Page 56 - Zero Net Energy Case Study Homes-Volume 2

CASE STUDY NO. 8
STRATTON-LEE DIY HOUSE
(Opposite page, top) Work area on the north side of the house. (Opposite page, bottom) Front lawn transformed into a neigh- borhood vegetable garden.
and experience that gave them the initial idea for this project and the motivation and knowledge to execute it.
Wen Lee was Communications Director at Alliance for Climate Education and subsequently Engagement Director at republicEN.org part of the Energy & Enterprise Initiative at George Mason University. The well-documented and “well-followed” internet blog1 on the experience of the rehabilitation of this house project for a zero-carbon footprint was a natural application of her skills and interests.
Chris Stratton worked as a building science researcher in the Residential Building Systems Group at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) and at the same time was technical editor for Home Energy Magazine. Therefore, he was well-informed about the current technical state-of-the-art of residential design and construction, as well as cutting-edge technologies mak- ing their way into that market.
The house is the childhood home of Wen Lee, who grew up in the neighborhood east of Pasa- dena and attended the local school. She moved out of the area, living in Oregon while attending the university and in the San Francisco Bay Area with Chris for several years after that. Wen’s mother continued to live in the house during that time. When her mother passed away in 2015, Wen decided to return to Southern California and live near her extended family, moving into the house that she had inherited.
Chris agreed with the idea, though it meant leaving his position at LBNL. But it also presented the opportunity, which he welcomed, of putting into practice all that he had learned about residential energy systems and a zero-carbon lifestyle. It would become the ultimate DIY project.
Both Wen and Chris enthusiastically embarked on a very public process of DIY-renovating the house and recording the entire experience on the internet blog, “frugalhappy.org”2. Through text and video, every task is discussed and recorded so that the detailed experience is uncompro- misingly shared with the public. They manage to communicate that this path to a ZNE and zero- carbon house is both affordable and possible—DIY for the ambitious homeowner or certainly feasible with professional contractor help.
The construction activity began in September, 2016, and they originally targeted one year to complete everything. Work proceeded at a reasonable pace for a DIY project, but eventually the realization took hold that the completion time of every scope item would be much longer than planned. The new target date for completion was set at mid-October, 2019, marked by the arrival date of their first child.
This case study discussion describes this three-year process and its successful outcome.
Project Process
Building Program
Planning began in January, 2016, with drawings and specifications developed by Chris for dif- ferent phases of the work to be done. Since Wen and Chris were going to remain in the house throughout construction, they developed a phasing plan to allow this to happen. The original plan called for completion in one year and a preliminary budget of $50,000. Chris decided to take the year off to complete the ambitious work plan.
1 http://www.frugalhappy.org/archive 2 Ibid.
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Zero Net Energy Case Study Homes: Volume 2