The Recorder reports from Greenfield, Mass. an area builder has begun producing DIY modular eco-kits for people who want to build their own energy-efficient homes. Each Noble Home is custom designed to the owners specifications, and the kits include thick plastic foam core wall and ceiling panels, exposed beam truss ceilings using local lumber, pre-notched rafters and pine collar tie assembly, and Pella windows with insulated glass. Noting Sears & Roebuck Co. made kit homes in the early 1900’s, owner Noah Grunberg, who studied at the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture, says, “We mill everything we present, so it can be fit on site. About 95 percent is precut and ready to be fit.” The kits can include water cachement, solar and wind power designs, as well as root cellars and greenhouses. MHProNews has learned the modular homes cost about $50 a square foot.

(Photo credit: The Recorder/Paul Franz–Noah Grunberg in front of custom modular home.)