JUSTIN COOK The Roanoke Times

ThermaSteel Corp. in Radford manufactures insulated steel frames for use as an alternative to conventional wood building. Panels are made from steel with an expandable Polystyrene resin sandwiched between the steel. The steel and the resin come from recycled materials.

JUSTIN COOK The Roanoke Times

ThermaSteel General Manager Don Hanshew's house is partly built with ThermaSteel walls and roof paneling. The building materials themselves may cost more than wood, but Hanshew said many contractors will charge the same price as they would in conventional building because construction time is reduced.

| Allison Chopin

Special to The Roanoke Times

RADFORD -- A local company aims to spread energy-efficient technology with its unique building system for home and commercial use.

ThermaSteel Corp. in Radford manufactures insulated steel frames for use as an alternative to conventional wood building. Panels are made from steel with an expandable Polystyrene resin sandwiched between the steel. The steel and the resin come from recycled materials.

ThermaSteel claims its system helps the environment because it saves energy as well as trees, since the solid Polystyrene component does not allow air to move through the walls and thus provides built-in insulation.

Buildings from wood will also deteriorate over time.

Homes made with this technology can save about 35 percent on heating and cooling costs, according to ThermaSteel.

"We have a lot of people contacting us because of green building," said Mike Myers, a sales representative for ThermaSteel.

The steel panels, which can be made for basements, walls, floors and ceilings, can also save construction time since they are already insulated and have windows and doors as part of the frame.

General Manager Don Hanshew said that the steel is more efficient than wood.

In wood building, "you've got a lot more pieces, and you're still building with termite food," he said.

Unlike wood, the steel and Polystyrene do not contain food value for termites and mold.

Hanshew's own house is partly built with ThermaSteel walls and roof paneling.

The building materials themselves may cost more than wood, but Hanshew said many contractors will charge the same price as they would in conventional building because construction time is reduced.

Materials can continue to be recycled, Hanshew said, since a structure can be taken apart and used to build something new instead of being scrapped when a house is torn down.

David Joyce is building a house in Montgomery County and using ThermaSteel panels for half of the walls and logs for the other half. He said he does most of the work on his own, and the steel panel walls have been easy to build.

His longest wall is 40 feet, and Joyce said, "Me and the tractor were able to get that wall up without any help."

He said the windows and doors are already part of the walls, and they are weatherproof as soon as they are put up.

"It saves a huge amount of time," he said.

Joyce said the only problem is that a builder must make sure the preliminary planning is done carefully before building with the panels. Since the panels are perfectly straight and square, for example, Joyce has to make sure he is building on a flat surface.

The Selu Conservancy at Radford University has five structures made from ThermaSteel panels, including a 4,100-square-foot retreat center, a 6,000-square-foot room for receptions and a replica of a farmhouse from the 1930s.

Jeff Armistead, director of Selu, said there is "no doubt" that these facilities save money in energy costs because they are made from ThermaSteel.

"We can proudly say we are using the most energy efficient means of construction available," Armistead said.