Programs & services : Habitat for Humanity

Habitat for Humanity

A longtime partner of Habitat for Humanity, WECC is honored that Habitat for Humanity International has asked us to share with you our experience and expertise in cold-climate building practices.

WECC's experience with building performance is based on 30 years of experience working with Wisconsin builders and remodelers, and building scientists around the nation. This experience has been translated into development of the Wisconsin ENERGY STAR^® Homes and the Focus New Homes certifications.

The certifications integrate a wealth of best practices, based on performance testing and research, to increase the energy efficiency of new homes and reduce energy costs for homes in cold climates. To see if your state is in a cold climate, please visit the Building Science Consulting Web page.

In defining these standards, we strive for five goals:

Comfort. Homes that are free from drafts and cold spots.
Safety. Homes that are safe from potential combustion issues.
Durability. Homes that can withstand moisture and other problems.
Energy efficiency. Homes that use less energy and reduce energy costs.
Repeatability. Good building practices that can be applied to future homes.

Read on to learn about our standards, guidelines and certification requirements. To see testimonials describing the experience some Wisconsin Habitat for Humanity affiliates have had with our certification.

Standards & Guidelines

Wisconsin ENERGY STAR Homes standards and guidelines are derived from cold-climate building practices presented by nationally recognized residential building science professionals.

Download the complete Guidelines & Standards

Download the New Homes brochure

Building Smarter, Safer, Better

Best practices and "repeatability" are keys to building an energy efficient home. WECC develops its standards, guidelines, and programs to give you a head start in the process.

Best practices are learned by building a home, testing its performance, learning from the results - and then repeating those results in the next building project.
The process outlined here - energy design review, setting a package that includes energy and performance goals, defining best practices, testing, and learning from mistakes - is valuable across all climate zones, not just cold ones.
Continuing education is a necessity for every builder as technologies and practices continue to advance rapidly. The homes we build today function entirely differently from those built even 10 years ago.
Applying these standards for a cold-climate home will enable you to meet the Recommended Healthy Indoor Air Quality Standard for U.S. Affiliates published by the Construction and Environmental Resources division of Habitat for Humanity International.

Testimonials

As of June 2011, 28 Wisconsin Habitat for Humanity affiliates have enjoyed the benefits of Wisconsin ENERGY STAR Homes certification. Here's what a few of them had to say:

"Thanks so much for testing the house and educating the crew. It was enlightening for all of us, and the results were very satisfying. With your guidance, we worked hard to make the house tight, and were delighted to see that attention to details can really pay off. "

"I want to thank you for your part in grants or scholarships that allowed Habitat types like myself to attend the Better Building conference. "

"I found your evening meeting on affordable housing very useful... We have already learned a great deal and will continue to do so on our next build. "