Seattle - North Tour Sites

We just completed our 1915-square-foot, 3-bedroom, single-family home on an empty lot in Ballard. A true net-zero house and the first of its kind in Seattle, this Energy Star certified, 5-Star Built Green home produces as much electricity from the sun as it uses over the course of a year. By keeping the design simple and minimizing expensive finishes, we were able to keep the cost of building down to $124 per square foot ($114 after rebates and solar production incentives), which includes the 6kw solar panel system, taxes, and permits. Given that the average cost of construction in Seattle is $200/sf, we think our project demonstrates building green need not cost more than traditional construction. In addition to its energy-saving features, the house also incorporates reclaimed building materials and water conservation systems. Since moving in last September, we have been enjoying the home’s radiant floors, clean indoor air, and abundant sunlight. Now that we have settled in, we hope to play a role in inspiring others to build or retrofit existing Seattle homes to the net-zero-energy standard.

In the 15 years that we have lived in our 100 year old Seattle home, we have slashed our energy use by 86%, raised our property value, reaped cash incentives, asserted our energy independence, contributed to a cleaner community and raise our carbon production. We will tour you through our home and explain the extensive remodel including energy upgrades and insulation. We will show you the 2 solar electric systems, including one on the garage which includes a battery back up system that would keep critical circuits in our home powered in the case of a blackout. Our 27 year old Thermomax solar hot water system is a site to see, producing 70% of our domestic hot water annually. Located on the south wall of the house you will also see our 16 water rain barrel revovery system. We are also happy to share how we restored the original Arts and Crafts beauty, using almost all reclaimed and second hand materials. We also want to show you our 1997 Solectric 4 door, an electric car built with a Geo Metro body and our Nissan LEAF.

City Cabins on Seattle’s Queen Anne Hill is the latest hi-performance hi-tech homes built by Martha Rose Construction and designed by CB Anderson Architects of Seattle. The origin of the City Cabins concept comes from a wish expressed by home buyers looking to return to “simpler times” with their housing needs. The solution: provide a next-generation home utilizing cutting edge building technology and energy efficient innovations. The two townhomes, currently listed for sale offer sweeping views of Fisherman’s Terminal and beyond to the Olympics. The homes feature hi-performance equipment, appliances and building techniques not found in spec-home building. By touring the multi-certified homes you will be able to learn about the individual components and systems that when combined together make a healthier, more efficient, durable and sustainable home. One of the goals of the project was to build a sustainable home that could accommodate changes in lifestyles and inhabitants living requirements by offering flexible living areas and design features to accommodate everyone.

This project has a wonderful story about homeowners making the decision to SAVE THIS OLD HOUSE instead of tearing it down and replacing it with a newly constructed home. The house was to create an additional living space for their growing family. Green material choices and systems were an integral part of this project.

This home is a combination of a desire to live with a minimal footprint while attaining a dream of a personal space for art work, life's necessities and Ballroom Dancing. This unusually designed home has incorporated many features including an efficient building design that maximizes space, minimizes energy loss and construction costs.

Seattle Green is a newly constructed (completion forecasted for April 2012) custom 3,000 sf single family residence in the Bryant neighborhood of Seattle. Built through environmentally friendly construction methods, efficient design, and sustainable materials, this unique home has been crafted to reduce its impact on the environment. This home provides clean indoor air for its occupants, utilizes locally produced, low-toxic, and salvaged materials, has a low impact on the site through water collection and green roofs, and has an energy efficient envelope.

The Challenge: How to merge an existing home's functionally obsolescent footprint with the needs of a growing family, while at the same time incorporating sustainable, healthy home, and energy efficient elements. The Solution: Imaginative design, engineering know how, best of building science and proper material selection to provide additional space that will meet the family’s needs with improvements to the home’s Indoor Environmental Quality and comfort level while providing the structural support needed for the future loft.