Making Sustainable Construction Their Highest Priority Is a Rewarding Experience for Two Brothers

At first glance, it could easily be mistaken for a well-appointed renovation of an early Connecticut farmhouse, but this new home in the Litchfield Hills is actually the first LEEDLeadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED for Homes is the residential green building program from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). While this program is primarily designed for and applicable to new home projects, major gut rehabs can qualify. Platinum home in the state. Traditional proportions, cedar clapboards, a partial timber frame, and a standing-seam metal roof are nods to the region's architectural vernacular, though an open design, superinsulated envelope, and both passive and active solar features truly make this a 21st-century home.

Green and quality go hand-in-hand
This was the first venture into green building for brothers Mark and Jim Picton, but they have been building custom homes in the area for more than 30 years. As they worked through the LEED checklist, Mark and Jim quickly realized that much of it was already familiar to them as builders of high-quality homes. Attention to detail and thinking ahead accounted for many of the points they earned; they left space for the addition of future mechanical equipment — including more PVPhotovoltaics. Generation of electricity directly from sunlight. A photovoltaic (PV) cell has no moving parts; electrons are energized by sunlight and result in current flow. panels; they put extreme care into sealing the building envelopeExterior components of a house that provide protection from colder (and warmer) outdoor temperatures and precipitation; includes the house foundation, framed exterior walls, roof or ceiling, and insulation, and air sealing materials. against air and moisture; they located the boiler and other equipment centrally and planned hot water pipes to be as short as possible.

When GreenBuildingAdvisor.com last featured the house, it was on track to attain LEED Gold. A continuous effort to make the best home possible propelled the project to Platinum status before its completion.

Other than the solar hot-water and electric systems, there aren’t any high-tech gadgets to differentiate this from a less-sustainable home — just good design. Mark and Jim felt that designing a compact home with a functional layout was the logical first place to start.

They wrapped the hillside around two sides of the lower level to temper a good portion of the conditioned spaceInsulated, air-sealed part of a building that is actively heated and/or cooled for occupant comfort. and allow access to most of the home from ground level. The whole shell is insulated to about double the code-required R-values (R-40 in the walls and R-60 in the roof), and the thermally isolated concrete floor on the lower level absorbs passive solar heat.

Dealing with materials
Resource efficiency was a main goal for this project — in fact, awareness of the excessive waste common in custom-built homes was a big factor in their initial decision to build a green home. Recycling became a core responsibility of the crew; they recycled all packing material (about 3 yards), reused as much scrap material as possible, and policed the subcontractors to keep them honest.

Sourcing materials was an equally important priority. In an area with several sawmills and a healthy amount of woodland, finding locally cut ash for the floors and pine for the timber frame was relatively easy. Tracking down recycled-content wallboard was a bit more elusive, but a local (and conscientious) lumberyard was able to track some down.

By putting the bulk of the insulation on the outside, Mark and Jim were able to use thinner studs and rafters and cut the volume of framing lumber by more than 25%. For the kitchen and bathroom surfaces, they used Fireslate, a material typically used for counters in science labs, reclaimed from a kitchen renovation. They tiled the entryway, hearth, and bathrooms with reclaimed ceramic floor tiles.

A comfortable home
Ultimately, Mark and Jim strove to create a place that is a joy to live in. Inside, simple details and warm, natural wood surfaces lend a farmhouse feel, while a bank of southern windows, a cathedral ceiling, and a loft create a bright and contemporary space. Several small decks made of reclaimed cedar siding and mahogany pallets allow direct access to the outdoors from nearly every corner. The minimal landscaping involved reseeding disturbed ground with meadow grasses and clover that blend seamlessly into the surroundings.

The true test of the Pictons' success will be finding a family that enjoys the place as much as they do; the house will go on the market this spring.

Lessons Learned

Integrated design is a term heard more and more as green home building gains recognition. The Picton brothers will be the first to tell you how valuable the concept really is. With a reputation for building great homes and decades of experience under their belts, they still took over a year to build a relatively simple, 1,850-square-foot house. Granted, they decided part way through to beef up the insulation and shoot for LEED certification, but that just emphasizes the value of design before building.

Mark chalks it up to a valuable experience: “It took too long, but we learned a lot.” Next time around they will bring consultants or at least knowledgeable subcontractors in during the design phase. Saving time and materials by making all of the parts of the house fit together efficiently is reason enough, but calculating the relationship between additional insulation and reduced demand for conditioning equipment could really pay off.

Savings in one place can make more work elsewhere
Though they are happy with the resource and energy efficiency that came along with the thick layer of polyisocyanurate foam outside the framing, it didn’t come without challenges. Fastening furring to framing through four inches of foam is tricky enough, but the real hitch is prepping for all of the things that penetrate the envelope. Enough time and effort went into blocking for hose bibs, exterior lights, exhaust ducts, and plumbing vents that the brothers may consider alternative wall systems on the next project.

On to bigger and better things
This home was very likely just the beginning of Picton Brothers’ future in sustainable construction. They are aware that a project that connects homes with infrastructure and social networks could do even more good — perhaps redevelopment in a town center where, as Mark puts it, “it really makes sense.”