Fountain Hills and Scottsdale are hiding something.

Most homes in these communities are made of “traditional” materials. But lurking beneath stucco, veneer brick, stone or siding can be a recycled product going by a variety of brand names, including Perform Wall and Rastra. The material is made of cement-coated polystyrene. It is used in much the same way as block construction. There are differences, but it is the material that really sets it apart, according to users and dealers.

The “green” building material provides the benefit of lower heating an cooling bills, is fire, wind, mildew and black mold resistant, a concern in homes in the Southwest. Additionally, it is termite resistant.

The insulation value of the material, along with sound proofing and strength are added benefits of using the product, according to Dan Chouinard, the Arizona dealer for Perform Wall.

There is no off-gassing from the product, Chouinard added.

Hugh Henry, another Fountain Hills builder, who is a sales representative for Rastra Technologies, Inc., built his home using Rastra.

“Rastra was developed 30 years ago in Austria,” Henry said. “I built the first building in Fountain Hills using the material.”

Henry’s home on Sycamore Drive is 2,900 square feet plus a basement. He said it costs him $1.30 a day to heat and cool the home. His annual electrical bills average about $1,200, which includes all electricity used, not just heating and cooling.

Chouinard and his wife, Sue Ellen, built their home on North Tabasco using Perform Wall Both interior and exterior walls, along with retaining walls and decorative items are made with Perform Wall.

Rastra and Perform Wall are made of polystyrene – the packing material that fits around television sets, computers and the like. It is reclaimed and recycled by grinding it into tiny balls, then coating it with cement. Panels then are formed from the coated polystyrene and are used in building.

The difference is the versatility, as well as the user friendliness, according to Sue Ellen Chouinard.

“Perform Wall is something anybody can use,” she said. “We sell a lot of the material to owner/builders, as well as do-it-yourselfers.”

Fountain Hills contractor John Fontaine has used Perform Wall is several homes he has built in the community. He currently in building his own home on Eagle Feather Ridge.

“I like using it,” he said. “You treat it the same as CMU building. It takes a little common sense, and you have to have some construction knowledge, but it is good material.”

Fontaine said the insulating properties of Perform Wall results in 35 to 40 percent savings in utility bills.

“The material is strong and unmoving,” he said. “You get a whole lot less stucco cracks with it because it is so stable.”

Fontaine said the cost to use Perform Wall is a “a little higher” -- about three percent more than traditional materials – but using it results in other types of savings.

“You don’t have to use chicken wire and foam to stucco,” he said. “You save $6,000 to $7,000 in those costs alone in a 6,800 square foot building.”

Perform Wall essentially is an assembled grid system, where cells are aligned, rebar inserted vertically and horizontally, then the walls erected. The panels are then grouted. The finished walls can be covered with stucco, veneer brick or stone and siding. Interior finishes include plaster, wallpaper, sheetrock, paneling or paint.

The material can be used on both exterior and interior walls, retaining walls and decorative pieces such as buttresses and wall sconces.

Rastra works essentially the same way, Henry said.

The products allow for a wide variety of uses, Sue Ellen said.

“You can shape the panels for a rounded effect and do a number of other things with them to create the design.”