A second story addition to a Craftsman bungalow in the Mt. Baker neighborhood in two phases, the last completed in 1998. The owners wanted their exact house (which they loved as it was), except with two stories… to accommodate a growing family.

A secret passage connects the new baby girl's room to an attic room. At some point she'll discover a tiny door in the back of her closet…. The boy's room features a window across from his best friend's in the neighboring house, to facilitate string and can telephone conversations.

Homes, Gaston Bachelard says in The Poetics of Space, provide settings for daydreams and reverie, to which the inhabitant returns later in life. This is one way of establishing a strong connection to the places we live, which leads to caring for them, which leads to staying in our communities, which leads to decisions made on many levels that will help preserve the landscape and ecology of a place.

This project incorporated the principles of Settlement Ecology, Land Use & Economics, Healthier Building, Resource Conservation, and Energy Conservation.

Settlement Ecology, Land Use & Economics

• As this was a renovation; impact on the site was minimal. Affected plants were relocated on site and returned to their places when construction was finished.
• Our clients chose to remodel so that they could remain in their neighborhood. They plan to live in this house for the rest of their lives

Healthier Building

• Materials and finishes throughout were healthier. For example: Floor and millwork were finished with OS Hard Wax or Hard Oil, a low-toxic plant-based clear finish. Locally made low-toxic Best Paints were used for opaque finishes. Caulkings were by AFM. Cabinets were made from either solid wood or formaldehyde-free Medite II, glued with low-toxic adhesives. Natural linoleum was used for bath floors. Joint compound was low toxic. ACQ was used for pressure-treated wood.
• Whole house ventilation was installed, using quiet Panasonic fans.
• A folded media filter was installed on the furnace, to reduce air-borne particulates.
• Drainage problems on the site (which could have led to a potential mold/mildew problem in the basement) were mitigated with a new French drain.
• Materials containing CFC's, urea formaldehyde, benzene, toluene, carbon tetrachloride, styrene-butadiene, or trichloroethylene were not allowed on the job.
• Petroleum-fueled generators or heaters were not allowed on site.
• Smoking was not permitted on the job. Use of fragrances was discouraged.
• Use of pesticides, herbicides and noxious cleaning products was not permitted.

Resource Conservation

• The project "recycled" an existing structure rather than building a new one.
• Finger-jointed lumber was used for vertical members.
• Roof framing was sustainably harvested lumber.
• 4x6s supporting the original roof were re-used in the new entry gable's exposed structure.
• All new wood flooring was reclaimed Douglas fir.
• Bricks for porch were reclaimed.
• Fly ash was used in the concrete mix. Recycled concrete was used as aggregate.
• Insulation was cellulose. (Recycled newsprint)
• Roofing shingles and felt underlayment, backer board for ceramic tile, gypsum board, etc. had recycled content.
• Full job-site recycling was implemented, including recycling cardboard, paper, packaging, clean wood, palette wood, beverage containers, concrete, bricks, metals, roofing, metals, drywall, paint, glass, & plastics.

Energy Conservation

• First installation of the GFX waste heat recovery system in Washington.
• R-49 insulation in attic, and R-38 in cathedral ceilings exceeded code requirements.
• New wood windows were U-0.32, low-e, argon filled. (Also exceeded code.)
• LongTerm SuperGoodSense air leakage control procedures were followed.

RHA Project Team: Rob Harrison, Daniel Mihalyo, Betsey Power, Paul Stefanski

Air Tightening Consultant: Energy Options Northwest

Structural Engineers: Richard Ballinger Consulting Engineers

General Contractor: Bright Street Construction

Suppliers and Manufacturers: Environmental Home Center, T. R. Strong Building Materials