Philosophy

Green Home Philosophy

Energy efficiency and durability are the pillars of sustainability.

Durability is simple- just use the most durable materials available and put them together properly.  For us, this includes monolithic poured concrete slabs, 12” thick poured concrete foundation walls, 2×6 exterior walls with 5/8” zip wall and roof sheathing, the best extruded aluminum clad windows (and doors).  There are a variety of durable exterior finishes but for a wood siding we use LP Smart stranded wood composite siding and trim. This resists insects and holds paint very well. For roofing, 24 gauge standing seam metal is standard.  The result is a house that looks great with minimal maintenance for the foreseeable future. We believe we are building a 200 year or more product.

We design your home. We prep your site. And we build almost the entire house with our own hands.

Energy efficiency is a little more technical, but the basics are a tight building envelope and passive solar design.  Next comes efficient heating and cooling appliances and lighting. High end air source heat pumps with variable speed indoor and outdoor units are standard.  Also standard are heat pump water heaters which produce hot water using about 25% the energy of a standard electric water heater. They also dehumidify the home.  We use 95-100% LED lighting. And we install induction cooking appliances. We use heat recovery ventilation for exhaust and fresh air. The average HERS score for our homes is under 50 and the typical annual conditioning cost of our homes is under $200.  All of our homes can be net zero energy with a limited amount of solar electric production.