Readers’ Choice: The Top 10 Building Products of 2018
We feature hundreds of new and innovative residential construction products in the pages of PRODUCTS each year. Narrowing it down is hard—which is why we turned to you.
SEE 2017'S TOP 10 PRODUCTS HERE: TOP 10 BUILDING PRODUCTS OF 2017
Based on readers’ requests for information, we’ve compiled a list of the 10 most popular building products featured in our magazine this year. The collection seems weighted toward heating and cooling technology: Two combi boilers, a furnace, and radiant flooring are included. In addition, reader’s to love products for beautiful design for home exteriors, with new trim looks, hidden window screens, and a modern garage door.
But the product that topped them all was Sunflare’s flexible solar panels, which highlights the growing solar industry, as well as the building world’s move toward green and sustainable solutions.
See the full list of 2018’s most popular building products below (and see our kitchen and bath picks here). Cheers to more great building products and innovations in 2019.
10. Lennox
The manufacturer says this is the first residential Ultra-Low NOx furnace in the HVAC industry. Producing 65 percent lower emissions than a standard low-NOx furnace, it offers 80 percent efficiency. It includes a two-stage gas valve and a variable-speed blower motor.
9. Noritz
This Energy Star-rated combination boiler and space heater is the first of its kind, the manufacturer says. The unit uses corrosion-resistant stainless steel for the primary and secondary heat exchangers and has a nitrogen-oxide emission level of only 14 ppm. It has flow rates ranging from 9.8 gpm to 11.1 gpm and a built-in outdoor temperature reset control.
8. Fypon
Craftsman Cove and Craftsman Stepped polyurethane trim crossheads are offered in a 216-inch length that can be cut to size. Optional end caps overlap the breast board to conceal installation screws and eliminate the need for patching.
7. A.O. Smith
The ProLine XE is a combination boiler that provides domestic hot water as well as space heating. It’s easy to install and has a user-friendly interface, the company says. The unit also offers preheat and domestic hot water response modes.
6. Certainteed
Restoration Millwork cellular PVC trim is heat-formable for curves and arches and available in a choice of a Smooth or TrueTexture wood-grain finish. The UV-resistant trim cuts and mills with woodworking tools and fastens with nails or screws.
The Envy Model 956 aluminum full-view garage door features a frameless glass panel design. Available in two sizes, it comes in five glass colors and five aluminum finishes. It features powder-coated hinges, struts, and top brackets, and weather-proof tongue-and-groove sections.
4. Bulbrite
This all-in-one LED downlight makes installing recessed lighting easier and less expensive. It eliminates the need to install the can and flood lamp separately and features an integrated junction box so no connection to an external E26 adapter is needed.
The company’s door screens are retractable, allowing them to disappear when not in use. Screens fit most standard and oversize doors and are available with either a secure latch or a magnet latch. Three mesh options can be chosen from for privacy or protection from sun or insects.
2. Uponor
For remodeling projects, Jeff Nicholson, principal of Quartersawn Design | Build in Minneapolis, sings the praises of Uponor’s Quik Trak, a technology that allows radiant heating in retrofit construction. “Quik Trak is a product we use a lot to allow us to install in-floor heat in kitchen remodels,” he says. “Utilizing this product we are able to eliminate bulky radiators with their uneven heat for the luxurious comfort of in-floor heat beneath hardwood floors.” The 7-by-48-inch plywood panels are attached to an aluminum transfer sheet and feature grooves for PEX tubing.
1. Sunflare
SUN2 is a flexible and lightweight solar product that consists of thin layers of stainless steel, copper, indium, gallium, and selenide semiconductors. Measuring only a few micrometers thick, the product can generate 10 percent more energy than traditional solar panels for comparable costs, the company claims.