Prefabulous
+ Almost
off the grid
Y o u r Pat h t o B u i l d i n g a n E n e r g y- I n d e p e n d e n t H o m e
Sheri Koones
Foreword by
Robert Redford
New England Farmhouse
This contemporarily built house fits in perfectly with the historical neighborhood.
Panelized
GRE EN ASPECTS:
EN ER GY ASPECTS:
PH OTOGR AP H ER :
Low-flow faucets
Spray foam insulation—open cell
Eric Roth (unless otherwise noted)
Dual-flush toilets
Passive solar orientation
PR OJ EC T AR C H I T E C T:
Metal roof
Stone flooring (thermal mass)
Stephen Haskell, Connor Homes
Modest footprint
Interior windows
G R EEN AR C H I TECT:
Flexible space
Daylighting (skylights and clerestory windows)
Stephanie Horowitz
Reclaimed wood flooring
Ceiling fans
Zero Energy Design
Recycled brick patio
Cooling chimney
BUI L D ER :
Salvaged kitchen cabinetry
Radiant heating and cooling
Aedi Construction
FSC-certified wood
High-performance windows
Heat recovery ventilator (HRV)
Exterior rigid insulation
Allergy-free native plantings
ENERGY STAR–rated appliances
No-VOC paints and finishes
ENERGY STAR–rated lighting
HEPA whole-house filtration system
Wired for future photovoltaic and solar thermal panels
I N TER I OR D ES I GN E R :
Lisa Kauffman Tharp LOC ATI ON:
Concord, Massachusetts
Fiber cement siding
SI ZE:
2,700 square feet HER S R ATI NG:
50
CER TI F I C ATI ON:
ENERGY STAR
Exercise Mud Room
THIRD FLOOR Kitchen
Living room
Entry
Bathroom
Bedroom #2
Hall
Bath
Closet
Bedroom #3
Away room
Covered porch
FIRST FLOOR
28
SECOND FLOOR
New England Farmhouse
Dining room
Master bathroom
Master bedroom
29
BELOW
The space-saving bed alcove provides a cozy sleeping nook, while
leaving most of the square footage available for full use during the day.
OPPOSITE
All appliances in the kitchen are ENERGY STAR in order to limit
energy use. Larger windows on this southern side of the house flood the
New England Farmhouse
New England Farmhouse
interior with sun. Skylights were added for additional daylighting.
32
33
Superb-A House Panelized
GREEN AS P E CTS:
EN ER GY ASPECTS:
PH OTOGR AP H ER :
No paint, no tiles, no carpet
LED lights
Art Gray
Separate carport
Natural ventilation (no air-conditioning),
A R C H I TEC T:
Cooling pond with accent of recycled glass
MINARC
RUBBiSH (recycled rubber sinks; see sidebar)
Radiant floor heating
MANU FAC TU R ER :
Eco-smart fire
Passive solar orientation
mnm.MOD
Native vegetation garden (no water consumption)
Solar thermal panels
Recycled rubber finish on kitchen cabinets and
Thermally broken panel system
BUI L D ER :
Core Construction LOC ATI ON:
Venice, California
including cross-ventilation
Hide-n-Sit disappearing island chairs
Thermally broken windows and doors
Dual-flush toilets
Energy-efficient appliances
Materials used in their organic form whenever possible
SI ZE:
Hall Music Studio
Closet
Bedroom
Bathroom
Covered Veranda
2,400 square feet
Terrace
Jewelry Studio
_001 need caption
The exterior siding is made of concrete panels
and certified cedar.
Bathroom
OPPOSITE
Carport
Laundry
ABOVE
SECOND FLOOR
Kitchen Veranda
Living room
Family room
Entry Guest room
Bathroom
FIRST FLOOR
54
Superb-A House
Pond
55
The landscaping of the house includes only local plantings. Herbs are located close to the barbecue area so that they can be used while cooking outdoors.
L
ess is more” is the general philosophy of archi-
materials; so instead of using tile in the bathrooms
tectural and marriage partners Erla Dogg Ing-
over concrete, and then grout, they used concrete
jaldsdottir and Tryggvi Thorsteinsson. What
on the walls without embellishment. Whenever pos-
are the chances that two students from Iceland
sible, materials were left in their natural state. All
would meet at an architectural college in California?
lighting is LED to minimize energy use and to adhere
But these two did, and for ten years, they have been
to their quest to use materials that will last as long
designing houses that reflect their vision of the natu-
as possible.
ral aesthetic of Iceland. Since it is an island where everything needs to be imported, natives are more
NATURAL HEATING AND COOLING
likely to recycle materials and use ones that will last
Erla and Tryggvi say their designs are “not about cre-
longer.
ating energy but saving energy.” No air-conditioning
Erla and Tryggvi believe that materials are
system was installed in the house. Cooling is achieved
beautiful in their natural state, so they avoid layer-
through the passive orientation of the house, lots of
ing materials unnecessarily. They also believe homes
windows for natural cross-ventilation, and a cooling
should be built requiring minimal energy, with very
pond, which serves to cool the air before it enters
energy-efficient envelopes. Erla and Tryggvi say
the house. “Night flush cooling” is one of the energy-
people work too hard to make things beautiful, when
saving features. This takes advantage of the tem-
they are already beautiful. Instead of adding paint
perature swings that occur over a twenty-four-hour
to a skim-coated wall, it is left in its natural state,
period in California. Window openings placed close
without paint and other embellishment, which they
to the floor draw cool night air into the house, and
say looks good and conserves materials, energy, and
exhaust openings near the ceiling draw warmer air
waste.
out into the night.
When asked to design a modern, very energy-
Radiant floor heating is used on cool days, and
efficient house for clients in Venice, California, it was
the water for the system is heated by solar hot water
an opportunity for Erla and Tryggvi to employ many
panels on the roof. Lots of mass in the floors and
of the techniques they’d developed over the years.
walls create thermal mass, which aids in the heating
By limiting the use of materials and conserving
and cooling of the structure.
energy, they say they are able to design a beautiful house that will cost less than a typical house and will
PREFAB CONSTRUCTION
be less costly to maintain.
All of the parts of the house were built in a factory,
Superb-A House
with walls precut, predrilled, and numbered for easy
56
WHAT THE HOUSE DOESN’T HAVE
assembly on-site. Erla and Tryggvi developed and
Erla and Tryggvi say, “It is not what the building has,
patented a panelized system with metal structural
it is what the building does not need.” The Superb-A
members and insulation calculated to meet the
House was built using no paint, no tile, no carpet, and
energy requirements at the various exposures of the
no traditional HVAC system. They avoided layering
house. The walls are designed with thermal breaks so
ART House Modular PH OTOGR AP H ER :
Philip Jensen Carter A R C H I TEC T:
J. B. Clancy Albert, Righter & Tittmann Architects
OPPOSITE LEFT
missing caption for _003
OPPOSITE RIGHT
One of the boxes is lifted with the crane and set to
help form the second floor.
GREEN ASPECTS:
EN ER GY ASPECTS:
Low-flow faucets and showerheads
Passive solar orientation
BELOW
Salvaged materials
Solar hot water system
avoid heat loss. The wide porch serves to prevent hot sun from
Permeable paving
Daylighting
entering the house in the summer. The house’s exterior is made from
Close to town
Triple-pane windows (see sidebar)
High-density location
Heat recovery ventilator (HRV)
The north side of the house has the fewest windows, to
fiber cement siding.
Cellulose insulation
E NER GY CONS ULTA N T:
Spray foam insulation—closed cell
Peter Scheider
Air-source heat pump
Vermont Energy Investment Corporation
ENERGY STAR rated appliances
MANU FAC TU R ER :
Soil heat exchange system
Preferred Building Systems
Energy monitoring system
BUI L D ER :
LED and CFL lighting
Green Mountain Habitat for Humanity
Insulating shades
LOC ATI ON:
Charlotte, Vermont SI ZE:
1,350 square feet HER S R ATI NG:
35
BLOWER D OOR TE ST:
0.40 ACH @ 50
Pascals Certification: Passive House ENERGY STAR
Bath Laundry
Bath Stair
Master bedroom Entry Mechanical Bedroom
Bedroom
174
Living room
FIRST FLOOR
SECOND FLOOR
ART House
FOUNDATION
Kitchen
Playroom
Front porch
Dining
175