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MARKET INSIGHT The larger argon-filled double-pane windows face east to take advantage of the cooler light of the day. Solar shades with 5 percent light penetration provide protection during the hotter months. A smaller band of windows on the west limits heat gain from that side. anything larger,��� Piralla says. This was not a permeability issue as it might have been in a drier climate but ���just so people don���t put up huge McMansions. These are neighborhoods from the 1950s, so you have a few mid-century moderns and mostly ranch houses; it���s suburbia with large yards,��� he says by way of explaining the restrictions put in place to maintain that ambiance. American Window and Glass Evansville, Indiana Steel Construction D&W; Windows Davison, Michigan The office space ���is a pretty straightforward building,��� Piralla says. ���It���s constructed of tubular or I-beam steel. The benefit of that is there is no shear, so technically all four walls could have been glass,��� an option that was not pursued, however. The steel-based construction is similar to the 1950 method implemented in architect Pierre Koenig���s Case Study House No. 22 (the Stahl House) in Los Angeles and allows for an easy elevation above the ground required by FEMA for the area. (The case study houses were commissioned by Arts & Architecture magazine after World War II in response to a quest for inexpensive and efficient homes for returning veterans.) ���It being a warmer climate, we wanted to use natural light without overheating the space in the summer. We had a neighbor behind us, preventing us from having a window on the north side, which would have been the best light to have. The larger windows face east, so it���s still the cooler light of the day. On the west, we have a very small band of windows just to get some light in and keep some of the heat out. There are no windows on the south fa��ade of the building to eliminate the heat coming from that side,��� Piralla says. Solar shades with 5 percent light penetration provide protection during the hotter months. Windows are argon-filled double-pane. Four concrete footings support the entire 16- by 20-ft. structure and its 8-ft. Eastern Architectural Systems Fort Myers, Florida EW7 Products Wichita, Kansas Home Guard Industries Grabill, Indiana JetAlum Kansas City, Missouri Lindsay Window and Door North Mankato, Minnesota Union, Missouri Warrenville, Illinois PVC Industries Clifton Park, New York RJT Industries Woodbridge, Virginia Showcase Windows Houston, Texas Slocomb Windows & Doors Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania Sprouse Windows New Martinsville, West Virginia Tri-State Wholesalers Cincinnati, Ohio For more information circle 41 22 April 2013 QR ForResidentialPros.com deck. ���We wanted to have a deck; that way you don���t just have a staircase butting against the building, and it also gives you a little space so whenever you start getting frustrated, you can just walk outside, relax and enjoy the day and then go back inside and work. Our dogs love it because they can see the whole neighborhood; they have their watchtower.��� The exterior cladding is Galvalume, a 55 percent aluminum-zinc alloy coated sheet steel. ���It���s low maintenance,��� Piralla notes. ���Basically you hose it down once a season to get some of the pollen and dust off, and it���s really easy to install. You can get sheets the length of the entire building so there are no horizontal seams.��� The corrugated steel ���maintains the horizontal language between the two buildings,��� he adds. The building is energy-efficient, as well. R-38-batt insulation is used in wall, floor and ceiling cavities. ���We far exceeded the code requirements for insulation because we wanted to save money on cooling and heating,��� Piralla says. Lighting is LED to help reduce costs and to avoid mercurycontaining CFLs. In the winter, Piralla says, solar heat gain from the windows reduces the need to run the office���s heating unit. ���There are simple techniques to reduce energy costs,��� he says. The windows aren���t operable, he adds, because Savannah ���has a lot of pollen, dust and mosquitoes.��� The single door, being above most of the roofs in the neighborhood, provides circulation and catches any breezes that may be present. The end result, a blend of the practical and inventive, is a convenient and comfortable work space that encourages creativity and productivity.