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Sustainable or "green" home design is the art of designing homes using ecologically sustainable principles. The aim of sustainable design is to reduce or eliminate the use of non-renewable resources and minimize environmental impact.
We have always believed that those fortunate enough to build their own custom home have the opportunity to make a positive, long-term impact by considering energy efficiency, sustainability and conservation in their design. We have made it our life's work to help people achieve these goals.
If contributing to a more sustainable future is a part of your vision, consider the size of your home very carefully. Size will make a huge impact on your home's energy use and sustainability. Smaller homes conserve significant resources in their construction, maintenance and operation and are a greener alternative. A smaller home costs less too.
The size of your home will naturally relate to the size of your family and the activities you do there and, for this reason, the sizes of our homes vary. Because of our career-long focus on sustainable design, we have become experienced in designing smaller homes. Even if you have need for more space, you can have a larger home designed without wasted space. Many of our clients are couples or singles whose children are grown and we have designed some wonderful homes for them that are cozy, efficient and sunny!
Designing smaller homes requires a special skill because there is no room for wasted space! Fortunately, with SIP construction, vaulted ceilings are the natural result of a pitched roof. Vaulted ceilings add volume making spaces feel larger and more open. Day lighting through windows facing different directions opens up the spaces inside and makes them feel cozy and inviting. Porches and patios, when oriented properly and designed for easy traffic flow, extend living space during much of the year.
When spaces in a small home are planned to serve multiple functions, the home can reconfigure itself to accommodate changing needs. A well designed smaller home can provide everything that most of us want, while reducing waste and increasing sustainability and affordability.
All it takes is a shift in mind set!
The conventional approach to designing a solar home is illustrated in the diagram on the right. First, the heat loss is calculated for the type and size of the structure. Then the amount of south facing glass is determined for the desired solar gain. The thermal mass is then sized in proportion to the solar gain.
Soon after we went into business and became experienced in passive solar design we realized that the most crutial element in a solar home is a well-insulated exterior shell. Increasing insulation and decreasing infiltration cuts heat loss, which changes the relationship between solar gain to floor area, which reduces the amount of thermal mass needed. This reduces the need for as much south facing glass, which opens up design options and enables us to design solar homes in conventional styles that don't look "solar."
We found the super insulated building system we were seeking when we discovered polyurethane-filled structural insulated panels (SIPs) in the late 1970s. We built our first SIP home at that time and have been building with SIPs ever since.
Before we began using SIPs, our passive solar homes looked like all the other solar homes of the time. Using SIPs allowed us new design freedom! Clerestory windows, trombe walls and banks of floor-to-ceiling south glass disappeared. No more need for the bermed, windowless north side of the home (that couldn't help but be ugly).
We now design conventional-looking homes in any architectural style. We place windows where they are most useful and attractive, without significantly impacting the overall energy performance of the home. There is a cost benefit too, since floor-to-ceiling south windows and extra thermal mass, like in the old solar homes, are expensive!
Super insulated structures still cost more to build than standard homes, initially, but our new generation homes are more simple to build, more cost effective, more comfortable and much more aesthetically pleasing! Changing our formula for passive solar design has allowed us to easily blend Christopher Alexander's design theories with our commitment to sustainable, green design. |
