Luke & Co. Design Builders proudly carries the ENERGY STAR designation with the ability and expertise to build your home to be as energy efficient as possible. By building to ENERGY STAR® specifications, your home will be approximately 30% - 40% more energy efficient than homes built to building code standards. This increased efficiency will not only save money in the monthly operating costs of your home, it will immediately increase the value of your asset. We have thoroughly investigated possibilities to reduce the cost of energy usage in your home to enable you to live comfortably while saving money and the environment. Strict measures are taken to insure that your new home meets ENERGY STAR® Standards including the installation of the following: 1. Effective Insulation Properly installed and inspected insulation in basement floors, walls, and attics ensures even temperatures throughout the house, reduced energy use, and increased comfort. 2. High-Performance Windows Energy-efficient windows employ advanced technologies, such as protective coatings and improved frames, to help keep heat in during winter and out during summer. These windows also block damaging ultraviolet sunlight that can discolor carpets and furnishings. 3. Tight Construction and Ducts Sealing holes and cracks in the home's "envelope" and in heating and cooling duct systems helps reduce drafts, moisture, dust, pollen, and noise. A tightly sealed home improves comfort and indoor air quality while reducing utility and maintenance. 4. Efficient Heating and Cooling Equipment In addition to using less energy to operate, energy-efficient heating and cooling systems can be quieter, reduce indoor humidity, and improve the overall comfort of the home. When properly installed into a tightly sealed home, this equipment won't have to work so hard to heat and cool the home. Learn more about Energy Star homes

All the charts in this section are for 8 Johnston Street in Wyevale, ON. They show the high standards that go into every house designed and built by Luke and Company. The pie charts compare the energy consumption with a house built to building code standards using space heating, domestic hot water heating and lights and appliances. It is typical to get at least 35% better than building code standards with a house designed and built by Luke and Company.

The heat loss chart below compares the estimated energy use for the space heating system in gigajoules (GJ), a measurement of energy where 1 GJ is equivalent to 278 kWh.

A Luke & Company house is designed to give you the most cost effective solutions to energy consumption. Insulation is one of the most important ingredients to an energy efficient house.

The hole for the stove flue was cut after the wall was complete, showing how tightly compacted the blown insulation is inside all the exterior walls of the house.		R24 fiberglass blown insulation in the exterior walls.		We used Owens Corning fiberglass Pink insulation throughout.

For the exterior we use Styrofoam exterior insulation with R5 value. With the combination of fiber interior and Styrofoam exterior insulation, the R value of the exterior walls of our house is R29. Building code standard is R20.		One of the largest heat loss areas in any home is at the Rim Joist which is where the floor sits on the exterior wall. We have used foam insulation in the rim joist on the main floor and second floor all along the exterior of the building.		2” Styrofoam insulation and 6mil poly on the basement floor was installed before the concrete was poured. This helps to keep the cold from coming up into the house through the concrete floor & creates a warmer environment in the basement.

This high quality heater, heats water when required as apposed to a hot water tank that is constantly on and heats the water whether you’re using it or not. This is a large waste of energy and money. A tankless water heater will supply hot water as long as it is required. A hot water tank can only supply hot water until, it runs out. It keeps only a limited supply. www.takagi.com

The most important piece of equipment this home has is a heat recovery ventilator or HRV. This unit acts as the "lungs of the house" bringing fresh air in and moving stale air out through a mixing chamber to recover 78% of the energy. It very quietly exchanges fresh air to every room in the house, 40 minutes on, 20 minutes off. It also has the ability to draw moist air from bathrooms, the laundry room, and kitchen, with separate switches in each room to cycle it onto high speed when needed. www.venmar.ca

The home is equipped with a high efficiency furnace with an ECM fan motor. This motor uses less energy and is very quiet. This 92% condensing furnace with an electrically efficient fan is an upgrade over a typical furnace that’s offers only 90% efficiency. It’s powered by an ECM. motor that runs much quieter at startup using less energy. It also eliminates that startup “Bang” that you hear with a traditional furnace. www.heil-hvac.com

You can be sure that Luke & Company Design Builders LTD. has looked everywhere to reduce the cost of energy usage in your home. You will live comfortably while saving money and the environment.