CONSTRUCTION METHODS

THE BUILDING ENVELOPE

Our houses are typically built using high quality Structural Insulated Panels (SIP’s) to form a building envelope that substantially outperforms traditional stick framed buildings. Even compared with other SIP’s, the polyurethane panels LivLab uses outperform their EPS counterparts by almost double (R-value of 6.9 per inch vs. 3.84 per inch with EPS panels)!

Our walls: R34 SIP

Our Roofs: R41 SIP

Our Floors: R30 Batt

If time or economy is of the essence, we can also stick frame.

INTERIOR FRAMING

Our interior walls are wood framed, a mixture of 2x4 studs and 2x8 walls, depending on how much plumbing is run in each wall.

FLOORS & FOUNDATIONS

We can do either a slab on grade or stem wall foundations, depending on if a crawlspace or basement is desired.

ROOFS

For our homes with sloped roofs with suggest standing seam metal roofs to maximize the life span of the roof. We are happy to install other corrugated roofs to match your property, or even economy asphalt shingles.

For houses with flat roofs, we suggest our elastomeric roof that is built to withstand New Mexico sun and wear and tear from furniture/shoes. It’s great for roof decks.

door and WINDOWS

We offer metal or vinyl doors and windows. Vinyl typically has a little better insulation value and is long lasting. Metal is more expensive, but can be really nice looking.

CLADDING / siding

Many people like their ADU’s to match the rest of the property. Stucco is a fairly economical choice and is one of the most common siding materials, but metal is a durable option too.

hvac & appliances

We install mini split systems for energy efficiency as well as ability to control room temperatures individually.

We’ve chosen electric appliances that fit into the standard cabinet set, but you are welcome to find substitutes to fit those cabinets as well. If cabinet layout needs to be modified, we can do that for an upcharge.