The International Builders Show (IBS) provides a revealing glance at new product trends that will influence housing design and construction in the year ahead.
The problem is separating the wheat from the chaff. Walking the entire show floor in order to come away with key information is a daunting task. It helps to arrive with a general idea of what you’d like to check out.
Here are nine trends, based on products that will be introduced at the show, to guide your search.
1. Window Walls that Disappear
It used to cost upwards of $30,000 to buy a set of patio doors or window walls that retracted into the wall or folded back out of sight. Now, with virtually every major window and door company sporting a line, costs have dropped into the four-digit range.
Several are highlighting new assemblies at the show. Marvin Windows and Doors will be demonstrating a Scenic Doors line that includes a new clad multislide door. It’s available in custom and standard widths and heights.
Jeld-Wen is featuring new folding window walls and swinging patio doors. The windows walls, which can be used to create a 48-ft. opening, fold back accordion style.
LaCantina Doors is bringing out a new contemporary design for its folding, multislide, and swing-door systems. The doors feature a narrow stile and rail profile to maximize natural light, along with a modern hardware package.
2. Contemporary Lines in Unusual Places
As new home designs grow more contemporary, suppliers are stepping up with products to enrich the look. Even cultured-stone suppliers are getting into the act. Eldorado Stone, for instance, is touting a new large-profile limestone veneer, 12 in. by 24 in.
Weather Shield is bringing its Contemporary Collection of windows, designed with narrow-profile frames and sash, sleek stiles and rails, and more exposed glass. Kolbe Windows and Doors will likewise display a VistaLuxe Collection that emphasizes clean lines and large glass expanses. It’s bringing a new corner window as well.
Sourcing a contemporary fireplace design used to require going to a boutique manufacturer. Now the large fireplace companies are engaged, debuting sleek horizontal designs at “builder” prices. Heatilator, for instance, is featuring a Crave Series of contemporary gas fireplaces with clean face trim that start at $3399.
At KBIS, which is held next door to IBS, several companies are showing new lines of contemporary hardware. They include Contemporary Pull, a line introduced last year to “complete the look” of modern design, and Top Knobs, which is promoting a new collection of modern cabinet hardware in 33 shapes and five finishes.
Even garage doors are part of the trend. Clopay is introducing a new Avante line of contemporary designs that feature etched glass panels. They create a cool effect from the street, especially at night when light glows from inside the home.
3. The Internet of Things (IoT) at Home
It’s hard not to notice the biggest trend in home automation today: app-controlled products. Everything from blinds, to sprinklers, to washers and dryers is being connected to the internet through tablet and smartphone apps. It’s the IoT for the home.
The proliferation of apps, however, created a need for one app to control and integrate the others. Two companies are leading the pack. Expect to see manufacturers at the show tout their connection to Wink, a control system prominently displayed at The Home Depot. Its partners include General Electric, Schlage, and Chamberlain, among many others.
The other leader in the field is Nest, the thermostat company recently purchased by Google that has inked deals with more than a dozen suppliers. The list includes Lutron Electronics, Kevo (Kwikset’s electronic lock offering), and Whirlpool, which will be showing its new line of app-driven washers and dryers at the show. Whirlpool’s interface with Nest allows you to set your dryer in “away” mode when you leave home; it will periodically tumble your clothes so they don’t wrinkle.
More traditional home-automation companies are competing with new app-based control systems of their own. Savant Systems, a luxury home-automation company, offers an app that controls lighting, climate, and entertainment. Late last year, Creston launched Pyng, an app-based platform for controlling lights, energy, shades, and other systems. Both systems allow homeowners, not just programmers, to design their own “scenes” at home.
4. New Lines of Defense Against Water Infiltration
Keeping water out of and away from the home is every builder’s biggest challenge. Several building products companies are coming out with new offerings at the show that help with this neverending quest.
CertainTeed will be displaying its Smartbatt insulation, which features an integrated smart vapor retarder. It blocks indoor moisture from entering the wall cavity when humidity is low and breathes when it senses high humidity that needs to be released.
Tyvek has come out with a new weather barrier, ThermaWrap R5.0, that’s coupled with a blanket of insulation. It allows water that may get inside the wall to escape to the outside even as it provides continuous exterior insulation.
And Typar has teamed with Benjamin Obdyke to create a private-label drainable housewrap that meets or exceeds codes for active drainage management. The product will be available in March. The companies previously teamed to create a new rainscreen product to comply with Canadian building codes.
5. Bath Fans that Sense Moisture
Two companies will be showcasing a new generation of bath fans that respond automatically to high levels of moisture, a leading source of mold and mildew in the bath.
Panasonic’s Condensation Sensor Plus detects high humidity levels, turning on fans to prevent moisture build up. The fans come with timers that turn off units after you’ve left the bathroom, when humidity is often still high.
Broan/NuTone’s 16 new Ultra-Sense fans operate in similar fashion; they detect rising humidity while you are in the shower, turning up or turning on fans. And they turn down or shut off after a programmed delay. If you forget to turn on the fan when you enter the bathroom, a motion sensor does that for you.
6. Kitchens and Baths that Operate with the Wave of the Hand
One of the more interesting trends is the hands-free operation of wet rooms, where personal hygiene concerns are highest. The products not only cut down on the spread of bacteria and viruses, but they make it easier for an aging population to live at home.
Danze will be jumping on the hands-free faucet bandwagon at IBS with its Hands Down kitchen faucet, operated by waving a hand in front of an infrared sensor.
Kohler recently introduced a touchless toilet to go with its touchless faucets. Passing your hand over the bowl interrupts an electromagnetic field that initiates a flush. Delta will be demonstrating a touchless toilet with a blue LED light on the tank.
Dacor will be showcasing the voice activation of its smart kitchen appliances. And a smart kitchen, designed by students at Virginia Tech, includes cabinets and drawers that open with a touch or gesture.
7. Locksets that Know It’s You
The lockset category is going through a big change, as electronic systems replace metal keys.
Kevo, introduced by Kwikset a little more than a year ago, recognizes smartphones or keyfobs to let you in the door. At the show, Kevo is unveiling a new electronic key-sharing system to give guests 24-hour access.
Schlage is bringing a touchscreen deadbolt that allows you to lock or unlock your doors from anywhere, and even set your lights to come on when you unlock the door. A new version works with Apple’s HomeKit technology. It can be opened by prompting Siri through an iPhone or iPad.
Yale’s line of electronic locksets eliminates cylinders, the most vulnerable part of the lock. The design not only creates a cleaner appearance but makes picking the lock virtually impossible.
8. Systems to Monitor and Control Energy
As builders strive to create homes that use as little energy as possible, systems that allow homeowners to track energy production and use grow more important. Several new energy management systems will be introduced at the show.
SolarCity, for instance, is trotting out an app that charts the production of electricity from solar panels. The vertically integrated company also offers to partner with builders in offering homebuyers locked-in energy prices.
HVAC companies are getting into the act. Rheem, for instance, will be demonstrating a new app that allows for remote control of HVAC and hot-water systems. It talks to other systems on the cloud through a translator.
9. Geothermal Goes Mainstream
Geothermal systems that tap the earth temperature to heat and cool homes have come on strong in recent years. The IBS represents an ideal opportunity check out competing systems.
WaterFurnace, for instance, is bringing three product lines to the show, including the 7 Series, which it says is the first with a vary capacity to reduces electricity use. The system, it says, has achieved conditioning ratings 30% higher than conventional two-stage geothermal systems.
ClimateMaster is highlighting its Tranquility line, the first heat pump, it says, with digital controls. It can also be monitored and adjusted directly from the thermostat.
See all of the coverage from IBS & KBIS
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Marvin's Scenic line of folding doors is available in custom and standard sizes
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Clopay's new contemporary garage doors come with etched-glass panels
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LaCantina is featuring a new contemporary design for its folding and sliding door systems
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SolarCity is offering to partner with builders to offer homeowners fixed energy prices
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Eldorado Stone is bringing out larger sizes of limestone siding
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Dacor is debuting smart appliances that work through voice control
