. “To
my knowledge, it was the first time
this approach was used in Canada.
We also had a meeting with our
purchasers before construction
began and gave them the opportunity
to purchase other energy upgrades,
saying to them, ‘You now have control
over your own hot water. What else
can we do?’”
Royal Pine Homes has continued
its commitment to sustainability.
Since 2022, the company has
completed over 100 homes that have
exceeded 20% better than code.
This year, it won the 2023 RESNET/
CRESNET Cross Border Builder
Challenge for Lowest HERS Score,
Canadian Mid-Production Builder
with an impressive rating of 43 for
its discovery home in the Centerfield
subdivision of Richmond Hill.
“With the help of Enbridge’s Savings
by Design program, we engaged the
building department in an integrated
design process (IDP) workshop,
where experts made presentations on
improving the building envelope and
mechanical system performance,”
says Carogioiello. “Through computer
modelling, we achieved 20%
better than code. Even though the
municipality specified Energy Star
A Tradition of Building Better
Royal Pine Homes Wins Award
43
HERSSCORE
Brian Cooke (left)
of AeroBarrier and
Tony Simonelli of
Royal Pine Homes.

labelling, we worked out our own customized
package to achieve a better result.”
According to Carogioiello, Royal Pine
received monetary incentives for its first 50
homes in the subdivision that reached 15%
better than code and currently has 75 homes
completed with an average HERS of 46, or
23% better than code. “We prefer Better
Than Code to Energy Star because there’s
no pass or fail on airtightness testing. This has been a
problem for builders who don’t pass because they can’t
close houses without the Energy Star label,” he says.
Moving forward, Royal Pine Homes will be offering
homeowners a hybrid gas/electric heating/cooling
system as an upgrade, incorporating a three-season
heat pump. “A hybrid house is like a hybrid car,”
Carogioiello explains. “In the dead of winter when it’s
very cold outside, you heat with natural gas. During
the other seasons, an air source heat pump supplies
heat and cooling with inexpensive off-peak electricity.”
“We are very pleased to have won this Cross Border
Builder Challenge,” says Carogioiello. “It shows Cana
dian consumers that Royal Pine is exceeding code per
formance levels while reducing the impact of climate
change. As smart builders, we have decided to use
HERS as a rating metric. All of our homes meet HERS
46, which is considered zero energy-ready. And we’re
educating our buyers on the sustainable features of the
homes with online videos to help them understand. In
reality, we’re still selling our homes in a tough market.
I guess the proof will be in the pudding.” BB
Marc Huminilowycz is a senior writer.
He lives and works in a low-energy
home built in 2000. As such, he brings
first-hand experience to his writing on
technology and residential housing
and has published numerous articles on the subject.
15
519-489-2541
airsealingpros.ca
As energy continues to
become a bigger concern,
North American building
codes and energy programs
are moving towards giving
credit for and/or requiring
Airtightness testing.
AeroBarrier, a new and
innovative envelope
sealing technology, is
transforming the way
residential, multifamily,
and commercial buildings
seal the building envelope.
AeroBarrier can help
builders meet any level
of airtightness required,
in a more consistent
and cost-effective way.
Take the guesswork out
of sealing the envelope
with AeroBarrier’s
proprietary technology.
Royal Pine Homes has
continued its commitment to
sustainability. Since 2022, the
company has completed over
100 homes that have exceeded
20% better than code.

16
buildernews / ALEX NEWMAN
T
his story is about how Dietrich
Homes won an award for lowest
HERS score in the 2023 Cross
Border Builder Challenge. But what
it’s really about is how 10 years of
developing low-energy sustainable
housing led to the award.
The Peterborough-area company
has branded itself as “a better
alternative and better option for
buyers looking for a better built
home,” says owner and vice president
Paul Dietrich. The award is validation
they’re achieving that goal. But the
proof came long before, in the third-
party testing scores garnered from the
Enbridge Savings by Design program
and the Better Than Code HERS label.
However, this isn’t the first time
Dietrich Homes has won a CRESNET
award; in 2022, they received the
RESNET H2O Cross Border award
for water conservation. “It measures
a builder’s demonstration of water
efficiency within a home,” Dietrich
says. “The lower the score, the lower
the water consumption. We achieved
a 31% reduction in water use with
measures like greywater recycling.”
Last year’s award-winning entry
was from the Trails of Lily Lake: the
discovery home and two models beside
it, which had numerous energy-saving
features built in from the outset. The
company’s goal with the three homes
was to educate homeowners on water
conservation techniques.
But what snagged this year’s
award is the company’s consistent
20% above the Ontario Building Code
on all its homes. That’s particularly
commendable, considering the
competition throughout the region
builds only to code and not above.
Dietrich says the extra effort has
been worthwhile. Their homes are
now zero energy-ready – something
that requires a HERS score of 46 or
less (Dietrich’s homes come in at 44
on average.)
Being zero energy-ready has caught
the attention of Enbridge Gas, which
has just approved Dietrich Homes to
build Net Zero Ready (NZR) and offered
them program incentives. The company
was also recently permitted the first
NZR home to be built in Peterborough.
Although NZR is in its infancy
(less than 2% of new homes are NZR),
consumers are increasingly aware and
are starting to expect green measures
in their new homes because of the
lower utility bills – and lower fossil
fuel emissions. Consequently, builders
will have to keep up with the demand.
And that demand is not just from
savvy homebuyers – municipalities
and provinces expect it too, and
they’re legislating increasingly strict
green building standards. (To help
manage those government green
building expectations, Dietrich Homes
is participating in the Low Carbon
Homebuilder Coalition with other
leading builders to report their annual
emission reductions.)
Cost is another factor. Housing
affordability is such an issue, Dietrich
says, that providing a better built home
that results in lower utility bills is
especially important. “The homebuyer
today and tomorrow will be requesting
– if not demanding – energy efficiencies
and savings in their next home selection
to definitely offset the escalating costs
of housing from land, permits, fees,
material and labour cost increases.”
Dietrich Homes
Lowest HERS Score for a Canadian Low-Volume Builder
42
HERSSCORE
Richard Lyall (left)
of RESCON and
Paul Dietrich of
Dietrich Homes.

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The company’s desire to create
an energy-efficient home was backed
by solid research of homebuyer
preferences. “We saw that a safe,
healthy and comfortable indoor
living environment was top of mind,”
Dietrich says.
The research prompted
discussions with Clearsphere’s
John Godden and Enbridge about
how to achieve greater efficiencies.
A concept/design workshop
about Enbridge’s Savings by
Design program resulted in
the company establishing a
superior built home with
energy-efficient building
products and superior
installation techniques.
Better still, Dietrich Homes has
discovered that building better than
code can be accomplished with
marginally increased costs.
Achieving this kind of better
built home depends a lot on building
materials and construction methods.
For example, it takes less energy to
heat and cool when the building
envelope is tight, with better insulation
and a tighter air barrier. Add in energy
recovery ventilators and tankless hot
water heaters and you’ve got the
ingredients for significantly less
energy consumption.
As a further benefit to home
buyers, Dietrich is offering
secondary suites in all homes
currently under construction.
They’re the first in Peterborough to
do so. “This feature is being widely
accepted as assistance with both
housing affordability and attainability
with the additional income that can
be recognized by a ‘mortgage helper’
occupying the secondary suite,” he says.
Winning the CRESNET award is
“true satisfaction,” Dietrich says,
because of the recognition by peers
and colleagues for building sustainable
housing. It’s an accomplishment he
shares with the build team. BB
Alex Newman is a writer,
editor and researcher at
alexnewmanwriter.com.
17

18
buildernews / ROB BLACKSTIEN
“It seems that even though every
body knows the story, the allegory
of their decisions has been lost on
humanity and the building trades,”
says the president of Esopus, New
York-based Zero Net Now, which took
home three awards at this year’s Cross
Border Builder Challenge.
Aebi says the industry proudly
refers to “stick building,” which is
what the second little pig tried. And
we all know how that worked out
against the big, bad wolf (which, in this
instance, is Mother Nature).
So while working on his own home
in 2007, he opted to heed the fable’s
lesson; therefore, “the idea of just build
ing a better structure was my goal.”
To say he accomplished his ambi-
tion is an immense understatement.
During the design process, Aebi
says they realized the house was
modelling towards having a better
envelope, and that meant that a lower
load was required. This made using
geothermal possible, “which is much
more efficient than a typical fossil fuel-
based system or even an air source
heat pump system,” he says. Of course,
air source heat pumps didn’t really
exist in their climate back then.
Aebi says that other benefits of
geothermal include: all equipment is
located inside a conditioned space,
so it’s safe from being infiltrated by
insects and rodents while remaining
immune from the affects of weather
(and wear and tear).
Ground Zero for Zero Net Now
Award-winning New York builder has been making
net zero homes before anyone knew what that even meant.
W
hen Anthony Aebi first started building low-energy homes, he certainly
wasn’t thinking about winning any awards or making history. His
inspiration, rather, was rooted in a much more modest place: the
children’s fable of the three little pigs.
Mechanical room, geothermal
heat pump, and hot water heater
complete with duct sealing.
PHOTO
COURTESY
OF
INTEG
R
AL
BUILDING
+
DESIG
N

Finally, solar was added to the mix,
as the State of New York had a great
incentive program for both solar and
geothermal at the time.
Once the home was completed,
Aebi had a rater come in to see if it
had achieved Energy Star; for good
measure, he asked him to also rate it
for LEED. Upon completion, the rater
called him up to tell him this was the
first rated zero energy home – ever.
Aebi was skeptical, to put it mildly.
“I said, ‘I don’t have time for this
nonsense,’ and I hung up on him. I
thought he was full of poop.”
By 2007, the U.S. Green Building
Council had launched, LEED was
gathering steam and green building
was on everyone’s minds, so it’s only
natural that Aebi couldn’t believe he
was the first. But the rater called back
and assured Aebi he was serious. “I
didn’t know that this wasn’t done at
the time. That was a surprise. And so I
never looked back from there.”
How far ahead of its time was this
home? Well, when the Department of
Energy (DOE) presented an award for
this house five years later, its records
still showed it as the only home to
score this low. In fact, Aebi says, the
house literally rated ahead of a HERS
score of zero (at the time, the scale
didn’t go below zero).
Aebi may as well have built a
flying car, but in his mind, he didn’t
understand what the fuss was about.
“I didn’t feel like I did anything
great or special. I thought I was just
building a better structure. That’s it.”
Flash forward to today, and
making such homes is old hat for Zero
Net Now. Small wonder it bagged
the following honours in the Cross
Border Builder Challenge: U.S. Net
Zero Builder with a HERS –13 (with
renewables); U.S. Enbridge Innovation
Award; and Lowest HERS score U.S.
Low Volume Builder with a HERS 26
(the same houses without renewables).
Of course, taking home Cross
Border Builder Challenge hardware is
nothing new for Aebi, who has been
winning awards since the company
was called Greenhill Contracting (see
“The Home of the Future Now” in the
summer 2015 issue, page 16) before
rebranding about six years ago.
The key ingredients that allow
Zero Net Now to garner such impres
sive scores include:
• Solar panels;
• Geothermal heating and cooling;
• Super insulation and high-
efficiency windows; and
• Heat recovery ventilation.
The builder also employs several
water conservation practices, including
WaterSense-certified fixtures, and a
“home run” system in which every
fixture has a dedicated home run to
a common manifold (as opposed to
traditional design, where it’s like a tree
branching out to all the fixtures).
Under that setup, if you’re drawing
from a faraway bathroom, you’re
basically having to fill up all the
pipes between with hot water until it
gets to that fixture. With his system,
Aebi says, hot water only goes in that
one dedicated pipe, resulting in it
arriving much quicker and much more
efficiently to each individual fixture.
He estimates his design requires up
to two gallons less each time you draw
from that fixture. Obviously, that adds
up over time. “We also size the pipe to
the minimum necessary,” so that way
you don’t have a larger amount of water
that needs to be conditioned.
Aebi is a huge proponent of zero
energy-ready building, but believes it
should go beyond the DOE’s definition,
which is simply a home that is built
in such a way that, if renewables
are desired, no major renovation is
required to accommodate them.
“But to me, I think it should also
mean that you have a structure that
has as low a HERS score at completion
as possible,” he explains. Otherwise,
Aebi suggests, you can make any
building zero energy ready if you put a
couple of panels of solar out.
He has a point. If that home is not
built with superior energy efficiency
qualities, wouldn’t adding renewables
to it be akin to putting a Lamborghini
engine into a Fiat?
Zero Net Now’s rater of choice is
Integral Building + Design, a company
intimately familiar with HERS-rated
homes, having scored 265 of them
last year alone. President and founder
Pasquale Strocchia is clearly a fan
of Aebi’s work. “Anthony Aebi is a
visionary builder that is uniquely
driven to walk his talk,” he says.
Considering Aebi is ground zero
for net zero, it’s clear Strocchia is not
overselling things in the least. BB
Rob Blackstien is a
Toronto-based freelance
writer. Pen-Ultimate.ca   
19
-13
HERSSCORE

To take a deeper dive into the
practical options and applications for
HVAC improvements in new homes,
I sat down to have a Q and A-style
discussion with fellow Better Builder
contributor and industry expert Mike
Martino of Martino HVAC. We take
a deeper dive into HVAC trends and
emerging opportunities to feasibly
advance GHG reductions in a home.
Most new homes include typical HVAC
and mechanical equipment such as a
natural gas-fired forced air furnace for
space heating, an air conditioner for
space cooling and a natural gas-fired
hot water tank. However, using these
common pieces of HVAC equipment
or variations of them opens up huge
potential to save on energy as well as
reduce GHG emissions.
Q: Mike, you’ve been at this for a long
time and that gives you a unique per-
spective on the evolution of energy-
efficiency improvements for new
homes in Ontario. Can you share with
us your ideas on the most cost-effective
solutions for reducing carbon?
A: Starting with the design, right-
sizing equipment is critical as the
building envelope of homes has come
a long way with heat loss calculations
demonstrating heating loads that are
lower than they used to be. Equipment
needs to be sized appropriately for
these new lower heating loads, and
this has led to the consideration of
alternative equipment such as air
source heat pumps.
To clarify, for this discussion, we
are referring to three-season heat
pumps, not cold-climate heat pumps.
Heat pumps can be sized to meet
much of the heat loss design load,
with a natural gas-forced air furnace
providing the heat when outdoor
air temperatures drop below zero.
However, a heat pump can’t simply
be swapped out for a conventional air
conditioner. Considerations for proper
sizing of ductwork and designing for
air flow are critical to optimize the
efficient use of a heat pump down
into lower temperatures while still
maintaining occupant comfort.
The other low-hanging fruit is to
ensure that, whatever equipment is
specified and installed, it must be op-
erating properly to achieve its designed
efficiency. This is why commissioning
of all HVAC systems is critical, with
testing and analysis required to ensure
airflow, pressures and system balanc-
ing is within the design parameters and
equipment specifications. RESCON has
been engaged with the Technical
Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA)
and Enbridge, alongside the Residential
Heating Ventilation Contractors Asso-
ciation (RHVCA), to more consistently
apply and ensure commissioning
protocols are in place so that HVAC
equipment is operating at peak efficiency
for new homeowners. Ensuring natural
gas equipment is operating optimally
helps to minimize GHG emissions.
Q: With the uptake of new technology,
there’s usually a learning curve
to contend with. Is Martino HVAC
equipped to deal with implementing
emerging HVAC trends?
A: While there is a learning curve
to implementing new practices and
equipment applications, Martino
HVAC is equipped to deal with the
changes and has been working with
21
Time to Pump it Up Q and A
Paul De Berardis and Mike Martino
industrynews / PAUL DE BERARDIS
W
ith the next edition of the Ontario Building Code (OBC) being released
in March 2024, changes are forthcoming to improve energy efficiency
in new homes. Compared to where we are today, revised design and
construction practices will be required to meet upcoming regulations, with
likely options being adding exterior continuous insulation, window upgrades or
airtightness improvements to meet code. However, because the objective of these
advancing building regulations is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions,
it may be worth considering a more direct way of working towards this goal –
after all, the building envelope of a home can be improved only so much when
factoring in cost-benefit analyses. In this article, I want to focus on the heating,
ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system of a home.
Balometer for balancing forced air
systems to match HVAC design.

22
these technologies for years now with
increasing frequency. Martino has
dealt with applications of both cold-
climate heat pumps and three-season
heat pumps, but the deciding factor is
usually cost, with a cold-climate heat
pump being more than double the
cost of a three-season heat pump. So,
without subsidies from government to
incentivize the uptake of heat pumps
into the mass market, the uptake has
been limited as homebuilders are cost
conscious, knowing that additional
charges will inevitably be passed onto
new home buyers.
With support for continuous
training and collaboration with
equipment manufacturers like Daikin
and Goodman, Martino HVAC is
prepared to handle the greater uptake
of three-season heat pumps in place
of traditional air conditioners. We
have also been working on other
emerging product offerings, including
combo systems, whereby forced
air systems, either low-velocity and
up to high-velocity, are paired with
hydronic technologies.
More specifically, we are using
combo systems where an air handler
is connected to a water-to-air heat
exchanger that is supplied with hot
water. Depending on the size of home,
ranging from something as small as a
two-bedroom stacked townhouse to
homes over 5,000 square feet, combo
systems can be designed to cater
to all these needs using a range of
equipment options such as hot water
tanks, tankless on-demand systems
and even dedicated boilers. These
combo systems can also be used to
facilitate additional features such as
zoned heating systems or even in-floor
hydronic heating applications.
Q: Do you feel consumers are ready to
embrace heat pumps? Is this something
consumers are demanding currently?
More importantly, do you think
builders are ready for this?
A: From the consumer perspective,
heat pumps are still in the introductory
phase. Consumers are still learning
what heat pump technology can do for
energy savings, cost savings and GHG
emission reductions. We are still not at
the point where new home buyers are
asking for heat pumps and a long way
away from the growth period where
this becomes an industry norm.
From the new home builder per
spective, those builders that already
include air conditioning as standard,
which is roughly estimated to be
about 40%, are best suited to integrate
three-season heat pumps instead of
air conditioners. Those builders will
face only the additional cost of the
equipment upgrade, and this modest
cost premium can be justified from the
lens of the homeowner as it will pay for
itself through energy savings enabled
by fuel switching and taking advantage
of time-of-use (TOU) electricity rates.
Electricity is discounted at night where
a three-season heat pump can provide
supplemental heat to offset natural gas
usage, thus reducing carbon emissions.
Q: Have furnaces and separate hot
water tanks outlived their usefulness?
What are the advantages of a
combination heating system?
A: While combo systems have their
advantages, traditional furnaces and
hot water tanks are still the most
cost effective and reliable option. A
22
Average minimum and maximum temperatures in Toronto Canada Copyright © 2020 www.weather-and-climate.com
30C
20C
10C
0C
-10C
FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC
JAN
◆ ◆
Diamonds indicate months
that 3-season heat pumps can
provide supplemental space
heating with lower off-peak
electricity rates, reducing CO2
emissions by up to 40%.
◆ ◆ ◆

traditional furnace and tank setup is
still the most common application in
new homes, with numerous high-
volume manufacturers supplying
this equipment. Therefore, we
have economies of scale in these
product offerings. More specialized
equipment like cold-climate heat
pumps and hydronic combo
systems are only supported by a few
manufacturers in small production
numbers compared to traditional
systems. However, that is only the
current state of the market, and these
trends are obviously changing with
advancing regulatory requirements
on GHG reduction.
The advantage of a hydronic
combination heating system is
obviously that there is only one
appliance burning natural gas as
opposed to two, so automatically
there is an efficiency there with less
GHG emissions. We found that, on
average, combo systems save about
20% on natural gas consumption
when compared to a separate
furnace and hot water tank.
Another advantage with respect to
a combo system relates to the reduced
venting and gas piping requirements,
which has proven to be increasingly
beneficial in many forms of attached
housing such as stacked and back-
to-back townhouses, which has
driven the uptake of combo systems
in these compact housing forms.
Q: If combo systems become main
stream, can three-season heat pumps
work in conjunction with these space
heating systems?
A: Yes, absolutely – both three-season
heat pumps and cold-climate heat
pumps can be used in conjunction
with a hydronic combo system. The
main factor holding back combo
23
Up to
3.45 UEF
Eligible for the Canada Greener Homes Grant
ProLine®
XE
Heat Pump
Water Heater
Help customers save
up to 73% on water
heating costs.*
*Compared to a standard natural gas water heater.
Operating modes maximize
efficiency and hot water delivery.
Commercial-grade quality
with 10-year limited warranty.
Qualifies for provincial
utility rebates.
systems is that they are only supported
by a small number of manufacturers
and make up a limited share of the
current new home construction
market, estimated to be about 25%.
For combo systems to become more
mainstream, the large-volume HVAC
equipment manufacturers need to
enter this space, as the widespread
after-installation support and
customer care need to be there to
support mass production and larger

market share. With the integration of a heat pump
alongside a combo system, proper airflow and static
pressure of ductwork become critical, as well as the
installation, setup of equipment, balancing and
commissioning, as these systems are more complex.
With these more complex and intricate systems,
including the smart thermostat controls and possible
zoning, maintenance of the system becomes
more important to ensure everything is operating
optimally. Warranty considerations can also be an
issue with such systems as there could be multiple
equipment providers with different coverage terms
and conditions. This is why Martino HVAC just
introduced a new five-year warranty, up from the
industry standard two-year, inclusive of parts and
labour, to give the builder and consumer peace of
mind, especially with these newer systems.
One key consideration to extracting the most
benefit out of the fuel-switching approach is the need
for smart thermostats to be able to access real-time
electricity and natural gas rates as well as outdoor
temperatures, to decide whether to run the heat
pump or the furnace/combo system. While there
is at least one manufacturer currently piloting this
type of smart thermostat, namely BKR Energy, it is
only a matter of time until others become available.
—
While the next edition of the OBC is proposed to
further harmonize with the National Building Code,
the prescriptive path offers very few compliance
options for these types of HVAC systems and
equipment applications. If builders are looking
to explore opportunities with three-season heat
pumps replacing air conditioners or combo systems
replacing furnaces, they will have to engage an
energy advisor to go down the performance path
for demonstrating compliance and obtaining
building permits. However, as we have explored
here, there are still a lot of opportunities for reducing
GHG emissions with creative HVAC design and
installation. BB
Paul De Berardis is RESCON’s director
of building science and innovation.
Email him at deberardis@rescon.com.
24

O
ttawa-based homebuilder
Minto Communities has
established a reputation in
the residential building marketplace
over the years as an industry leader
in forward thinking, innovation and
sustainability. The fully integrated
land development and residential
rental company, founded in 1955,
currently has projects in Ottawa,
Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver, as
well as in Florida and North Carolina
south of the border.
In 2017, Minto was one of five
builders across Canada chosen
to participate in the Net Zero
Communities Project, a partnership
between Natural Resources Canada
and the building industry in which
26 net zero demonstration homes
were built in four provinces. More
recently, Minto constructed four
net zero townhomes and one single-
family home in the Kanata, Ontario
community of Acadia – coincidentally
the same place where the company
built the grand prize dream home
in the Children’s Hospital of Eastern
Ontario (CHEO) annual lottery.
The house, appropriately named
Le Rêve (the dream), is a Parisian-
inspired 4,600-square-foot home
that combines aesthetics with the
latest energy conservation, water
conservation and indoor air quality
(IAQ) technology. Sustainable
features of the home include a hybrid
gas/electric mechanical system for
heating and cooling, superior levels of
insulation in below- and above-grade
walls and ceilings, high-performance
windows, greywater recycling,
drain water heat recovery, hot water
recirculation and low-flow water
fixtures. It was recently recognized for
its energy- and water-saving features
with two awards: Enbridge Innovation
and HERSH2O.
“This is the 23rd consecutive
year that we have supplied the grand
prize home in the CHEO lottery,” says
Minto’s director of estimating and
purchasing, Justin Bouchard. “It’s
a great charity initiative – a custom
home we build each year that gives us
a ‘sandbox’ opportunity to try out new
things, make sure that we’re aware
of what’s coming down the pipe and
stay in the forefront of the low-carbon
path.” The CHEO home includes
a marketing component designed
to build awareness and provide
education to consumers, builders
and distributors on the importance
of energy efficiency and IAQ. It serves
as an example for builders of what
a low-carbon, healthy zero energy-
ready home should look like in the
marketplace.
For the dream home, Minto
leveraged its experience with Savings
27
Dreaming Big
Minto Builds Green Dream Home
innovationaward / MARC HUMINILOW YCZ
HERSH2O® Water Efficiency
Rating Certificate
Property
Address: CHEO house
City: Ottawa, ON
Builder: Minto Communities
Rating Information
HERSH2O Index: 69
Rating Date: 11/22/2022
Rater: Better Than Code
HERSH2O Index: 69
This home, compared to the reference home:
31 %
more water efficient
83,498 litres
annual water savings
John Godden (left) and Mark Sales
(Greyter) present two awards to
Agnieszka Wloch (Minto Communties)
for Minto’s Ottawa CHEO house.
41
HERSSCORE

28
by Design from Enbridge Gas, a
residential program that gives
builders and developers free access
to industry experts and energy
modelling to build a zero energy-
ready discovery home, with a Better
Than Code approach. “Savings by
Design was a kick in the pants for
us that translated to a Home Energy
Rating System (HERS) house that
includes a combo heating/cooling
system that utilizes natural resources
in the best way,” Bouchard explains.
“And because there’s always a balance
between what consumers want
from an architectural and design
perspective and the functionality
of generating enough power, it was
important to bring airtightness down
to where we needed it.”
This approach represented a
significant shift in mindset from
Minto’s previous forays into net zero.
“The major challenges of building net
zero homes are getting the correct
geographical orientation and having
enough solar panels,” he says. “The
streetscape doesn’t always translate
to generating enough power. Another
issue is having access to trades that
are experienced in building higher-
performance homes.”
Bouchard describes building to
Better Than Code and HERS as a
more holistic approach to achieving
zero energy-ready, with less focus
on energy and more emphasis on
IAQ, operational carbon, smarter
electricity and water use, and climate
resiliency. Panasonic solar panels
connected to storage batteries
were installed in the home for two
purposes: (1) as a backup in case of
power outages
and (2) “peak
shaving” to
economize user
electricity rates.
From a water conservation
perspective, Minto decided to include
the CHEO dream home, one of its first
such homes in Ottawa, in the HERS
Water Sense 2.0 pilot program. For its
efforts, the discovery home received
the H20 water rating award from the
HERS Water Rating System. This is a
classification that rates whole-house
water efficiency, including both indoor
and outdoor uses, providing a simple,
easy-to-compare rating on a scale of
0 to 100+, where lower numbers mean
less water use.
“Municipalities across Canada are
experiencing treated water shortage
issues, so it’s important for us as
builders to do anything we can do
on our side to conserve this precious
resource,” Bouchard says. “The
greywater recycling feature we’ve
included in our CHEO discovery home
collects drain water from three or four
showers and re-uses it to flush toilets,
resulting in water that is used twice
before going into the municipal sewage
system. This, combined with low-water
fixtures and a hot water recirculation
line, helps the home conserve a
substantial amount of water.”
Bouchard believes that, with
climate change a major global
issue, builders like Minto have a
responsibility to make an impact by
building homes that are ready for the
future. “The biggest opportunity is
really on the retrofit side, converting
older homes from the ’70s. But equally
important is building new
homes that we won’t have to
go back to and retrofit later,”
he says.
With the construction
of the CHEO dream home,
Minto Communities is blazing a
trail for other Ottawa-area builders
to follow.” Like Ottawa, a lot of
municipalities have initiated green
building standards,” says Bouchard. “I
think governments have an obligation
to push the envelope in this area.
There are multiple ways to achieve
this. We need to make sure that we’re
ready as an industry.”
According to Bouchard, Minto
Communities is typically building
about 900 homes per year in the
Ottawa area. “This gives us the
opportunity to try things out. The
discussions around low carbon, which
includes operational carbon and
embodied carbon, have been heating
up over the past few years,” he says. “As
an industry leader, we want to make
sure we’re at the forefront. The CHEO
project has given us the opportunity
to share our experience with members
of the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’
Association. We couldn’t have done
it without the contributions of our
fantastic suppliers and partners.” BB
Marc Huminilowycz
lives and works in
a low-energy home
built in 2000. As

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30
O
ntario builder Heathwood
Homes has just added a
new award to its growing
list of industry accolades for its
commitment to energy-efficient
homebuilding. The company won
the 2023 RESNET/CRESNET Cross
Border Builder Challenge for Lowest
HERS (Home Energy Rating System)
score, Canadian Production Builder,
with an impressive rating of 41.
Heathwood Homes has been
building quality homes for over 40
years, but the company’s journey
to sustainable homebuilding really
began in earnest about 10 years ago,
when the company worked with both
the City of Richmond Hill and Toronto
Metropolitan University (then known
as Ryerson University) to build a
green home that would demonstrate
to homeowners the many benefits of
energy-efficient building.
Since that time, Heathwood has
successfully completed 650 homes
that have consistently exceeded 20%
better-than-code energy efficiency.
This has resulted in carbon emission
reductions equivalent to removing
165 cars off the road, and saved
homeowners thousands of dollars in
energy costs.
“This award validates what
we’re doing. We’re being recognized
for our efforts,” says Heathwood
president Bob Finnigan. “It fits with
our longstanding company goal of
social responsibility.” Following
its participation in the Savings by
Design program from Enbridge
Gas, Heathwood developed its
proprietary TotalHome+ program,
which educates homebuyers on the
advanced features it offers, including
water and energy conservation, the
environment, the smart home and
energy savings, listing the specific
details and benefits of each.
The Town of Whitby, Ontario,
has required compliance with green
building standards (specifically
Energy Star) since 2017. In its Whitby
developments, Heathwood was one
of only two builders to meet this
standard by building its homes to at
least 20% better than code. This begs
the question: Why not simply build
to Energy Star? “Energy Star is very
prescriptive and specific. With our
experience, we have a comprehensive
understanding of how we can build
a better house. Building to Better
Than Code gives us more flexibility in
meeting green building standards our
own way,” says Finnigan.
Currently, Heathwood Homes
is planning a discovery home in its
Williamsburg Green subdivision in
Kitchener, Ontario. Among other
energy-saving features, the home will
include a hybrid HVAC system (air
source heat pump with gas furnace
backup) plus solar panels with battery
storage and greywater recycling.
As with all homes that Heathwood
is currently building, the discovery
home will undergo a pre-delivery
inspection, which includes airflow and
HVAC balancing and commissioning.
“This is key to keeping our customers
happy,” says Finnigan. “Any potential
Heathwood Home at Last
Lowest HERS Score for Production Builder
41
HERSSCORE
Joe D’Amico
(Building Products
of Canada) and
Matthew Solomon
(Heathwood).
continued on page 33

L
ined up like a row of Emmys, the
awards in Campanale Homes’
head office are a testament
to four decades of the company’s
commitment to better building.
Most have been won through
the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’
Association, but three are from the
Cross Border Builder Challenge
hosted by RESNET (Residential
Energy Services Network) and
its sister organization CRESNET.
Having won in previous years in the
categories of net zero home of the
year and low-carbon mid-size builder
of the year, as well as Enbridge’s
Innovation award, this year
Campanale Homes won the Vince
Naccarato Award.
Named for Naccarato and his
company, Rodeo Fine Homes, the
award recognizes a builder who
exemplifies the same high standards
as its namesake. Rodeo Fine
Homes was at the leading edge of
sustainability in residential housing
and first used the HERS rating system
in its 2007 Newmarket subdivision of
3A LEED Platinum Homes.
The Campanales were also early
adopters of the HERS rating scale.
They’d adopted Energy Star and
R-2000 early as well, but stopped
for a while since the programs were
changing too much, Tim Campanale
says. As energy efficiency measures
became more sophisticated and
complicated, the company saw less
value in Energy Star and started
looking more closely into HERS.
“The flexibility of the system
was appealing,” says Campanale,
who was fresh out of university
at the time and taking additional
courses on sustainable development.
“We realized we needed to be doing
something more and someone
recommended HERS. It really allowed
us to create our own brand.”
So far, the company has built 160
HERS homes (as of the end of 2022)
and will complete another 40 soon
for a rental project.
Thanks to the energy efficient
components, utilities are lower,
making the project even more
affordable for tenants – like the large
solar panel array on the five buildings
at its Barrhaven Urban Terrace rental
project, which produce half of the
overall consumption. Solar is worth
including on apartments, Campanale
says, because energy consumption is
significantly higher in these structures.
There have been other benefits
to the HERS rating system – like
securing financing and insurance
with the Canada Mortgage and
Housing Corporation (CMHC) for
their affordable rental project at
Barrhaven. The stacked townhouse
development of 64 back-to-back
homes in 12- or 16-unit blocks was
built 15% better than code. “CMHC
looked favourably on the project when
it came to financing and insurance
underwriting,” Campanale explains.
At first, though, CMHC wasn’t sure
what HERS was, Campanale says.
“It wasn’t recognized as approved
software, so we went through quite an
31
A Family Affair
Campanale Homes Earns Another Award
buildernews / ALEX NEWMAN
42
HERSSCORE
Anthony Zanini (left) of CRESNET
presents an award to Tim
Campanale and Tony Campanale.
continued on page 33

32
buildernews
Agnieszka Wloch, Jesse Davidson, Mike LePlante, John Godden.
Carol Dietrich, Paul Dietrich, Paul De Berardis, Richard Lyall.
Joe D’Amico, Antony Zanini, Nick Samavarchian, Matthew Solomon.
Michael Goyette, Lou Bada, Shawn Barran, Ryan Foster.
Sonny Pirrotta, John Sneyd, Dan LaCroix, Jason Morin.
Tony Simonelli, Vince Cancelliere, Brian Cooke, Ian Walker.
Tony Campanale, Iain Stuart, Tim Campanale, Paraic Lally.
The 2023 Cross Border
Builder Challenge
2023 GOLF TOURNAMENT

issues are mitigated before our home
owners move in, and the number of
customer calls is much less than it
was before we started doing this.”
According to Finnigan, building to
Better Than Code allows Heathwood
and other builders to achieve impres
sive energy savings comparable
to labelling programs like Energy
Star, Net Zero and Net Zero-Ready.
“We follow a parallel path that’s not
prescriptive, as well as looking at
embodied carbon to determine the
payback,” he explains. “In this respect,
the HERS structure itself is as good as
or better [than the other programs].”
In 2022, 145 Heathwood
homes were included in the
annual Low Carbon Home
builder Coalition (LCHC), a
building industry strategy
designed to benchmark
and collect the perform
ance achievements of homebuilders
in Ontario and compare them with
federal, provincial and municipal
energy efficiency standards. The
Heathwood-built homes scored 35%
better than code in terms of esti
mated CO2 reductions (219 tonnes
combined), saving homeowners
$915 per year in energy costs.
“Energy efficiency labels are
complex. A lot of code changes are
intrusive and maybe too far ahead
of their time. The available
technology should be dictating
how to move forward,” says
Finnigan. “The program that
builders choose to maximize
energy efficiency should be
up to them. It’s really a matter
of calling an apple something else.” BB
Marc Huminilowycz
lives and works in
a low-energy home
built in 2000. As
33
approval process. But at the end of it
all, the buildings met their standards,
so they said okay.” Like Naccarato 15
years earlier, Campanale introduced
HERS in a big way to a local market.
“CMHC also underwrote the
insurance for a previous project in
Arnprior of 130 single-family towns
and detached bungalows. Securing
financing and insurance at favour
able rates allows the company to
offer back more affordable rents to
end users,” Campanale adds.
Net zero and low carbon are on
the horizon for all builders. But
Campanale is ready – they’re
versed on the discussion
and most of their homes are
being built now to be zero
energy-ready, with things
like reinforced trusses to
accommodate solar panels.
The company also constructed
one low-carbon Zero Energy home
which garnered them an award. But
Campanale says he’s not sure how
worthwhile that was because of the
net metering program, which did
not credit them for the entirety of PV
power generated.
Hydro only gave back credit instead
of money and, for the three years the
home operated as a model, the solar
panels racked up about $4,000 worth of
hydro credits. “It was great not paying
any hydro bills,” Campanale says.
“But we produced more energy than
we needed which was put back
into the grid. And with the credit
taken off in January, there was
not that much benefit for us.”
Campanale is a family
business that began in the
1970s with three brothers.
One has since retired, and
six of the next generation
have joined. Amazingly,
they all get along, and the secret to
that is separate roles that each family
member is passionate about.
And good communication,
Campanale adds: “As houses get more
complex, especially when you have
branded yourself energy efficient,
they’re harder to control and there’s
greater need to communicate.”
Part of that is asking the right
questions. And with this many
personalities – and concerns – lots of
questions do get raised, Campanale
says. “How complicated will this
be? What can we do to make land
development more profitable with
energy efficiency? How will the energy
efficiency measures affect the design?
These are all good things.” BB
Alex Newman is a writer,
editor and researcher at
alexnewmanwriter.com.
Heathwood continued from page 30
Campanale continued from page 31

34
buildernews / BETTER BUILDER STAFF
W
oodstock, Ontario-based
custom production builder
Hunt Homes has been
building low-energy houses for 20
years (15 years using HERS ratings).
This year, it won the CRESNET/RESNET
Cross Border Builder Challenge award
for the lowest HERS score in the
custom category, with a HERS 42.
“Our team works hard making
sure things that most people will
never see are done properly. I’m
very proud of everyone’s efforts that
allowed us to receive this award,” says
Steve Hunt, president and CEO.
Hunt and his team, who have
built communities in Woodstock and
Innerkip, are relentless in pursuing
the lowest HERS score possible. The
average rating of 18 houses in 2022 was
a HERS 43 (well below Zero Energy
Ready) with an average airtightness
test result of 1.1 ACH (well below
R-2000 requirements). In the past
three years, Hunt Homes has built 38
houses that are HERS 46 or lower.
This is not the first Cross Border
Builder Challenge award for Hunt
Homes, either. “In 2014, we won for
a LEED Silver house we built with a
HERS score of 40. This project was
also a testament to our team, who
spent a lot of time learning about
new products and ways to do things
better and executing a plan using
those new products.”
Hunt and his team aren’t ones
to rest on their laurels, even though
they’ve already left the upcoming
Code requirements in the dust. “We
are constantly improving and are
ready to surpass minimum Code
changes as they come along. After all,
the new Code will be a HERS 51 and
we averaged a HERS 43 last year. All
of our homes are Zero Energy Ready
(HERS 46 or less), and we are already
exceeding the incoming Tier 3 by 16%.”
“I have always been keen to want to
do things better, so high-performance
homes were a natural fit,” Hunt
explains. His passion for continuous
improvement has been matched
by his team, and their offerings
have struck a chord with Code-
conscious homebuyers: “We
have found that the consumer
wants a better-than-Code
home, and at least some are
willing to pay a reasonable
amount for that. We take
the time to educate them
about their choices.”
The cost of features can add up,
and in the current economy, with
labour constraints and supply chain
issues, every builder needs to think
about their costs – but Hunt isn’t
worried. He believes energy efficiency
allows for affordable home prices
because of lower operating costs. “My
grandfather told me a penny saved is
a penny earned. So, if we can save our
clients money, it will most certainly
help them with affordability.”
Hunt explains another way his
company helps their buyers save those
pennies: “We also offer our clients
secondary suites, as they are gaining
in popularity and our homes are
now being designed with them in
mind.” That rental unit option in
a thoughtfully designed energy-
efficient home is money in the
bank, and Hunt Homes makes
sure their buyers know they
can have it all. BB
Aiming High, Building Low
Hunt Homes’ Relentless Pursuit of Lowest HERS
Michael Goyette
(left) of ROCKWOOL
and Shawn Barran
of Hunt Homes.
42
HERSSCORE

ENG
INEERING
DETAILS
COURTESY
OF
CENTRIC
ENG
INEERING
AND
SIMPSON
STRONG
-TIE
CONNECTORS
H
istorically, the focus of
construction has been about
the structure needing to hold
the roof up.
The 2021 Barrie tornado brought
wind damage and occupant safety
back into the spotlight, and rightfully
so. To withstand these loads, we must
add structural support to hold the roof
down. But where should we focus?
Let’s start with a look at tornado
intensity. Most events causing
damage are at an EF2 level or less.
Preparing for an EF4 or EF5 tornado
would require constructing a
concrete bunker. However, these
super tornadoes are rare. Even the
majority of damage from an EF3
occurs outside of the tornado’s path.
That’s why the work we’ve done
on climate-resilient construction has
focused on what’s needed to resist the
impact of an EF2 tornado event.
So, what might that look like and
how does it change the way we build
our homes? Well, you could put down
your $100 and buy the CSA standard
– or read on for an overview of the
Doug Tarry Homes wind resiliency
pilot project we worked on with Dr.
Gregory Kopp’s engineering team at
Western University and the Institute for
Catastrophic Loss Reduction. Here’s the
best part: I’m going to share it for free.
Let’s look at the basics. You need a
continual load path to connect all the
walls and floors together from the roof
to the foundation.
• Continuous wood sheathing on
the exterior of the home will work,
provided the wood is continuous
across the floors and walls.
However, it’s expensive to install
because you can’t make that work
with strips of sheathing on the floor
joist with the walls sheathed before
you stand them up. Inspectors
won’t be able to inspect it because
it’s outside their work spec for the
framing inspection (you don’t often
see an inspector on a zoom boom).
• Alternatively, we’ve worked out a
set of details in our pilot project
using screws/hangers to create that
same continual load path from roof
to foundation. It’s about 10% of the
cost of doing it with continuous
rigid sheathing, and the building
inspector can look at the install as
part of their framing inspection.
Best of all, here are free details:
35
Working with Wind
An Uplifting Experience
fromthegroundup / DOUG TARRY
Roof Framing
(as per plans)
Double
Top Plate
Simpson
Strong-Tie
SDWC Screw
Exterior
Stud Wall
(as per plans)
Optimal 22½º
30º
10º 0º
EF-SCALE WIND SPEEDS
EF RATING WIND SPEED*
0 90 – 130
1 135 – 175
2 180 – 220
3 225 – 265
4 270 – 310
5 315 +
*NEAREST 5KPH
Stud to top and bottom plates.
20 ˚
30˚
Optimal 22˚
10˚
Optimal 22˚
30˚
0˚
Double
Top Plate
Sill Plate
Bottom Plate
Simpson
Strong-Tie
SDWC Screw
Wood Stud
(as per plans)
Foundation Wall
Simpson
Strong-Tie
SDWC Screw
ENVIRONMENT
C
ANADA
Wall-to-roof framing connection.

36
(Note: Our company has been
experimenting with the bottom right
detailing and how it works with a
floor system in place. It’s the next
step in our journey for more resilient
construction.)
What’s next on the list?
• You could look at shatter-proof
windows and high-wind load
garage doors, two additional areas
of weakness.
• Consider having a continuous
weather-resistant barrier (WRB)
over the roof sheathing. Excellent
details are available from shingle
manufacturers that deal with this.
• Porches and how we attach the
columns to the foundation/
concrete columns are another
area to be dealt with. Fastener
manufacturers have post and
column base products and details
available to provide guidance.
However, we’re missing a big issue:
the gable detail. Typical framing of
gable overhangs has 2 x 4 extensions
toe nailed to the face of the gable wall
then fastened to the roof sheathing.
This common practice offers little
structural support; a high wind event
can cause the roof to “zipper” off the
gable wall. This is the worst detail
in the worst location (no resistance
to uplift in an area with some of the
highest uplift potential). Yet I see it
on jobsite after jobsite. It was only
after our first build mission in Puerto
Rico after Hurricane Maria that my
company moved to a new set of details
that ties the support member back to
the previous truss.
There are a few different ways to
achieve the added structural resistance
to uplift at the gable wall, but a
common theme is to connect back
to a previous truss with an outrigger
blocking detail under the gable
extensions. This connection back to
the previous truss provides additional
support to the gable overhang framing.
If you really want to beef up the detail,
swap out the 3 nail that fastens into
the underside of the top chord of the
gable truss. Either way, it’s a significant
improvement over the conventional
framing of gables.
I see improvement of our
climate resiliency roof details as an
opportunity for builders to reduce the
risk to the building and the occupant.
However, it’s important to remember
there is still risk, especially from
projectile impact on the walls and at
the openings.
Hopefully you’ll find these details
helpful as you start thinking about
upcoming code changes to manage
more extreme wind conditions. BB
Doug Tarry Jr is director
of marketing at Doug
Tarry Homes in St.
Thomas, Ontario.   
ADAPTED
FROM
ENG
INEERING
DETAIL
SUPPLIED
BY
CENTRIC
ENG
INEERING
Fasten outriggers to
blocking with 3 long
common wire nails
@ 12 o.c. (typ.)
2x4 outriggers @
16 o.c. (on flat)
with blocking above
Fasten top chord to
outrigger with (2)
3 long common
wire nails (typ.)
Typical roof truss (by others)
2x6 continuous fascia
Fasten rim to
blocking and
outrigger with (2)
3 long common
wire nails (typ.)
2x4 blocking @ 16 o.c. (between
rim board and cable-end truss and
cable-end truss and typical truss)
Fasten top chord to blocking with
(2) 3 long common wire nails (typ.)
Connect back to a previous truss with an outrigger blocking detail under the gable extensions.

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Better Builder Magazine, Issue 46 / Summer 2023

Better Builder Magazine, Issue 46 / Summer 2023

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Better Builder Magazine, Issue 46 / Summer 2023