Tiny generators, vanishing walls and refrigerators that heat water are showcased at the International Builders’ Show
By DAWN WOTAPKA and ROBBIE WHELAN – WSJ
Bioethanol candles that heat an entire room. Refrigerators that pour hot water. Glass doors that slide around curves.
At the annual International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas this week, tens of thousands, suppliers, distributors and builders convened to examine new innovations in home-building materials, appliances, fixtures and technologies.
The mood was optimistic: Construction of single-family homes climbed 18.5% in December from the prior year. The annual sales pace of new homes was on track to be 23% higher last year than the record low in 2011. And a number of exhibitors who sat last year’s show out, such as GE Appliances, were back in force.
The new designs highlighted the changing priorities of today’s homeowners—and could point toward a new set of standard home features. Generators, increasingly seen as a home essential, are getting smaller. Kitchen appliances have a greater ability to multitask. And the standard electrical outlet could be going the way of the dinosaur.
GE’s Café French Door refrigerator
Sure, it was exciting when refrigerators started dispensing water and ice—crushed and cubed. But GE Appliances says its Café French Door refrigerator is the industry’s first fridge that can quickly heat 10 ounces of water. There’s also a filter that promises to remove traces of pharmaceuticals.
Price: $3,200
EcoSmart Fire fireplace
Don’t call it a fireplace. An Australian household-goods company dreamed up these torchlike decorative appliances, which burn denatured alcohol—or bioethanol—to produce flames as high as 8 to 10 inches. EcoSmart Fire products usually come in fish-tank-like enclosures, but some are free-standing pieces of furniture. They emit a surprisingly high amount of heat, capable of warming a whole room, and can burn for between seven and 24 hours. Many of EcoSmart’s pieces are portable, and not considered fireplaces under most building codes in the U.S., making them legally acceptable for even most rental apartments. They produce no smoke and won’t damage walls or ceilings in the rooms where they burn. Price: $400 to $11,000
GE’s new 8kW generator
As big storms continue battering the nation and power grids continue to age, more consumers want their own generators. Today’s power units are increasingly compact. GE Generator Systems is showcasing its new 8kW generator, which it says boasts the smallest footprint in its class. The units can be placed as close as 18 inches to the home, making them usable in denser urban areas.
Price: $2,199
A Leviton plug with USB ports
The era of mobile phones, tablets and portable games has made plugs prime real estate when it comes time to recharge, leaving little space for things that have long needed power. Leviton, of Melville, N.Y., has added two USB ports to its wall box—allowing heavy tech users to cut out the “middleman” device of a charger and plug phones and tablets right into the wall.
Price: $20
A sauna by Finlandia Sauna
The sauna market is heating back up following the housing crash as higher-end buyers splurge on the heated rooms most associated with the spa culture.
Finlandia Sauna of Portland, Ore., allows buyers to select their size and wood type and decide if they want the unit incorporated into a bath or pool area or to function more as a stand-alone room. Europeans are big buyers, as are the health conscious, says Terri Tarkiainen, controller of the family-run business started in 1964. Sales are strong in New York—particularly Brooklyn—Florida, the Midwest and California. Price: Starting around $5,000
An elevator by Residential Elevators
Amid a shift away from one-story ranch houses and toward multistory, multigenerational houses, elevators are making a comeback in newly built homes. Residential Elevators Inc. builds small elevator units with interiors clad in mirrors, leather or high-end wood that can rise up to 50 feet—or five stories—and hold up to 950 pounds.
Price: Starts at $20,000
Fire Magic’s new Echelon grill
Fire Magic’s new Echelon grill is a high-tech smoker, rotisserie oven and barbecue all in one. Unlike many grills, which are purely gas-powered, the Echelon is combination gas and electric. The main grill lights using a hot-surface ignition system, much like the way a clothes dryer turns on, rather than the usual pilot light.
Price: $7,385
A Jason Wu-designed faucet
Jason Wu may be best known as the designer of inaugural ball gowns worn by first lady Michelle Obama, but he’s made a foray into home fixtures as well. At the builders’ show, Brizo, the high-end product line of Delta Faucet Co., owned by Masco Corp., featured a set of sleek, matte-black bathroom faucets and accents like towel rings and wall-mounted shelves, designed by Mr. Wu.
Brizo is marketing them as the ultimate in high fashion in the bathroom. The faucets, for example, display a cool blue light that changes to red when the water reaches the desired temperature. Price: $799