Page 13 - GB Building Science Ebook 2019

CASE STUDY: AWARD-WINNING SIP HOME

FAMILY HOSTEL

Designed to accommodate generational living, this home sets

the bar for market-rate sustainable homes.

BY JULIET GRABLE

EATTLE-AREA DESIGN-BUILD FIRM TC LEGEND has
hit on a winning formula for building market-rate, net-
zero-energy homes: Start with a rectangular volume +
Use passive solar orientation + Build a well-insulated,
airtight envelope using structural insulated panels
S(SIPs) and high-performance windows. ADU GARAGE
That strategy is on display in a home completed in 2017 in West BEDROOM
Seattle. The 3,160-square-foot home on an urban infill lot is net-
positive energy and was built at market rate. ADU
“I still talk to people who don’t even know it’s possible to build a FIRST FLOOR PLAN BATHROOM
net-zero home for the same price as a conventional home,” says Ted ADU LIVING ROOM
Clifton, designer, builder and owner at TC Legend.
When Clifton began building with SIPs 17 years ago, he had ADU KITCHEN
reservations about the material. But then his father, also a builder,
asked if he’d like to take on a project in Seattle. The home, which
cost $124 per square foot to build, went on to capture a Housing
Innovation Award from the Department of Energy and has
earned Net Zero Energy certification under the Living Building
Challenge. ENTRY UTILITY
The combination of cost and performance of the SIPs system won
Clifton over, and today, he won’t build with anything else. The energy
shell for the West Seattle home arrived on a truck. The 6.5-inch SIPs
panel walls were unloaded and installed by hand; a crane was used
to set the 10.25-inch SIPs roof. Triple-pane windows from EuroClime SECOND FLOOR PLAN
complete the envelope. LIVING ROOM

Environmentally Attractive and Easy on the Eyes KITCHEN BEDROOM
TC Legend homes aren’t just functional boxes; it’s important that the
homes are attractive, too. On the exterior, Allura fiber cement panels
combine with FSC-certified redwood accents to create a durable yet
attractive façade. Overhangs and awnings add interest while shading
the home from the summer sun.
As a case in point, Clifton points to his Tesla S electric car. Yes, it’s CLOSET
environmentally responsible. “But it looks really cool, too,” he says. OFFICE
Not content to stop at net-zero energy, TC Legend also integrated a BATHROOM MASTER BED
rainwater harvesting system into the home—a first for the company.
The system was designed by RainBank; TC Legend installed all of
the components. The system consists of four 2,500-gallon cisterns
located below the first-floor deck, for a total storage capacity of 10,000 THIRD FLOOR PLAN
gallons. The water moves through a series of physical filters before GAME ROOM
undergoing UV treatment. The system supplies all of the water used
in the three-story home, including irrigation. BEDROOM
Sizing the rainwater collection system for the three-story house
presented a challenge. The limiting actor was the roof area. The
cisterns were sized so that they can meet the demand of the
occupants, which include a family of five plus guests who stay in

BUILDING SCIENCE SPECIAL REPORT: SIX WAYS CONSTRUCTION IS CHANGING 13