Edmonds New Home

Specs

Location: Edmonds
Square footage: 1,800
Year completed: 1994
Architect: Butch Reifert

Green Features

  • Deconstruction and salvaging of existing structure
  • Whole-house ventilation system
  • All low-toxic materials
  • Salvaged hardwood flooring
  • Full-line recycling of jobsite waste

Description

This project involved first deconstructing a small house that had been one of the owner's grandmother’s. This was the deconstruction project Ray and Kurt did together before starting their own businesses, Earthwise Salvage and Second Use Building Materials. The new house made careful use of salvaged materials from the original cottage and was built using the advanced framing technique. This home and a detached garage were built in four and a half months from groundbreaking until the clients moved in, and it was completed under budget.

Press

Christian Science Monitor: 'Green' Builders Make Homes Kinder to the Environment

Testimonial

"I think what impressed us the most was his integrity. Jon was unfailingly ethical with his workers, vendors, subcontractors, and us." 

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Capitol Hill Backyard Cottage

Specs

Location: Seattle
Architect: Ted Granger

Description

The original garage was built when the house was constructed in 1922. More recently a two-car garage was added to the original garage making it into an “L” shaped two-level structure. We transformed this structure into a beautiful, healthy, and highly energy-efficient backyard cottage. The new floors are beautifully sealed concrete with hydronic tubes for heating. The walls are super insulated with energy-efficient windows selected for their ability to reduce transmission. A great deal of salvaged materials were used, including the kitchen cabinets and the original roof ship lap boards for a decorative ceiling covering. The cottage has bright, natural lighting and a cozy patio for outdoor use.

Testimonial

"Jon Alexander provided an excellent product, at a reasonable price" –Scott

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The Sensible House

Specs

Location: Seattle
Square footage: 1,800 + 650 (ADU)
Year of completion: 2004
Architect: Ted Granger

Green Features

  • Advanced framing
  • Extensive use of salvaged materials
  • Full-line jobsite recycling
  • Heat recovery ventilator (HRV)
  • 7,000-gallon cistern
  • Extensive education program for subcontractors and public
  • Annual water savings of approximately 115,340 gallons
  • 9” thick double-framed 2x4 walls insulated with cellulose to R-33
  • R-48 SIPs roof 12" thick
  • Blower door test at .14 ACH at natural pressure
  • Vacuum tube solar water collector
  • Fly ash concrete mix

Description

Built Green's First 5-Star Project

For this project we de-constructed an existing home and built a new energy-efficient and healthy home. This home was Built Green's first 5-Star project. The Sensible House project was about building a home that is affordable, attractive, comfortable, functional, healthy, and environmentally friendly without compromise. The idea for this home is to demonstrate that an environmentally friendly home offers all the comforts, benefits, and amenities of traditional homes, but with added features that protect human health and our quality of life. From the beginning the goal was to push our limits on green building practices and products. Thus the Sensible House began on a small lot in Northeast Seattle.

Deconstruction

We elected to deconstruct the existing 1948 “shotgun” style house instead of remodeling to most effectively reach our energy and healthy house goals affordably. The ReStore salvaged for reuse virtually all materials prior to construction. Many of the materials were reused in the Sensible House project; other materials were salvaged for resale. The remaining materials were sorted for recycling. Very little material was sent to the landfill.

Just the Right Size

The new 1,800-square-foot main unit, accompanied by a 650-square-foot accessory dwelling unit (ADU), was designed with “not so big house” principles tweaked into what we call “just the right size” house. Care was taken in the design of the house, to build only rooms the owners would use day-to-day, and making those rooms a functional size and no bigger. We also used design to make spaces “feel good” to enhance the owners' wellness by creating sunny spaces, gathering places, and places that connect the indoors and the outdoors.

Learn more at www.sensiblehouse.org

Press

JLC: Profiles in Green

zblog: zHome Inspiration: The Sensible House

Ravenna Boulevard New Home

Specs

Location: Seattle
Square footage: 2,100
Designer: Kevin Ryden

Description

Built to the owner's design, this University District project involved building a 2,100 square-foot house from a 700 square-foot existing structure.

Shoreline New Home

Specs

Location: Seattle
Number of baths: 3
Square footage: 1,620
Certification: 5-Star Built Green
Architect: VELOCIPEDE architects inc

Green Features

  • Exceeds Energy Star NW standards
  • Blower-door test for air tightness
  • 9" Double-stud advance framing
  • R-33 walls & R-60 attic insulation
  • Hydronic heating
  • Sun tubes for natural daylighting
  • Energy Star appliances
  • Extensive use of salvaged building & landscaping materials
  • 2/3 of old framing lumber reused in new house
  • FSC lumber and plywood
  • Up to 43% fly ash in concrete
  • Full-line jobsite recycling
  • Marvin Integrity E2 argon-filled windows
  • Hardip-plank siding and Trex decking
  • Low-toxic materials, paints & finishes
  • HRV with HEPA filtration
  • Conditioned crawl space
  • Turf-grass-free landscaping

Description

This project involved deconstructing an existing dwelling in Shoreline and building a new house. The new house includes a super-insulated shell, extensive use of salvaged materials and FSC lumber, and a radiant heat system.

Building this Shoreline home included deconstructing the existing home (handled by the ReStore) down to its original main floor platform and retaining the existing garage framing. A five-foot addition was framed onto the south side, and the house was rebuilt into a highly energy- and resource-efficient healthy home. The home has 1,620 square feet of conditioned space and has been featured in the New York Times and the Seattle Post Intelligencer for its environmental features.

Press

The New York Times: Recycling the Whole House

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