A 100 year old townhouse is under renovation in the Benton Park neighborhood located on the south-side of St. Louis, Missouri, just west of the Soulard neighborhood. The neighborhood was created on June 25, 1866, by city ordinance. Patty Maher of Tiger Lily Development LLC, a sustainable rehabber of historic properties, brought in Foam Engineers to help this property receive an Energy Star Rating.
“This historic home will have a HERS rating of 50 to 55. A typical existing home rates 130; new construction code homes are typically 100. The minimum rating for ENERGY STAR certification is 85. The lower the rating, the more efficient the home. Living in one of these ENERGY STAR homes with a 50 rating, you are saving HALF of typical utility costs. That is significant. Not changing your lifestyle, you’re still heating and cooling, but pulling so much less resources to enjoy conventional comfort.” -Patty Maher
Masonry is very porous and allows for the transmission of moisture unchecked into the home. Foam Engineers sprayed R13 ~2″ closed cell foam on all the walls making them vapor impermeable, this will greatly reduce any moisture transmission. Closed-cell foam has a very high R value per inch, so for areas that need to be flat framed for historical considerations, like maintaining wall profiles, it can be very helpful in maintaining the building envelope without sacrificing architectural design.
