THE SCHELLTER™ ADVANTAGE

We used the scientific process to create a new type of home.

Schellter™ Advanced Building Science was developed as part of our continual commitment to provide our homeowners with an exceptional home worthy of the Schell Brothers name and reputation.

The Four Pillars of Schellter™ Technology

YOUR LIFE, AUTOMATED

Smart Home Technology lets you be more efficient and monitor your home even when you aren't there.

homeIQ™ Smart Home Technology Features

Select an icon to learn more about each homeIQ™ feature and discover how Schellter Technology makes your home a healthier and energy efficient environment.

Communicating Thermostat
Communicating Thermostat
Communicating Thermostat
Adjust your thermostat on your phone or tablet through a third party app.
Smart Interior Light Switches
Smart Interior Light Switches
Smart Interior Light Switches
Use Alexa, set an alarm, play music, and check the weather.
Outlets For Your Devices
Outlets For Your Devices
Outlets For Your Devices
USB-C and USB-A ports built right in to your kitchen outlets for convenient device charging
Smart Home Command Center
Smart Home Command Center
Smart Home Command Center
Allows you full control of your home right from one monitor.
Keyless Entry System
Keyless Entry System
Keyless Entry System
Remotely lock and unlock. Set up personal codes for anyone, and get alerts on who enters.
Video Doorbell
Video Doorbell
Video Doorbell
See who's there on your phone or command center, chat with them, and unlock the door.
Connected Exterior Lights
Connected Exterior Lights
Connected Exterior Lights
Control exterior lighting with voice or touch with your kitchen Command Center or an app.
Overhead Garage Doors
Overhead Garage Doors
Overhead Garage Doors
Open and close from the Alexa app, and auto-open when you're nearby.
Instinct Switch Interior Lights

Alexa, turn off the bedroom lights and play Barry White.

With HomeIQ, every bedroom features a Smart Switch. This allows you to use Alexa, receive announcements from other Alexa devices, set a reminder or alarm, play music, and check the weather. Additionally, voice activation turns the lights off and on and can set a night light. You can also use your remote control via the Alexa application.

Connected Switch for Exterior Lights

Alexa, turn on the outside lights.

Your new home will be equipped with a Smart Switch exterior coach and porch lighting. This will allow you to control exterior lighting with voice or touch through your kitchen Command Center. HomeIQ also affords you the ability to set night lights and increase curb appeal and safety by setting pre-dusk to dawn lighting. Lastly, you will have the ability to control exterior lighting remotely from an app.

Communicating Thermostat

Monitor and regulate both temperature and humidity*.

Traditional HVAC systems and thermostats just measure and regulate temperature, which is only part of what makes a home's interior environment comfortable. High humidity can make a home uncomfortable and potentially lead to unhealthy moisture-related problems. Use your phone or tablet to adjust the thermostat through a third party app*.

*Equipment and functionality may differ per region, depending on that region's needs.

Keyless Entry Systems

Alexa, unlock the front door.

A keyless entry door lock will give you the freedom from keys and hiding them under the door mat. Set up personal codes for the kids, neighbor, dog walker or the cleaners and give quick entry access to those you trust. Remotely lock/unlock the door from anywhere you are and receive messages on who's entered the home. It also communicates directly to your alarm panel and command center.

THE NEW STANDARD FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Enerwize surpasses the requirements & efficiency ratings of homes built to Energy Star specifications.

Finally, a "miles per gallon" rating for home energy consumption

Maintain the perfect balance of temperature and humidity. Unlike traditional HVAC systems that only regulate temperature, our approach ensures your home stays comfortable and healthy by managing humidity. This helps prevent moisture-related issues while enhancing overall comfort.

A home built by Schell Brothers averages a score of 49 on the HERS index, which means it is over 100% more energy efficient and uses 51% less energy than a Standard New Home with a HERS Score of 100*.

An Enerwize home will have energy costs that are less than half of an equivalently sized existing home.

*Source RESNET®

What's Included with Enerwize™?

2X6 Exterior Walls

Bigger, better exterior walls.

2x6 walls are significantly stronger than 2x4 walls and allow for a lot more insulation, which makes a huge difference in heating and cooling costs. The extra insulation also makes it much quieter inside the home.

63%

more insulation than 2x4 walls

Lower Costs

for heating & cooling

Stronger

than 2x4 walls

Quieter

better noise reduction

Stick-built Construction

Stick-built homes are more energy efficient than panelized homes.

Most production home builders use panelized walls in their homes because it costs less. Our homes are constructed on-site because stick-built homes are stronger and more energy efficient, although framing is certainly less expensive and quicker using panels.

Panelized homes introduce extra studs into the exterior walls because there are two studs next to each other where the panels meet. Wood is a poor insulator, so extra studs mean extra energy loss through the walls.

In addition, small gaps between studs, walls, and floor systems are a common source of air infiltration. In a stick-built home, wall sheathing (the OSB or plywood on the outside of an exterior wall) covers these gaps and inhibits air leaks. With a panelized home, there is no sheathing to cover these gaps, just house wrap or tape, which do little to prevent air infiltration in these areas.

Draft Stopping

Air leakage is a major cause of heat and cooling loss within a home.

Even a well insulated home can have high energy bills and uncomfortable drafts if the home is not properly draft-stopped. Many homes have air leakage equivalent to an open window, even though all the windows are closed.

Conditioning air that is lost through leakage accounts for 25% - 40% of the energy used for heating/cooling in a typical home.

Draft/Leakage Prevention

We apply a spray foam to joints and other areas of our home’s exterior envelope to prevent unwanted airflow between the outside and inside of the home.

Blown-in Blanket Insulation

Completely filling the void.

Insulation’s primary purpose is to reduce heat transfer. BATT insulation, often still used in new homes, loses its effectiveness when cut or compressed to accommodate electric boxes, wires, light fixtures, and other objects in walls and ceilings.

Instead of BATT insulation, dense pack fiberglass insulation is "blown-in" to fill all the voids in the walls and ceilings of Schell Brothers homes, creating a consistent and more effective thermal and sound barrier.

High Performance Windows

Extremely energy efficient windows are well insulated and block solar heat gain.

The windows in a home can be a major source of heat and cooling loss. Many builders reduce the construction cost and energy loss by simply including very few windows in their homes.

We recognize that more natural light makes a home feel much better, so we don’t skimp on quantity or quality of the windows in our homes. To prevent energy loss while including more windows, our provider created a brand new window specifically designed to meet the ultra energy efficient specs we insisted on.

Our windows also minimize the transfer of ultraviolet light, protecting your furniture and finishes from fading.

Tankless Water Heater

You wouldn't leave your car running all day. Why leave your water heater going?

A traditional tank water heater uses a tremendous amount of energy because it is constantly running.

Schell Brothers homes feature a tankless water heater that only runs "on demand" when hot water is needed. It's also about the size of a briefcase, so it takes up a lot less space. Plus it never runs out of hot water, and will last about twice as long, typically up to 20 years.

Tankless water heater vs. traditional:

40%

less energy used

2x

longer life span

PEX Plumbing

Faster hot water with direct home run lines.

PEX pipes are flexible tubes of cross-linked polyethylene that we use with a manifold in a "home run" plumbing system to provide direct water lines to each faucet. PEX piping systems have far fewer joints and fittings than traditional PVC or copper pipes, which greatly reduces the potential for leaks. PEX tubing won't pit, scale or corrode and is much less likely than PVC to burst if it freezes.

Variable Speed Air Handler

Schell Brothers homes include an HVAC system with multiple fan speeds to precisely control airflow.

A variable speed system with electronic communicating motor (ECM) technology is more energy efficient as most times of the year the air handler fan will only need to run at low speeds.

A variable speed air handler is also much more effective at removing humidity from the air, which not only improves comfort, but reduces problems caused by moisture such as mold. Some systems can remove as much as 24 gallons of moisture per day from a home!


2-Stage Furnace

Our smart furnace runs at low speed whenever it can.

Typically homes include a single-stage furnace that runs at full power any time it is turned on. Schell Brothers homes use a smarter, 2-stage furnace.

A 2-stage furnace is like having two furnaces in one: an energy efficient low-stage furnace for moderately cold days, and a heavy duty, high-stage furnace for very cold days.

A 2-stage furnace typically operates in the low stage most of the time, producing far less combustion noise than a single-stage furnace.

Properly Sealed Ductwork

Up to 20% of the energy used to heat & cool a home is wasted due to duct leakage.

Proper duct sealing can greatly reduce or eliminate this source of energy loss. Locating the ductwork within a conditioned space further increases the efficiency by reducing the heat transfer through the duct walls.

Our ductwork is located predominantly within conditioned space and all the seams are sealed with tape and mastic to ensure little to no air leakage.

To ensure proper duct sealing, all Schellter homes receive a 3rd party Duct Blaster Test which measures the amount of air leakage in the duct system so that any deficiencies can be identified and corrected prior to installing drywall.

Conditioned Crawl Space

Eliminating heat loss through the floor.

Insulating and cooling the home's crawl space creates a thermal connection to the ground and essentially eliminates the majority of heat loss through the floor system, not to mention eliminating the discomfort caused by cold floors in the winter.

A vented crawl space, on the other hand, makes the entire home a conditioned island surrounded by unconditioned air on all sides.

Our crawl spaces have no outside vents, are insulated, and conditioned by the HVAC system.

UNPARALLELED DURABILITY, LONGEVITY, AND STRENGTH.

4Tress meets stringent requirements in 4 categories: durability, strength, moisture/water protection, and sound attenuation.

Stick-built homes are stronger than panelized homes.

Unlike many production home builders who rely on panelized walls to save on costs, we take a different approach. At Schell Brothers, each home is carefully constructed on-site using traditional stick-built methods. Why? Because stick-built homes offer greater strength and energy efficiency. While panelized framing may be faster and less expensive, we believe in building homes that stand the test of time—providing lasting quality and peace of mind for our homeowners.

What's Included with 4tress™?

Stick-Built Construction

Stick-built homes are stronger than panelized homes.

Most production home builders use panelized walls in their homes because it costs less. Our homes are constructed on-site, because stick-built homes are stronger and more energy efficient, although framing is certainly less expensive and quicker using panels.

Stick-built homes have continuous overlapping sheathing.

Panelized homes have sheathing gaps and lack tie-down strength.

2x6 Exterior Walls

Bigger, better exterior walls.

2x6 walls are significantly stronger than 2x4 walls and allow for a lot more insulation, which makes a huge difference in heating and cooling costs. The extra insulation also makes it much quieter inside the home.

63%

more insulation than 2x4 walls

Lower Costs

for heating & cooling

Stronger

than 2x4 walls

Quieter

better noise reduction

Blown-In Insulation

Walls filled with safer, quieter material.

Instead of BATT insulation, dense pack fiberglass insulation is "blown-in" to fill all the voids in the walls and ceilings of Schell Brothers homes, creating a consistent and more effective thermal and sound barrier.

The blown-in insulation used in Schell Brothers homes is formaldehyde-free, non-combustible, non-corrosive, and moisture-resistant. That means you get a safer product that resists mold growth to protect your home and the people in it.

Each bag of blown-in insulation contains the equivalent of over 30 recycled bottles, and is verified as a GREENGUARD® certified, low VOC product.

Blown-in insulation used in Schell Brothers homes improves sound attenuation by 4 to 10 points.

Leak Prevention System

Designed to keep the inside of your home water and moisture free.

Water infiltration can wreak havoc on a home. Not only can water leaks ruin the finishes within your home, they can cause dangerous structural issues due to wood rot. In addition, water in the home causes mold growth which can be harmful and sometimes deadly to the home's inhabitants.

The 4Tress Leak Prevention System (LPS) is a collection of waterproofing and water infiltration prevention features designed to keep the inside of your home water and moisture free.

Window Sill Rain Trough

Wind-driven rain has the potential to get behind the tape and house wrap along the window perimeter and flow down to the sill. A rain trough is an extra precaution designed to prevent this water from entering the house walls and causing problems such as mold and wood rot.

Capillary Break

Building scientists have recently discovered that even a leak-free home can have moisture and mold problems due to ground water wicking up the foundation walls through the footing. The waterproof capillary break installed on top of our footings prevents this from occurring.

Variable Speed Air Handler

A smart, comfortable and quiet air handler.

Schell Brothers homes include an HVAC system that has multiple fan speeds to precisely control the speed and volume of airflow.

This type of system is quieter and makes very little noise when it turns on because it can start with a low fan speed.

A variable speed air handler is also much more effective at removing humidity from the air, which not only improves comfort, but reduces problems caused by moisture such as mold. Some systems can remove as much as 24 gallons of moisture per day from a home!

Keeping humidity in the optimal range indoors helps to control bacteria, viruses, fungi (including mold), allergies, and asthma.
Communicating Thermostat

Monitor and regulate both temperature and humidity*.

Traditional HVAC systems and thermostats just measure and regulate temperature, which is only part of what makes a home's interior environment comfortable. High humidity can make a home uncomfortable and potentially lead to unhealthy moisture-related problems.

Condensation is a major source of moisture and mold within a home. Condensation can be greatly reduced by regulating humidity levels.

Our smart thermostats combined with our variable speed air handlers allow our HVAC system to independently reduce humidity* by cycling down the fan speed to remove more moisture from the air while having a minimal effect on temperature.

*Equipment and functionality may differ per region, depending on that region's needs.

PEX Plumbing

Faster hot water with direct home run lines.

PEX pipes are flexible tubes of cross-linked polyethylene that we use with a manifold in a "home run" plumbing system to provide direct water lines to each faucet.

PEX piping systems have far fewer joints and fittings than traditional PVC or copper pipes, which greatly reduces the potential for leaks. PEX tubing won't pit, scale or corrode and is much less likely than PVC to burst if it freezes.

2-Stage Furnace

Our smart furnace runs at low speed whenever it can.

Typically homes include a single-stage furnace that runs at full power any time it is turned on. Schell Brothers homes use a smarter, 2-stage furnace.

A 2-stage furnace is like having two furnaces in one: an energy efficient low-stage furnace for moderately cold days, and a heavy duty, high-stage furnace for very cold days.

A 2-stage furnace typically operates in the low stage most of the time, producing far less combustion noise than a single-stage furnace.

What's Included with Sanctuair™?

ELIMINATES HEALTH RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH HOMES.

SanctuAIR prevents poor indoor air quality and ensures a healthy, comfortable environment for you and your family.

MERV 13 Air Filters

We use bigger, better, hospital-grade air filters.

Minimum efficiency reporting value, commonly known as MERV rating, is a measurement scale designed to rate the effectiveness of air filters. MERV values range from 1 to 16. Higher is more effective.

A typical residential air filter is less than MERV 5 and removes only large particles from the air. Most harmful particles such as bacteria, mold, and allergens are relatively small and can only be removed by more advanced filters.

Schell Brothers homes use MERV 13 filters, which remove almost all the harmful particles in the air. In fact, MERV 13 filters are rated high enough to be used in hospitals.

Fresh Air Ventilation

A healthy indoor environment needs fresh air.

Very little air leaks through the exterior envelope of Schellter homes, which is great for comfort and energy efficiency, but a healthy indoor environment also needs fresh air.

Our homes include a ventilation system that circulates fresh air into the home at a rate consistent with the home size and sufficient to maintain healthy indoor air quality.

Conditioned Crawl Space

Our crawl spaces are actually healthy spaces.

In the last several years, building scientists have realized that traditional vented crawl spaces included in most existing homes are harmful. The moist, warm air found in vented crawls in the summer months creates a perfect environment for mold and bacteria which can infiltrate the living area of the home through HVAC ducts and air leaks in the floor system.

Our crawl spaces have no outside vents, are insulated, and conditioned by the HVAC system, resulting in a healthy environment.

Crawl Space Dehumidifier

Controlling humidity in the crawl space.

We install whole house dehumidifiers on all non-slab Schell homes*. High humidity is uncomfortable, causes damage to interior finishes like hardwood floors and furniture and is a primary contributor to mold growth in the home. We live in a very humid climate and unfortunately running the A/C is not always sufficient to maintain proper humidity levels. A whole house dehumidifier is the most efficient and effective way to ensure safe and comfortable humidity levels year-round in your home.

* except in Boise, as that region does not require dehumidifers

Low VOC Materials

We use low to no VOC materials to ensure that our homes provide a healthy environment.

Most materials we use are GREENGUARD Certified, which means they've been screened for over 10,000 chemicals. Certified products help create healthier indoor environments.

Most homes contain VOCs

Research funded by the EPA has found that most homes in the U.S. contain high levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) due to the products used in constructing the homes.

Many building products emit VOCs

VOCs are emitted by building products such as paint, carpet, adhesives, OSB/plywood, and others. Most will continue to emit VOCs long after installation.

Why you want to avoid VOCs

VOCs can lead to adverse health conditions such as eye, nose, and throat irritation; dizziness, headaches, loss of coordination, nausea; central nervous system, liver, and kidney damage; and even cancer.

Draft Stopping

Preventing air leakage and uncomfortable drafts.

Even a well-insulated home can have uncomfortable drafts when unfiltered outside air enters your house through cracks and openings, and conditioned, filtered inside air leaves. Reducing the amount of air leakage is a cost-effective way to create a healthier indoor environment by ensuring air is only able to enter your home through your filtered HVAC system.

Draft/Leakage Prevention

We apply a spray foam to joints and other areas of our home’s exterior envelope to prevent unwanted airflow between the outside and inside of the home.

Blown-In Blanket Insulation

Walls filled with safer, quieter material.

Instead of BATT insulation, dense pack fiberglass insulation is "blown-in" to fill all the voids in the walls and ceilings of Schell Brothers homes, creating a consistent and more effective thermal and sound barrier.

The blown-in insulation used in Schell Brothers homes is formaldehyde-free, non-combustible, non-corrosive, and moisture-resistant. That means you get a safer product that resists mold growth to protect your home and the people in it.

Each bag of blown-in insulation contains the equivalent of over 30 recycled bottles, and is verified as a GREENGUARD® certified, low VOC product.

Blown-in insulation used in Schell Brothers homes improves sound attenuation by 4 to 10 points.

Variable Speed Air Handler

A smart, comfortable and quiet air handler.

Schell Brothers homes include an HVAC system that has multiple fan speeds to precisely control the speed and volume of airflow.

This type of system is quieter and makes very little noise when it turns on because it can start with a low fan speed.

A variable speed air handler is also much more effective at removing humidity from the air, which not only improves comfort, but reduces problems caused by moisture such as mold. Some systems can remove as much as 24 gallons of moisture per day from a home!

Keeping humidity in the optimal range indoors helps to control bacteria, viruses, fungi (including mold), allergies, and asthma.
Communicating Thermostat

Monitor and regulate both temperature and humidity.

Traditional HVAC systems and thermostats just measure and regulate temperature, which is only part of what makes a home's interior environment comfortable. High humidity can make a home uncomfortable and potentially lead to unhealthy moisture related problems.

Condensation is a major source of moisture and mold within a home. Condensation can be greatly reduced by regulating humidity levels.

Our smart thermostats combined with our variable speed air handlers allow our HVAC system to independently reduce humidity* by cycling down the fan speed to remove more moisture from the air while having a minimal effect on temperature.

The EPA ranks indoor air quality as one of the greatest but least recognized risks to public health.

At Schell Brothers, we take this problem very seriously and have included numerous features and construction techniques in our homes to ensure a healthy environment for our homeowners and their families.

Our efforts have been recognized by the EPA, who honored us with their 2015 Indoor airPLUS Leader Award. We were one of eight home builders across the nation to receive this award, selected from more than 700 builders who have joined the Indoor airPLUS Program.

EXPLORE A SCHELL HOME UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Take a journey through one of our homes to learn more about the benefits of Schellter™ Technology.

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