An EnerGuide rating shows a standard measure of your home’s energy performance. It shows you (and future buyers) exactly how energy efficient your home is. The rating is calculated based on standard operation assumptions so that you can compare the energy performance of one house against another.

The home’s energy efficiency level is rated on a scale of 0 to 100. A rating of 0 represents a home with major air leakage, no insulation and extremely high energy consumption. A rating of 100 represents a house that is airtight, well insulated, sufficiently ventilated and requires no purchased energy on an annual basis.

 

For a brand new house, a rating of 80 or higher is excellent.

Typical energy efficiency measures for these new homes include:

• insulation upgrades
• higher-performance windows
• better draft proofing
• more efficient heating, hot water and air conditioning systems
• ENERGY STAR® qualified appliances (if supplied by the builder)

 

The benefits to the new homeowner are:

• lower energy bills
• improved comfort
• lower impact on the environment
• higher resale value

 

For more information visit:

Canada EnerGuide Rating System

 US HERS rating system

Pre-fabricated construction is transforming the face of the home construction industry: with a full spectrum of benefits ranging from environmental, to quality and speed of construction, to financial.

Quality

The controlled environment of our production facility allows for a much higher degree of precision and quality control during the construction phase than is available on site. Materials are protected from weather and kept uniform, dry and undamaged, resulting in a higher quality building. Cost The prefabrication process is very efficient, significantly moderating the amount of labour and building materials required, as well as the waste produced. At Mandala we use Building Information Modeling (BIM), a three-dimensional, real-time, dynamic building modeling software for efficiency and precision in building design and construction. Equipment and materials are protected from weather, theft and vandalism keeping costs down and safeguarding your building schedule from weather or material delays.

Environmental Integrity

The carbon foot-print of a Pre-Fabricated home is significantly smaller than that of a comparable on-site construction. The use of shipping and construction vehicles on-site is cut back substantially. Since most of the construction process is completed in our production facility in an extremely efficient process, less building materials are required and the waste produced is minimal.

Speed

A Pre-fab home takes significantly less time to build than a house built on site. Under the protection of our production facility, construction is quick and precise, and your building schedule is unaffected by weather or material delays. Once shipped to the building site, the pre-built components can be assembled to weather tight in a matter of days. In addition to the obvious cost benefits, shortening your construction time also shortens the term of your bridge financing.

Value

Pre-fabricated homes typically cost less than a comparable stick built home, though worth at least the same, and frequently valued higher due to their quality, sustainability and increasing popularity.

Transparency of Process

The precision and environmental controls available in prefabricated construction create a transparency of the entire project, both for all the trades involved as well as for the customer. As you may know, there are often numerous unforeseeable factors that arise when building a home on-site, often resulting in additional expenses. The efficiency and control of Pre-fab Construction mean that you can count on your quoted price.

The National Academy of Sciences estimates that 10 to 20% of the general population may be susceptible to irritation from exposure to formaldehyde at extremely low concentrations. If you suspect a formaldehyde problem you can get more information online at www.epa.gov/iaq/formalde.html or http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/iyh-vsv/environ/formaldehyde-eng.php.

At Mandala Homes we recommend living in a building that is formaldehyde-free.  Ask us about using formaldehyde free insulation, non toxic (non VOC) finishes, and other formaldehyde-free furnishings for your home.  Find out the many different ways we can support you to live in a healthy home.