June 2024
All hands event
In June, Andrew attended NESEA’s Building Energy Bottom Lines “All Hands on Mount Washington” event with our peer networking group. This event (the tenth anniversary of Bottom Lines’ founding at Yestermorrow) brought together 70 businesses from across the Northeast to discuss the challenges and promises of running a triple bottom lines business (devoted to People, Planet, and Prosperity.) We got to spend nearly three days in the hotel that gave us the modern international monetary system (no, not The Shining!).
Unlike the typical gathering, with a group of six or seven companies (our group is the Wolfpack, facilitated by Jamie Wolf), this was a chance to cross-pollinate with all the groups. We cemented friendships, made new connections, got to run wild with folks we’d only met on zoom, and got charged up about the NEXT ten years in the life of this exciting and dynamic crew. (Image courtesy of NESEA.)
Porter Thayer Farm
We’re now underway with a new project in southern Vermont, called Porter-Thayer Farm. With the owners, we’re working to design a project in two phases. In the first, an aging structure on an even older farm property will be replaced with a new high-efficiency 2BR home, suitable as a rental unit in housing-strapped southern Vermont. Working with Apple Tree Builders of Marlboro and making careful decisions, we’re working to design and build a moderately priced home for the region. The second phase? On retirement, the Owners may move in themselves, so we’re thinking forward to that next expansion, to make it as seamless as we can when the time comes.
High Street Selections Process
Our project in Walpole has entered Design Development! During this phase, one of the main tasks is product selection. This requires a keen understanding of a theme/style, an appreciation of budget and current market costs, and an eye out for our environmental standards. Above, a sample of the options we’ve recommended for a primary bathroom.
In bathrooms, we’re focused on no-lead fixtures, with WaterSense certification, low flow rates, durability, and build-ability. By working mostly within a single product line, we can be certain our finishes match and the styles are coherent from one bath to another. This bathroom is simple and cool-toned. We’ve added a hint of color with blue shower tiles.
Dragons nearly ready for flight
At the Dragon Den, Mathes Hulme Builders is closing in on the final punchlist. Right now, the timberframe garage is underway, with some sharp details by the site crew. Inside, the last touches are being put on the HVAC systems, trim is getting painted, and the carpenters are getting ready to take the protective wraps all the finished surfaces they’ve been protecting for months.
This month, as a special guest, we brought along a visitor from our Sugar Hill project on our latest site visit. Between the projects, they share some enclosure details, some air sealing strategies, and common windows (by Sublime). It was great to let the carpentry teams trade tips and gripes about high performance homes.
Sequencing Challenges!
One of the challenges of building is in the sequencing. At Sugar Hill, seen here, the Owner/Builder is prepping for insulation, air sealing, thermal bypass checklists, plumbing and electric rough-ins all at once. In her case, the insulators (Celluspray) want the Intello air barrier left open, to allow air OUT when cellulose goes IN. The HERS rater (Powerhouse) needs the air barrier COMPLETE before he can do an accurate test, and the cavities would better be left open / NOT insulated if we’re to do any fog machine diagnostics on the air barrier assembly. But the way the underside roof venting is installed to provide for a vented roof assembly, it’s connected strongly to the outside, so it wants the cellulose installed now! They ALL want to be done first, and with nobody else getting in the way, the demanding little parts of a high-performance enclosure.