Project Vitals

Location: Denver, Colorado
Project Type: Duplex Residential
Energy Performance: IECC +
Project Year: 2016-2017
Firm Involvement: Architecture + Construction
Size: 1,970 SF
Program: 3 Bed, 3.5 Bath, 2 Car Garage
Stories: 3

Overview

This was a design + build project for a private developer with high performance goals and Passive House principles in mind. Each unit of the Jason St Duplex, located in the trendy LoHi neighborhood, is designed and built utilizing cutting edge building technology standards to achieve high levels of building performance in energy consumption, conservation, and efficiency.

Basement walls are formed with Insulated Concrete Forms (ICFs), which provide insulation on both sides of the wall. The crawlspace concrete floor is insulated and adds to the tight building envelope.The walls and roofs are insulated with foam insulation in the cavity, and a continuous layer of mineralwool drain board on the exterior to give the entire structure a continuous layer of insulation. This mitigates the energy loss through thermal bridging that occurs in typical frame construction. These layers combined give the home more stable and higher R values than required by code.

The entire structure is wrapped in SIGA wrap, taped to air seal the entire building. This not only reduces the risk of moisture penetration, but significantly reduces air leakage, which is the largest contributing factor to energy loss and high bills in a typical code-built home.

The well-insulated building envelope with minimal leaks drastically reduces the cooling and heating loads on the home's HVAC system, which translates to low energy bills. Because these homes are 100% electric, and are designed to be fitted with a simple solar system, net-zero is easily attainable.

The quality building materials and practices integrated with thoughtful design create truly unique and sustainable homes. The building is clad with cementitious stucco, and locally reclaimed beetle kill pine treated in a shou-sugi-ban style.

Even though these homes are built to the highest standards, surpassing code and conventional building standards, the homes are Energy Star Certified as an added stamp of assurance.