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2008 Home Design Referral Program |
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In case you missed the news!!
Our firm has recently announced an awards program, where your simple referral can translate into Energy Star appliances, 10 years of carbon footprint off-sets, and more!
To learn more, download our Program and Rewards PDF.
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Featured Custom Home Design |
Responsible Luxury - Bridgeton, Maine
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Home
- 4,700 Square Feet
- 2 Master Suites
- 3 Bedrooms
- 3 Full and 2 Half Baths
- Music Room
- Meditation Room
- Study
- Home Office
- Sewing Room
- Exercise Room
- Traditional Fireplace
- Walk in Closets
- Three Season Sunroom
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Energy
- Fossil Fuel Free Home
- Solar Electric System (Grid-tied)
- Solar Thermal System
- Geothermal System
- Advanced Framing
- Icynene Foam Insulation
- Radiant Floor Heating
- Energy Star Appliances and Lighting
- Heat Recovery Ventilator
Health
- Low to No VOC Materials
- Air Exchange System
- Radiant Heating |
After visiting Maine for many years, our clients decided that a lakefront lot in Bridgeton would make a wonderful retirement place. Their top priorities were clear, so our firm designed a green, healthy home for their active lifestyle with energy performance up to today's highest standards.
The home incorporates specialized rooms, both small and large, for activities such as meditation, music, sewing, and exercise. The kitchen, with views of the lake, is a fabulous chef's workspace with easy access to both the breakfast nook and the more formal dining room.
Views are captured with double sets of French doors from each side of the main living area. Included is a fireplace with energy efficient insert, a wet bar for entertaining, and a separate, more reserved, television viewing area. Decking around the rear of the home is accessible from most rooms in the house. From there the water views can be captured, as well as from the three season sun space.
Geothermal and grid-tied solar systems handle the energy requirements without the use of any oil or gas, making the home 'fossil fuel free'. The residence provides for all the needs of a couple with green values from the 'Baby Boomer' generation, about to become 'Empty Nesters'.
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| Commonwealth Solar |
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If you own a house in Massachusetts, you should be aware of Governor Partick's new Commonwealth Solar initiative. $40 million dollars has been allocated for solar photovoltiac installations, including residential up to 5 kilowatt .
To learn more, visit the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative
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| What Does the Term "Zero Energy Home" Mean? |
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 "Zero Energy Home"
For those of you who have heard the term for some time and still wonder, we've created a straight forward explanation.
This single page PDF can be passed along and shared with others, to help clarify the concept.
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| A Tight House is Good! |
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 Air infiltration is a top source of energy loss in a typical house. Building a tight house is a great, economical way to prevent that energy loss. But doesn't a tight house trap air inside of your home?
A common misconception of a "tight" house is that it does not have ample air circulation resulting in a build up of moisture and stale air.
For these reasons a properly built "tight" home requires the knowledge of building science and mechanical air exchange.
Building science determines the best wall construction for your specific climate zone so the desired amount of humidity leaves the building. Then, an engineer calculates the proper amount of fresh air to bring into the house and the desired humidity level to maintain. With these figures, the engineer can appropriately size and design the air exchange system to adequately refresh indoor air on a daily basis.
So, in the end, a "tight" house is actually a good thing. Building a tight home and integrating an air exchanger yields both substantially improved air quality and far-superior energy efficiency year round.
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| LEED For Homes Released |
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A long time in development, the LEED for Homes Rating System has finally been released by the US Green Building Council. The pilot phase, in place since 2005, has been retired as of January 2008 and replaced with the new rating system.
More about the LEED for Homes Rating System
Our firm has a LEED Accredited Professional on staff and can design your next home according to LEED standards. Contact Us to design your new home.
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