I chose to frame the roof with an engineered wood truss, which forms both an attic and vaulted ceiling. I chose a truss, rather than a traditional 2x roof rafter, to more easily achieve my efficiency goals. Over the vaulted ceiling area, I wanted the truss to accommodate 18” of cellulose insulation – about R-65. [...]
Cellulose insulation has been blown into the walls behind netting. The exterior walls of my house feature three layers of insulation. The first layer of insulation is installed between the 2x6 studs. The cavities are filled with cellulose, an insulation product made from recycled newsprint and cardboard (and a favorite of many green builders). The [...]
Houses That Green Built By Karen Mankowitz Green Home 2014 Annual Issue This article says: “Despite the runaway use of the term in just about every industry, when it comes to quality home construction, it isn’t easy being “green.” What should be a well-quantified distinction has become a marketing term, shortchanging homeowners who want to [...]
Taft School Faculty Home Project Certifications LEED for Homes Platinum Certified Passive House Certified Zero Energy Ready Home Certified Net Zero Energy Home Positive Energy Home Water Sense Certified Indoor Air Quality Plus Certified Energy Star Certified Visit Project Photo Gallery and Information Page
BPC Green Builders Lowers Home’s Energy Cost by 90% Newstimes.com May 2, 2014 In a Newstimes.com article written by Dirk Perrefort, he writes: DANBURY -- BPC Green Builders is quickly becoming one of the leaders in the region in green building methods. The company, which is based in Wilton, recently won the Connecticut Zero Energy Challenge for [...]
Looking Back at Demolition Demolition of the old cottage The project began with the demolition of the existing cottage. As a builder, I should be immune to feeling badly about taking down an old house, but I find it painful to see sound building materials smashed up and hauled away. However, the reality [...]
2014 Housing Innovation Award Winner: BPC Green Builders U.S. Department of Energy Challenge Home Case Study This Department of Energy case study about a Passive House built by BPC Green Builders starts with: “Snow is cold, rain is wet, Chills my soul right to the marrow I won’t be happy … Till I’m home again [...]
2013 Housing Innovation Award Winner: BPC Green Builders U.S. Department of Energy Challenge Home Case Study As this case study says: “A difficult decision to tear down a 60-year old lakeside bungalow led to the construction of a Challenge Home-certified, LEED platinum home that takes energy efficiency to new heights in New Fairfield, Connecticut. Owners James [...]
The Cottage Everything but the foundation shown here will be torn down and rebuilt The cottage I bought for this project had a concrete block foundation that sits partially on ledge as the site rises to the rear. A room behind the house was built on concrete block piers. Given my performance goals [...]
Introduction to This Series Passive House Institute US offers a certification program developed in Europe to assist home building professionals seeking to build highly energy efficient homes (www.phaus.org for more information). This is the first entry in a series about the design and construction of my own Passive House. This is a rigorous process, and [...]
Low-Impact Luxury GreenBuilder, June 2013 An energy consultant and a HERS Index certifier helped this custom home in New Canaan, Conn., achieve both luxury and efficiency. NATE AND ETTA KANTOR wanted to live in a truly green home. To achieve their goals, the couple wanted to work with a contractor who shared their vision of [...]
Passive House Cottage in the Woods Certifications: Passive House Certified Zero Energy Ready Home Certified Indoor Air Quality Plus Certified WaterSense Certified Energy Star Certified Visit Project Photo Gallery and Information page
As green builders, we talk a lot about the energy savings and the environmental value of our sustainable, high-performance approach. Now, homeowners are increasingly interested in another aspect of our green home building: the indoor-air quality expertise that enables us to build homes that won’t make them sick. You see, there’s a difference between green [...]
As with many green trends, momentum for the Passivhaus movement began with homeowners willing to invest a little more up front to build sustainably and create durable, healthy homes that would continue to preserve the environment for decades to come. Today, however, the good news is that passive houses are not only sustainable, they’re becoming [...]
When most people think about sustainability, they usually think a “sustainable builder” has to specialize in building new, modern-looking homes. What’s interesting is that sustainability has long been a core principle in the preservation of older homes. Jean Carroon, chair of the AIA’s Historic Resources Committee and author of Sustainable Preservation: Greening Existing Buildings, points [...]
