John Choate
Choate Custom Homes, Milford, Mich., and Raleigh, N.C.
SunTouch
John
Choate, president of Choate Custom Homes, says his homes are
“women-centered.” Kohler’s DTV showering system adds value to homes, he
says, because it gives women and their families a place to escape and
relax. The newest system from Kohler, the DTV II, includes music,
lighting, chromatherapy, water, steam, and programmable settings. It’s
also simple to operate, Choate says.
Choate’s preferred radiant heating product, SunTouch, makes life easier for installers, he says. Because the mats are so thin, they can be laid out based on room configuration. “You can do this as an afterthought to provide heating,” he says. “Just attach it to the floor, pour self level over top, and set your tile directly on top.” Unlike systems that need transformers, this system can tie right to a power source and connect to a thermostat, Choate says. SunTouch mats install either under stone and tile or between floor joists. Mats come in 120- and 240-volt models.
Heat & Glo fireplaces offer a masonry look without the price, Choate says. The zero-clearance products can be finished with stone up to the box, and copper or historical chimney toppers can finish the look. “From the outside and on the inside, it looks like masonry,” Choate says. “But, it’s pre-fabricated.”
Kohler. 800.456.4537. www.kohler.com..
SunTouch. 888.432.8932. www.suntouch.com..
Hearth & Home Technologies. 888.427.3973. www.heatnglo.com..
Ben Lentz
Calvis Wyant Luxury Homes, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Lutron Electronics
Calvis
Wyant Luxury Homes does a lot of spec houses. So, in the past, when
customers wanted to expand their home controls, it became “quite a
process,” says Ben Lentz, project manager. But, Lutron Electronics’
HomeWorks system allows more flexibility, and the builder has begun to
include the product in all of its houses. “There’s no limit to how many
fixtures you can control or what you can control,” says Lentz. “If
people want to add to it, it’s fully expandable.”
Lentz says another product, Quickflash by Quickflash Weatherproofing Products, adds to the quality of homes. It seals out the elements and gives workers a clean way to finish behind wall penetrations such as A/C line sets and copper pipes. The product slips over the penetration, Lentz says, and installs with a nail or screw. The product works in conjunction with building paper or housewrap.
Lutron Electronics. 888.588.7661. www.lutron.com..
Quickflash Weather-proofing Products. 800.963.6886. www.quickflashproducts.com..
