Residential New
Attainable & Sustainable Home | Evanston
This starter home for a young couple is ‘right sized’, highly energy efficient and architecturally composed. The open first floor plan, made possible by positioning the utility core off to the side that abuts a neighbor, increases the apparent size of the home and maximizes views out to the yard. The exterior of the staircase is clad with cement fiberboard 'stone'.
The basic massing of the home highlights the form of the second-floor yoga studio, delineated as a simple gable roofed element. This treatment is repeated at the garage, which is rotated 90º, set on grade and clad in the same gridded siding. The yoga studio cantilevers out over the front of the house to create a covered porch space.
Flexibility in the floor plan allows the yoga studio to be converted to a bedroom if needed in the future.
The garage's large south-facing roof is covered with solar panels, set at the correct orientation to maximize efficiency. A battery backup system allows the home to function during power outages and improves the overall performance of the solar system. The garage provides for electric vehicle charging.
Natural ventilation was designed into the home via operable skylights. Carefully designed daylighting eliminates the need for artificial lighting during the day.
+ SUSTAINABLE FEATURES
EPA's Energy Star Certification
EPA's Indoor Air Plus Certification
DOE Zero Net Ready Certification
The garage roof has a 3.72 kW solar PV array
Ceiling fans are located in all of the main rooms
The kitchen features an electric induction cooktop
The garage is pre-wired for an electric vehicle charger
Hurricane straps were used at the roof/wall connections
Natural ventilation was designed into the home via operable skylights
The bathroom fans are all on timers to assure that they are used properly
'Aero Barrier' aerosol sealer was used to attain a tight 1.14 ACH/50 rating
Carefully designed daylighting eliminates the need for artificial lighting during the day
The yoga studio provides the opportunity to physically and mentally exercise at home
The battery backup system is connected to an electric subpanel to power 'mission critical’ systems
The battery backup system allows the home to function during power outages and improves the overall performance of the solar system
There is additional space on the main roof for future PV panels to achieve a Net Zero rating
To bring in fresh air in a controlled fashion, the home has a whole house air to air heat exchanger
The yoga room was designed to convert to an additional bedroom if needed by changes in the family
A home office is located in the family room, with space for an additional, separate office in an extra bedroom
The roof insulation is 16” of cellulose (R56)
2” of graphite infused EPS foam was placed under the slab (R10)
3 1/2” Roxul rockwool batts at the interior of the basement walls (R23)
Low global warming potential 2” graphite infused EPS foam was used at the foundation exterior
Argon filled low ‘E' (U 0.28) windows with a Solar Heat Gain Coefficient of 0.20 or 0.28, depending on orientation, were used
An 'Ice and Water' shield is under the entire roof to ensure that the home stays watertight even if the roofing is damaged during high wind events
Exterior wall insulation is comprised of 2x6 framing, with 2x2 furring set at 90º to eliminate thermal bridging while increasing the insulation depth to a full 7"
Countertops are recycled glass with at most a single joint in any countertop length, are a single solid color and have a smooth surface to facilitate sanitary cleaning.
A 9kWh battery backup system for power during power outages and storing the energy from the PV array for use during the evening or to manage the electricity use when the cost of electricity is higher
