Point Whitehorn Net Zero

Point Whitehorn Net Zero

by | Nov 15, 2023

Point Whitehorn Net Zero

Point Whitehorn Net Zero home is a modern, space-efficient, and economical home for the couple to spend quality family time in with their kids and eventually grow old in. The entire first floor is accessible for aging-in-place, leaving the second floor for family to stay over.

The stacked design and minimal undulations in the envelope helped make the most use out of every inch and get the best cost per square foot.

On the North side of the property is a wetland mitigation area that has been smartly sectioned off and adds an extra beautifully landscaped view with native trees, shrubs and wildflowers.

 

Specs

  • Overview:

    • 1802sf SFR &  300sf carport
    • 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath SFR
    • Net Zero Energy
    • 1st floor aging-in-place
    • Passive solar heating/cooling design
    • Insulation: R-29 walls & R-59 ceiling
    • Air Sealing: 0.31ACH
    • HERS Index: -2
    • Annual Energy Cost Savings: $2,141
    • Certifications: DOE Zero Energy Ready Home certified, ENERGY STAR certified, EPA Indoor airPLUS certified, anticipated Built Green 5-star certified

     

    Mechanical:

    • Ventiliation: Fantech Hero 250 with built in HEPA filter. Built-in humidity, temperature, and CO2
    • Heating/Cooling: Chilltrix CX-34; hydronic radiant floor heating downstairs and fan coil unit
    • PV: 7.2kW solar array with Enphase microinverters and battery ready

     

    Selections:

    • Thermatru exterior doors
    • Lifetime warrantied asphalt roofing
    • Birch doors and hemlock trim
    • Floor Score certified laminate flooring
    • Quartz countertops
    • LED lighting
    • WaterSense plumbing fixtures
    • ENERGY STAR appliances
    • No/Low-VOC finishes
    • Triple pane, Low-E coated, argon-filled vinyl windows
        Bellingham Gentle Density DADU

        Bellingham Gentle Density DADU

        by | Jul 18, 2019

        TC Legend Homes demolished an existing one-car garage and re-purposed the available space with a cozy, high-performance, 775 square foot, detached accessory dwelling unit (DADU) that includes an attached single-car garage. The RE Store handled the structure demolition to maximize recycling opportunities and minimize waste.

        The DADU was designed from the ground up to be net-positive-energy, meaning it will produce more energy on an annual basis than it requires. TC Legend Homes applied the same approach and many of the same building techniques to this DADU as it does to any of its other homes.

        Key Features

        • A simple design to minimize exposed surface area

        • Orientation and window placement to optimize active and passive solar

        • Slab on grade with 4” under-slab insulation & Insulated concrete forms

        • Structural Insulated Panel construction (vice traditional framing) to reduce possibility of thermal bridging

        • Triple-pane windows

        • High-efficiency mini-split heat pump for heating & cooling and high-efficiency heat pump for water heating

        • HEPA High Efficiency Whole House Insulated Filtration System

        • 5.4kw photovoltaic solar system

        • Energy Star, EPA Indoor airPLUS, and 5-Star Built Green Certified

        • Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index is negative 16!  (A typical new home has a rating of + 62).

        Whatcom County DADU

        Whatcom County DADU

        by | Jul 18, 2019

         All photos courtesy of Jared VanderGriend

        This family needed some room for the big kids to spread out. TC Legend Homes designed and built this accessory dwelling unit to meet their needs. The family gained a large garage, with 576 square feet of living space perched above, accessible to the main house via 2nd-story bridge.

        Key Features:

        • A simple design to minimize exposed surface area

        • Orientation and window placement to optimize passive solar

        • Insulated concrete forms

        • 2nd floor Structural Insulated Panel construction (vice traditional framing) to reduce possibility of thermal bridging

        • Double-pane windows

        • High-efficiency mini-split heat pump for heating & cooling

        • Energy Star, EPA Indoor airPLUS, and 4-Star Built Green Certified

        • Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index is 46.  (A typical new home has a rating of + 62).

        Toomes’ Bellingham Affordable Net-Positive Home

        Toomes’ Bellingham Affordable Net-Positive Home

        by | Nov 6, 2018

        Built by the TC Legend Homes/Powerhouse Designs team. We design and build. With a standard palette of materials & details that have been chosen, tested & refined over many houses, there is no confusion for the crew. The draftsman, engineer, and crew are consistent through all our projects, so everyone has done this system before.

        Key Features:

        • Positive Energy – produces enough electricity to also power an electric car.

        • Energy Star, EPA Indoor airPLUS, and 5-Star Built Green Certified.

        • Honorable Mention in the Affordable Category of the 2018 US Department of Energy Housing Innovation Awards.

        • The home is oriented for both passive & active solar performance by facing south, as a rectangle with the long side (26’) running from east to west. The home is outfitted with an 8.1kw photovoltaic system.

        • Energy envelope includes structural insulated panels (SIPs). The 6.5″ Neopor R29 SIPs panel walls are locally made in Washington. Designed & engineered to reduce cold bridging by minimizing structural lumber & maximizing use of foam splines to connect panels. Shell is air sealed with triple beads of mastic at all joints and panels additionally taped at all joints. RIM joist insulated with R30 spray-foam at floor systems. Perfect rectangle box adds simplicity to construction & reduces corners & thus cost & air leakage.

        • 4″ Extruded Polystyrene (EPS), a low VOC foam (R20), is used under-slab. The concrete slab-on-grade is exposed and is effectively a free finished-floor and a functioning thermal mass.

        • The heat recovery ventilator (HRV) is a Zehnder Comfo-air 200 which can scavenge 95% of the heat from the outgoing dirty air. Running through a class 4 filter (merv7/8) at between 29 and 118 cubic feet/ minute (cfm), the unit ventilates the whole house, extracting moist air from bathrooms/utility spaces, bringing fresh air into living spaces.

        • Energy Star appliances including a Geospring 50-gallon heat pump-powered hot water heater.

        • Stormwater from the roofs is infiltrated on-site using splash blocks below the gutter downspouts.

        • Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index is negative 25!  (A typical new home has a rating of + 62.)

        Purchase Plans-Set HERE!