Bellevue Built = Well Built

At Bellevue, we believe that many of you would like a better house than those that are typically available--one that you could call "home" for a long time. So in addition to having the qualities of beauty and charm, a better home needs to be more energy efficient, healthier, more durable, more comfortable. A Bellevue Cottage delivers this better home...here's how:

What makes the Bellevue Cottage more energy efficient?

1. Our high quality windows reduce air leakage and block radiant heat. Our Jeld Wen Premium windows block up to 80% of the sun's radiant heat and are rated at 0% air leakage. You simply can't get this level of performance from standard "builder grade" windows.
2. A covered walkway along our cottage's southern exposure reduces heat gain from the high summer sun.
3. Our conditioned crawl space allows air conditioning and heating equipment to perform more efficiently and takes advantage of the earth's naturally stable temperature.
4. The HVAC ducts in our cottages are sealed with mastic (a malleable concrete product) rather than ordinary "duct tape" (a big misnomer) so the air you've paid to heat or cool actually reaches its destination.
5. Our walls are insulated with dense-pack cellulose. In addition to its insulation value (known as "R-value"), this recycled product completely fills the wall cavity and further reduces the air leakage that leads to energy loss.
6. We use Icynene foam as insulation in the roofline of our second-story spaces. This advanced insulation creates a 100% air seal in the exact location where most heat is lost in typical houses--out of the roof.
7. We relentlessly air seal of each and every one of the many, many small holes that rob the typical home of heat. Even joints where two wood studs meet are sealed with caulk to prevent the loss of conditioned air.
8. Our sealed combustion gas fireplace actually produces usable heat, rather than creating heat-sucking drafts that send money up the chimney.
9. Bellevue uses a highly efficient air conditioner with a variable speed fan and a variable speed compressor. Typical air conditioning units have a single speed fan and compressor, so even when you need just a little cooling or just a little air movement, the unit must operate at full power, often in short, inefficient cycles. Variable speed units, on the other hand, can operate efficiently across a wide spectrum of demand.
10. We employ a three-zone heating and air conditioning system (master suite, 2nd story, primary living area) that allows the homeowner to set different temperatures for different parts of the house.
11. Finally, all of the above energy-efficiency items and their benefits are confirmed by a third-party official from EarthCraft Virginia.

What makes the Bellevue Cottage healthier for me and my family?

1. Big windows = more natural light. Many studies show that more exposure to natural light is good for our health as well as our overall well-being...and our common sense tells us the same thing. So we put in the biggest windows we can, consistent with the overall design of the house.
2. Our fresh air ventilation system ensures that the air inside the home is "turned over" in a controlled manner (rather than infiltrating unfiltered through small leaks in the building).
3. Our conditioned crawl space limits humidity under the house and deters the formation of mold and mildew. By adding a small amount of conditioned air to the crawl space, the crawl also becomes "positively pressurized", keeping outdoor pollutants outside the home.
4. Air returns in each bedroom enhances air movement throughout the house and reduce pressure differentials in the house that can pull in outdoor pollutants.
5. Our sealed combustion gas fireplace ensures that the air needed to feed the fire comes from outside the house, rather than back down the fireplace or from the range exhaust, and that all combustion byproducts such as carbon monoxide are safely removed from the building.
6. Our gas furnace and our gas hot water heater are also sealed combustion--the safest approach to generating energy and hot water.
7. The variable speed compressor in our HVAC system allows your air conditioner to act like a bigger or smaller unit as circumstances dictate. In humid Richmond, this means that the air conditioner can run on a low cycle to dehumidify the air even when a limited amount of cooling is called for. Typical air conditioners turn on and off frequently, which reduces their ability to dehumidify the air.
8. "Sealed" or detached garages. Car exhaust, as well as the other funky chemicals generally kept in garages, shouldn't be part of the air you breathe inside your house. Bellevue builds detached garages, or seals off an attached garage with an air barrier.
9. Bellevue limits the occurrence of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in our cottages. VOCs are often found in glues and paints, and according to the EPA, can lead to headaches and eye, nose and throat irritation, as well as doing harm to the environment at large. To ensure a healthy house, Bellevue's interior primers are zero-VOC, our interior paints are from Benjamin Moore's low-VOC product line, our drywall finishing product is GreenGuard-certified for use in schools, and our glues are OSI's VOC-Compliant product.
10. Bellevue also limits the occurrence of urea formaldehyde (UF) in the our cottages. UF is most heavily concentrated in a product known as medium-density fiberboard, which is often used in cabinetry, shelving and trim boards. According to the EPA, exposure to UF can lead to eye, nose and throat irritation, so Bellevue uses real wood in its interior trim and cabinetry, and metal shelving in its closets.
11. Of course, the above "healthy-house" items are verified by a third-party official from EarthCraft Virginia.

What makes the Bellevue Cottage more durable?

1. Our windows are special. Made with AuraLast wood, a surface-to-core pressure treated pine with a 20-year warranty, and clad on the outside with aluminum, these windows are head and shoulders better-made than builder grade.
2. Our conditioned crawl space protects air conditioning equipment and ductwork. In a typical house, a cold duct system runs through a hot humid unconditioned crawl, leading to condensation. In a Bellevue Cottage, the air conditioning system is completely enclosed in conditioned space, extending the life of the system.
3. Our attics are conditioned as well, so any ducts running through that area are also protected from energy loss and condensation.
4. We use 6-inch studs in our 10' tall walls. Going strictly by code, we could "get away with" using 4-inch studs, but we like the sturdiness of the 6-inch studs...and the fact that this gives us more room for insulation!
5. We use coved and parged foundation walls to protect the crawl space from ground water infiltration.
6. We also double-up on foundation drains, with both an interior and an exterior draintile placed around the entire foundation.
7. We use only the best on our roofs...30-year Certain Teed roofing, flashed with long-lasting copper flashing, and installed by Craftsman Roofing, one of the very best in the area.
8. We trim the exteriors of our Bellevue Cottages for the long-term: fiber-cement siding, PVC and Miratec trim, and clear fir or cedar for special decorative elements. You will also see our siding contractors carrying around a can of primer to protect the cut ends of their work--something that should be standard but rarely is.

What makes a Bellevue Cottage more comfortable and pleasant to live-in?

1. Our world-class windows are air-tight, which reduces winter drafts. Yes, you can sit near the window on a cold day...if you are in a Bellevue Cottage.
2. Our world-class windows also feature low-E glass that reflects the heat of the sun out of the house. (Low-E stands for low emissivity; the lower the emissivity, the greater amount of the sun's heat that is reflected, rather than absorbed, by the glass.) So yes, you can sit near the window on a hot summer day and not feel overheated...if you are in a Bellevue Cottage.
3. For good measure, we diligently air seal our walls and roof lines to stop the smaller drafts that typical houses have in abundance.
4. We place sound-dampening insulation around each bathroom as well as the laundry room to keep disruptive sounds to a minimum.
5. We also use a cast iron waste pipe from the second floor bathroom as well as Schedule 40 PVC waste traps throughout--all of which are substantially quieter than typical builder materials.
6. A whole-house water shutoff valve is located inside the house, so you don't have to crawl into the crawl space to turn off the water before you go on vacation.
7. We use a combination of Advantech sub-flooring and TJI joists by Weyerhauser, as well as strict attention to construction detail, so that our Bellevue homeowners will walk on "squeak-free" floors.
8. And last but not least, our designs and our neighborhood--Oak Park--provide you with all the intangible qualities of comfort that you deserve as well--rooms that fit your lifestyle, private garden areas to enjoy, shaded sidewalks to stroll on.

Quite a long list, but as we have come to realize over time, sweating the "small" stuff is what allows Bellevue to make "big" claims for our homes, such as:

Bellevue Built = Well Built.