Private Residence - Amherst
A deep energy retrofit in the middle of town.
A 2700 s.f. Deep Energy Retrofit project to provide a long-term in-town home for a young family.
Determined to find a place to slow down and settle down, these clients found a perfect home - asbestos siding, failing mechanical systems, chimney problems, interior finishes coming apart, floor plan in need updating. Dreamy.
They approached Coldham & Hartman Architects to help them re-design and retrofit the home for a 21st Century landscape. Their clean modern aesthetic will be perfectly complemented by a durable, robust envelope, high performance mechanicals, and a photovoltaic system to provide the power they'll require.
Throughout the process, emphasis has been placed on "once in a lifetime" decisions - the static investments in envelope enhancement that will have 50 year lifespans. (See related News on the Deep Energy Retrofit Pilot Program at WMECO)
The basic form of the house will be retained, utilizing the existing footprint and most of the existing framing. Walls will be insulated on the inside and out, using the existing stud bays and exterior sheathing, but adding spray foam on one side as part of a primary air barrier system, and rigid foam board on the outside as an integrated part of the drainage plane (an R30+ whole wall assembly)
The basement will be insulated and air-sealed to provide thermal protection all the way to the footings, and roof will be removed and re-built to high-performance standards (R-50+ whole roof). Our air sealing goals are ambitious, designed to reduce air flow in the envelope to less than 1 air change / hour at 50 pascals.
The exterior will be straightforward and honest - with clean modern overtones and minimal trim in a traditional material - vertical board siding. The windows will be be triple-glazed fiberglass, with whole window R-values approaching R-7 - the final piece of the investment in a robust, energetically conservative envelope.
Inside, the crisp interior will house the latest round of air-sourced heat pumps to provide heating and cooling with coefficients of power above 2.0 even in the coldest Amherst weather. A low-energy Heat Recovery Ventilator will provide fresh air, while recovering heat from the exhausted air.
Steve Ferrari, of FCM Smart Build, is providing Construction Management, and Holden Builders will provide contracting services.
Now under construction.
