Less is More

The recent International Builders Show brought to life the adage, "The Best Things Come in Small Packages."

Builders today are building homes that are an average of 200- to 300 square feet smaller than they were just a few years ago. They're also healthier and much more energy efficient. And many of the products featured at the show were products that help make smaller homes more livable.

A big draw at the BEAM booth was the new Hide-A-Hose. It stores the entire central vacuum hose within the tubing inside the wall. You simply pull out the length of hose you need, start cleaning, then use the power of the central vacuum system to retract the hose into the inlet valve when finished.

Not far from the convention center in Orlando, sits the KB Home Greenhouse. It's Builder magazine's latest concept house and it was designed by Martha Stewart. The 2,667 square foot home is so efficent, it produces as much energy as it uses. It also includes a BEAM Serenity IQS Central Vacuum System to help maintain healthy indoor air quality.

Pictured at left is D.J. Singleton, BEAM's Southwestern Territory Sales Representative, with the Serenity power unit during a reception at the concept house