Some local residents go further than just buying energy-efficient appliances; they buy energy-efficient homes. One local construction company is helping homeowners save hundreds of dollars a year on heating and cooling bills.

More people are buying homes made out of Styrofoam. Normally you see construction workers sawing wood, but at Eco-friendly homes made in this new manner, the saws are being used to cut Styrofoam.

"So you have two and five-eighths inch worth of EPS, which is expanded poly sty-ring, on each side of the form. It's held together with a plastic webbing," says Colby Pettit, who started ICF Construction.

Pettit builds houses using Styrofoam instead of fiber glass insulation. This type of home has mostly Styrofoam and concrete, which controls the air temperature inside the home. And in a time where fuel costs are rising, Pettit says a Styrofoam insulated home will save you money.

"If you take your 30-year mortgage, you may spend $10 or $15,000 more up front, but that six or seven percent interest rate, that's only $70 to $80. So you could save that in your heating and cooling," says Pettit.

This energy-efficient home is built like any other home. Except workers deal with one small problem.

"The drawback is just all the foam," says Pettit.

One Styrofoam home owner says there are other benefits. Fire insurance is cheaper because, with so much concrete, the houses are rated as fire resistant. And the home is also insulated from outside sounds, which makes it very quiet inside.