New House ND2thePond - Final Pics

Final Construction Photos of the New House Next Door to the Pond.

The New House Next Door to the Pond

This was an interesting project on a unique site for an environmentally-conscious, active family.  The building is super-well insulated and efficient, organized along a long East-West line to allow in the sun with a screened/sun porch on the west end near the pond and a three car garage on the other end tucked behind. This house is built of quality materials, oriented on the site appropriately for sun, wind, and views, and designed to live large without being over-sized.

Living Room - windows toward pond

Looking toward kitchen and entry door

West wall of LR has glass door to screen/sun porch

Kitchen has glass door to front porch

Sunny Built-in Eating Nook

First Floor Office with Desk viewing pond

Office looking back through pocket doors toward Eating Area

Stairway Connection

Upper Landing with Built-in Bookcase

Mud Room with Bench & Cubbies at Entry from Garage

Master Bedroom has vaulted ceiling and window seat

French Doors to Lower Level Rec Room

Sun/Screen Porch extends living space to the outdoors

Furniture-like cabinets and beautiful fixtures personalize spaces

To see other post about this house click on these links: (Wow! There was a lot!)
new-house-next-door-to-pond Post 
site-analysis-for-new-house-next-to-pond post
progress-on-site-work-and-foundation-at NHNDtoPond post
program-analysis-for-nhnd-to-pond post
framing-at-new-house-next-to-pond post
framing-continues-at-nhnd-to-pond post
nhnd-to-pond-framing-update post
nhnd-to-pond-hiding-garage post
nhnd-to-pond-sheltering-high-tech-roof post
nhnd-to-pond-windows post
siding-and-roofing-at-nhnd-to-pond post
spray-foam-and-rigid-insulation post
new-house-next-door-to-pond-update post
/nhnd-to-pond-interior-finishing post
blower-door-test-at-nhnd-to-pond post

In a year or so, I'll contact these clients about coming out for final portfolio photos. In addition to pictures looking better with furniture and art on the walls, it makes sense to wait a few seasons for the land to recover and the hardscape (walkways, etc.) to be installed and the landscaping (plantings) to get established.

Blower Door Test at NHND to the Pond

This week the HERS rater conducted the blower door test on the New House Next Door to the Pond. This tests the air-tightness of the building envelope and measures the number of air changes per hour and is now required for all new construction in NYS. The NHND to the Pond scored a respectable 49 HERS Index rating and 1350cfm50 during the test.

Older homes, built before building wraps or board sheathing or wall board or spray foam insulation can be very porous in terms of outside, un-conditioned air getting in and inside conditioned (heated or cooled) air escaping out. You might think of this as a "drafty" or "leaky" building. And that was the "norm" for many years in construction.

Nowadays we try to decrease our usage of energy and minimize our impact on the environment (or minimize our financial costs - different impetus for different folks, for sure...) and the newest IECC (International Energy Conservation Code) has forced all but historic buildings to meet more stringent insulation and air-tightness standards so they will use less energy to be heated and cooled.

I've always designed my projects to be "green" and while I haven't sought certification by LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) or Energy Star, I have always detailed my buildings to be as environmentally friendly as construction can be, sometimes teaching the contractor or inspector about construction details I've learned about in building science classes.  Being "green" usually means creating the best "building envelope" (line separating inside from outside) we can to keep the building's energy usage down to a minimum. (Rather than all the myriad of other "green" ideas, like Forest Stewardship Certified lumber, or reusing materials from deconstructed buildings, or considering the embodied energy of materials/products we build with, or specifying low water-usage fixtures or low-wattage lighting/appliances, or thinking about other sustainable materials, like wool or cotton insulation batting, etc.)

CI layer visible just outside of framing

Recently that's included continuous insulation.  And often the use of spray foam insulation at key trick spots, like the rim joist. Slab edge insulation and the best windows you can afford all help, along with a lot of insulation in the roof/attic. Click here to see an older post about insulation: 2014/02/insulation-phase-1

HRV (on the right) takes heat out of the air before expelling it out of building

When you start getting a super tight building envelope, you need to introduce mechanical ventilation to ensure healthy indoor air. It may seem counter-intuitive (why not just let the building breath???) but the science shows that tight buildings with (continuous running, even) mechanical ventilation systems use less energy. Click here to read an older post about Heat Recovery Ventilators (HRVs) http://cwb-architect.blogspot.com/2014/06/air.html

Insulated Cellar Access

Whoops! Not quite finished yet!

During the test and other check-point inspections potential problem areas were discovered and some were remediated.  The cellar door access was basically a hole in the building envelope, so an insulated interior stud wall was constructed for the insulated, weather-striped door to be installed into. Also it was found that the continuous insulation and finish specified under the cantilevered floor areas was never installed. When that is complete, our numbers might be even better!

Here is the bright & colorful HERS Index graphic:

NHND to the Pond- Interior Finishing

Interior Doors and Trim Installed, Shelving for Closets, Wall Paint

At the New House Next Door to the Pond the interior finishes are just about done. The staircase is built and installed, all hardwood and tile floors are installed and finished, walls and ceilings are painted, window and door trim is installed and painted or stained, and cabinetry and built-ins are in. Last will be plumbing and light fixtures - then the new homeowners can move in!

Here are some photos:

Cabinets for Built in Desk- in Office Room looking at Pond

Tile & Bead Board Walls and Cabinetry in Bathroom

Built-in Window Seat and Bookcases in Bedroom

Staircase (and efficient HVAC unit)

Kitchen Cabinetry and Counter Tops

Tile Foor, High Wainscott Boards, Built-in Bench, and Cubbies in Mud Room Entry

Living Room - Stone at Wood Stove

Open Railing with Craftsman-Style Newel Posts

Site-Built Doors to Access Storage

Wood Ceiling in Screened/Sun Porch

Bead Board Ceiling and Final Trim at Posts & Beams in Back Yard- Frame View to Pond

New House Next Door to the Pond Update

Entry Drive Passes PV Solar Panels

It's winter and the New House Next Door to the Pond, while being placed back from the road, is just visible through the leafless trees. The dark color selected for the siding helps the home blend into it's wooded surroundings.

Craftsman Style Front Porch with double post on paneled base

 Entering the long (muddy and snowy) driveway toward the house, one is greeted with four solar panel masts oriented to soak up the sun and create all the home's electricity. This on-site, clean power generation, in conjunction with the super-tight, well-insulated building envelope and the efficient air-source heat pump HVAC/HRV makes this home come close to zero net energy use.

The exterior siding and roofing is completely installed, albeit not completely painted. (most of the material is Hardi shingle or panel and came factory painted in "Deep Ocean" and "Cobblestone") Custom details like shingled gable walls, contrasting wide trim at windows and other elements, brackets supporting roof overhangs, and double porch posts sharing a solid base contribute to the "Craftsman Style" feeling of the exterior.

Brackets (to be painted) contribute to "Craftsman" Style Exterior

The west side of the home is where the special "exterior living room" is located. This is more than just a screened porch. Three sides of  the room can change seasonally from screened panels to glass panels, extending the usefulness of the space in our climate. The porch faces the pond and the west and is accessed through french doors from the living room.

Other interior finish work (the slowest part of construction) has be done also: the sheet-rocking, taping and painting of ceilings and walls, and the installation of the hardwood floors. Next will be interior window trim/sills, wood wainscotting and wood ceilings, construction of built-in bench and window seat and bookcase/stair/railing, and installation of kitchen and bathroom cabinets and fixtures!

Floating platform is Upper Stair Landing (window half obscured by plywood)

Future Window Seat

Long view - exposed beam supports second floor

Future Built-in corner Bench for Eating Nook

Exterior siding and roofing is complete

South Elevation - see ice-covered pond down hill on left & plywood covering garage door opening on right

Siding and Roofing at NHND to the Pond

Hardi clapboards below & shingle above

The New House Next Door to the Pond has it's "clothing" on! The exterior roof and wall sheathing are being covered up with the final, finish materials. After the windows were installed and all the sheathing was taped and sealed, the exterior trim was installed. This is Hardi trim in the color "Cobblestone". It looks like wood and is installed like wood, in most instances, but it is made of cement, like the clapboard siding. This material is durable, sustainable, fire resistant, rot resistant, and the color is factory applied, so no painting in the field is necessary. The color for the Hardi clapboard siding and staggered shingle panels is called "Deep Ocean".

North (Back) Elevation

These clients like the look of Craftsman style Bungalows and therefore, I designed the exterior details to mesh with that style. We have lots of trim - around windows and doors, at corners and along the top of the foundation (skirt board), along the top of walls (frieze boards and verge trim) as well as some horizontal trim bands in gable ends separating clapboards below from shingles above. The trim is a light color (which calls attention to the details) and the body of the house is a dark color (allowing the building to blend into its natural, wooded setting). Other Craftsman type details that will be incorporated are framed panels, boxed porch post bases, double posts, and brackets. Other craftsman type details were dismissed early on in the design process (like open rafter tails) for reasons of excessive labor costs and maintenance-difficulty over time.

Master Bedroom Wing

The dark window exterior cladding color and the metal roof material selection both lend a more contemporary and up-scale feel to the look of the exteriors. The stucco foundation parging color coordinates with the other exterior colors.

Back Side of Garage

A metal roof is a "forever" roof - and choosing materials that have a super long useful life (and are easily recyclable if/when they are at end of life, or the scraps during construction ) is one way to build sustainably. Asphalt shingles, the other common roofing material in this area, are made from petroleum- a non-renewable resource with myriad of problematic issues environmentally and otherwise - plus they need to be replaced after a few decades, usually, and are not recyclable. Soon we will be talking about the spray foam insulation, and of course air-sealing and insulation such that a building uses as few resources to heat/cool the space inside is another very important way to build sustainably.

Detail view to to see color palette

Now that the cooler weather is here and winter is on the way, the exterior work is (mostly) done. The trades (plumbers and electricians) are working on their rough installations inside, then the cavity insulation and the interior finishes!

NHND to the Pond - Windows

Composed Back Elevation Fenestration

Windows are a big deal. They are one of the high-budget items during construction. The are totally pivotal in how the space will end up feeling and performing. A room with just one window, or windows only on one wall, will feel quite different than a room with a "feature" window group or windows on two (or three! that's rare) walls. A window facing south or west is very different than a window facing east or north. A low quality (or U value, which is the energy rating for windows, like R value is the energy rating for walls and roofs) or poorly installed unit can let in too much summer heat or let out too much winter heat. One really does want to buy the best windows one can afford.
 

Awnings up high in the South Dormer & Double Hungs over Kitchen Sink

Windows- along with doors- provide a connection to the outdoors when we are inside - bringing in light and warmth from the sun, allowing fresh air exchange, and framing views of the land, sky, sunset, approaching visitors, etc. The layout of the "fenestration" on the elevations- from both interior and exterior- is an important part of the architectural design process and something us architects draw and revise over and over again.

South-Facing Feature Window in Master Bedroom

Windows come with a myriad of choices, and the architect's 'window schedule' on the plans outlines each and every feature and option. First there is the window brand; these are Marvin Integrity. The most common styles of windows are double hung, fixed, casement, and awning. There are also gliders, but we didn't use any of those on this project. The window style greatly influences the overall style/look of the home, and we went with large, un-divided glass panes for this modern bungalow. Since the site is so lovely to look at, no "divided lites" were used, which can chunk up the glass and view into smaller sections. (and slightly reduce the window's efficiency, since it is the air space between the panes that most contributes to the U value)

No out-swinging units on porch

 Here we chose mostly casements for large windows, placing fixed transoms above in the most public rooms, awnings for small windows and in bedrooms so that they can be left open to hear the rain, and double hung units where an out-swinging window would interfere with the use of the porch. Casement units help meet the egress code requirement in bedrooms without being excessively large. (see a previous post about windows here: https://cwb-architect.blogspot.com/2013/11/a-window-into-architects-process.html ) 

Upstairs Bedroom Egress Casement Window

Exterior and interior materials and colors can be specified - here we have a dark, contemporary color called "Bronze" for the exterior. This will add some modern "pow" to the look of the house. Gone are the days when all windows are white! The window frames are a Marvin-proprietary maintenance-free "Ultrex" material on the exterior that comes in a few colors, and a pine wood interior, that is factory-painted white in most instances, but will be stained in the Living Room for a warm feature. 

 

The most high-tech part of the window unit is the glass. These have 11/16" insulating glass, with Argon gas between the panes, and a Low E1 coating, that reflects unwanted summer rays. Tri-pane glass was our first choice, as it is more efficient, but the extra cost was too much. We got LowE1 glass for this project, as it is located in the woods with an ideal orientation of SSE and properly designed roof overhangs. Low E2 or E3 would have blocked more visible light than was necessary in our specific conditions. Depending on where they are located in the home, some units have tempered glass or obscure glass. The U value of this window = .29 and when installed correctly with tape and low-density foam, it performs quite well as a piece of a super-well insulated building envelope.

South & East Facing Kitchen Windows

Obscure Glass for Powder Room Privacy

Pair of Awning Window

The Back (Mud Room) Door to be painted or stained

Windows with Transoms Above on the Landing

 

 

Lowest Level "Rec" Room with glass focused toward Pond