Frank Pikus, president of H & S Covenant Homes, was surprised at how much he didn’t know about indoor air quality. He noticed his son’s worst asthma attacks happened at home and began researching the topic. He learned that indoor air averages four to six times the pollutants of outside air. Pikus wanted to do more than improve his own house, so he pitched building healthy homes to the company.
Marketing vice president John Menghini Jr. saw a chance for the company to capture a niche market and convinced the partners it was a fiscally and environmentally profitable proposition.”We built our first healthy home as a spec and model for this type of building because no one in the area was doing anything like it,” explains Menghini. “It sold before we finished it and two more sold and are being built.”
The house is a certified American Lung Association (ALA) Health House. But Covenant didn’t stop there. The house is Energy Star-rated and awaiting the NAHB’s new green home certification. Many of the same technologies contribute to the house’s healthy, energy-efficient, and eco-conscious features. Spray foam insulation, for example, reduces off-gassing and yields a high R-value. Other products include solid wood cabinets with strawboard backing, low-VOC paints, formaldehyde-free glues and sealants, and a heat recovery system that brings in fresh air.
Local interest led Menghini to explore promotional partnerships. The local EPA office and AIA co-hosted symposiums in the house geared toward professionals such as builders, architects, and real estate agents. One session for doctors was led by a physician specializing in asthma and allergies. These and other events have garnered local and national media attention for Covenant’s KC Health Home.
Not every project Covenant takes on will be a certified Health Home, but it can’t unlearn what it knows about better building. Nontoxic and high-efficiency products are now standard in every house.The company’s approach to building has also changed, so homeowners get a healthier, greener house even if they don’t opt for ALA or Energy Star certification. “Before, we were builders who focused visually on what you could see,” explains Pikus, “and today we really educate clients on what goes into and behind the walls.”
H & S Covenant Homes, Stilwell, Kan.; Type of business: custom builder; Years in business: 25; Employees: 11; 2007 volume: $6.2 million; 2007 starts: 15
