As Texas faces low inventory in the housing market, some builders are offering new types of construction that utilize innovative materials to quickly build greener and more energy-efficient homes. It's starting. NBC 5 took a tour of the first home made mostly of foam in Texas.
Every day, Aaron Roswell takes Ginger for a walk two doors down so staff can check on the progress of his dream bubble home.
“I've always been really intrigued by this technology ever since I first saw it. So the benefits of building with foam are that it's energy efficient, it's tornado- and flood-proof, it's pest-proof, It's solid and fire resistant,” Roswell said.
Roswell said he has been observing new technology advances in foam construction for nearly 20 years. He says the same foam used to make coffee cups is piled up in layers to build homes around the world.
Expanded polystyrene foam (EPS) is lightweight, flexible and recyclable, he said. It increases its strength when covered with a concrete coating as part of the patented 3-layer SABS building system. You can think of it as a concrete sandwich filled with foam.
Concrete coatings are a mixture of sand, cement, fiberglass, and other additives that the company calls subcrete. This system was created by Dr. Nasser Saebi. He and his team at Strata International Group worked on him for eight years, and he spent $4 million on development and testing to get it approved by the International Code Council. Saebi's son Amir is the company's vice president. He spoke to NBC 5 from his headquarters in Arizona.
“Our technology is very simple. At the end of the day, we are providing a system that makes housing available to everyone,” Saebi said.
Saebi says the SABS system eliminates the need for frames and insulation, reducing labor and heavy equipment, reducing production time and lowering costs.
“If you're in the $60 to $75 per square foot range, our insulation factor is roughly between 100 and 75 R, which essentially cuts your heating and cooling costs in half,” Saebi says.
He said the system has been tested with wind speeds of 420 miles per hour and is ideal for disaster-prone areas and disaster relief projects. The company also reports zero fire spread.
Although the company's scope has expanded over the years, material costs are still about 10% lower than average, Saebi said. Strata built disaster relief projects after the Haiti earthquake and is working on developing transitional housing pods for the homeless in Los Angeles.
“There's a lot of crisis going on around the world with homelessness and need-based shelters. And our concept and our biggest vision is to turn this around. And if we can do that, we can close the gap and close it. “I think we can do something about the housing shortage around the world, or the disparity in housing affordability around the world,” Saebi said.
He says the first batch of custom form homes will be completed in the Dallas area in 2024.
Roswell's 10,000 square foot building is the first of its kind in Texas.
“A lot of people have questions like how does electricity work and how do you cut a groove? So you cut through with a hot knife. It's just a cut and then you pin it together. And then when the electrician is done, he puts it back together, glues it, covers it with concrete, and at that point it's a clean wall,” Roswell said.
“So, no worries. Will this not erode?” NBC 5 anchor Brittney Johnson asked.
“It's protected. It can deteriorate over time if exposed to the elements, but if it's protected from concrete like that, it's going to stay like that for years,” Roswell said. he said.
Roswell plans to stay here for years as the design and foam pieces are finalized.
“We want to be winning grandparents, so our kids come here for the holidays,” Roswell said.
“What do you think, Ginger? Does she approve?” “Ginger approves,” Roswell said.
Roswell has a background in the construction industry and is very confident and invested in this system.
Strata said it currently has a list of interested homebuyers but is working to conduct training for those interested, as it lacks contractors who know how to build foam homes. . The company was featured in Forbes Magazine in September 2023 as one of the top companies achieving success in building form.
