Design-Build Filters & Levers

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Maybe you’re just hearing about us for the first time.

Maybe you’re just hearing about passive house for the first time.

Maybe you’re just dipping your toes into the custom home build journey.

Maybe you’re looking for more information on builders, custom home building, passive house, energy efficiency…

In that case, we’re glad you found us.

We’ve been building super efficient custom homes based on Passive House standards for 10 years in Northern Colorado. We’ve built in Fort Collins, Berthoud, Loveland and we’ve branched out as far as Nederland, CO and Steamboat, CO. We’re methodical and building science oriented. We like to run the models for energy performance, break out the spreadsheets of where everything is going to go and get detailed with renders so that the connection between the lines on the paper to the physical space make sense.

We’ve designed and built passive houses for some pretty simple reasons…because we love a good puzzle and believe that pushing the standards of how we build is a worthy and necessary cause. And we’ve built passive houses for folks that love the idea of an energy efficient and super comfortable home and are excited to take their building from “code built” to building science nerd level 100.

There are some guidelines which we continuously circle back to whether it’s talking amongst one another, other builders, prospective homeowners, community members, folks we are actively designing and building with or anyone willing to sit down with a cold one and talk building science for an hour or four.

We’ve been talking internally about the importance of building affordable, healthy, natural buildings-a huge drive for us. We discuss amongst our team, the impacts of certifications, programs and standards as the “overarching goal” for many builders and how they contrast with our own goals for building. And we argue that to understand the cost of our building footprint we absolutely have to use building science and models which ultimately dictate which levers of our guidelines we adjust, what the break even points are for each project and where we can cut the waste.

Steamboat Springs Studio Project

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Over the 2021/2022 year we were up in Steamboat Springs building out a cute little studio project and today we are sharing some photos of that little studio! This was a fun project and in such a beautiful location with the ski resort to our east and town to our west, the spectacular views all around and lots of wildlife made this project quite memorable!

Studio Views: The Douglas Fir Timbers and Reclaimed Barn wood Siding and Colorado Buff Sandstone give this new build the look of belonging against the mountain backdrop!

Views of the front and back of the studio showing off the different materials used to give the studio lots of character. No single material competes to grab your attention, instead all materials are complimentary and lend to the balance of the structure! We loved using that little pop of color with the windows/doors and roofing too!

Moving Inside, we brought in the reclaimed barn wood on the ceiling and as base and casing. The (local) sandstone makes up the fireplace with a nice large hearth to sit and warm up at during the winter. The timbers keep the mountain aesthetic and give the space warmth with their amber hues. The use of a neutral wall color and floor material lets all of the natural materials inside stand out. The small kitchenette with tall upper cabinets and an L shaped base run provide plenty of counter space to set up for those winding down moments with friends on the deck after a good day of fishing or hiking or around the fireplace after a fun day of skiing!

We worked with Northwestern Supply for the doors and windows and had a great experience with them. We also worked with Traditional Roots Joinery on the timber frame and have since worked on another project with them in Fort Collins. For the reclaimed barn wood siding and trim, we worked with Western Hardwoods. We worked with Arkins Park Stone for all the Colorado Buff Sandstone at the fireplace and around our exterior columns. Cabinetry done by Harrington Construction.

There’s been quite a lot going on with new projects taking shape and we are looking forward to sharing those in the coming months!

Millhaus

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Last week we had the opportunity and pleasure to tour the, in construction, passive home of the architect who designed our Fort Collins Project (See previous posts)!

The lecture was held at Wolverine Farm here in Fort Collins. Emu Systems, run by Enrico Bonilauri and Mariana Pickering are training and consulting with builders, aspiring builders, architects and different trades to help people learn and implement passive haus building systems. Would you like to know more about Emu Systems? Check out their website: https://emu.systems/

The tour was conducted at well known architect Greg Fisher’s soon to be home. As mentioned, Greg designed the Fort Collins project we just completed. He wanted to learn more about passive haus construction processing and certificaion and decided to go all in with Emu Systems to certify his new home. It was a great afternoon watching Greg show off not only his beautiful home but his beautiful craftsmanship! Building a passive haus is a complicated and timely process, it takes a thoughtful approach and it is clear that Greg has the desire to pursue the process with his future designs while using this time building his new home as a learning opportunity! We look forward to watching the process of his house continue and working with him in the future!

Big thanks to Fort Collins Utilities Energy Code Compliance Specialist Brad Smith, who puts on these informative and fun Green Building Lectures that bring folks in from all over Colorado! Want to know more about the Green Building Lecture Series? Check out this Link: https://www.fcgov.com/greenbuilding/

The above excerpt was from 2019 when we had the opportunity to visit the early stages of the Millhaus home designed and built by Greg Fisher. Greg took part in Emu Systems passive house trades person certification and his home build was a pilot project with Emu. Fast forward two years later and Greg and his wife are now living in this beautiful home and we had the opportunity to once again tour it during the Passive House Open House days. Greg’s design and craftsmanship shine so elegantly, and his use of interesting (bark siding) or recycled materials (brick) add to unique story of Millhaus.

There were several groups of couples all very curious about passive house at the tour and we love seeing more and more people interested in utilizing this approach in a new home build! Reflecting back on the tour the one thing that I think about, and this is something that comes up whenever we talk about what passive building or efficient building is, is how complicated the process can seem to folks. Building a house in general, even tradition home building can seem daunting with all it’s stages and parts, but it shouldn’t be! Our approach is to build simpler to build better! The more approachable the concept is, the easier it is to implement. As always, if you’re interested in discussing building an efficient home or passive house don’t be shy, reach out!

Below are few photos from the tour of Millhaus and of some details I really loved as well as a group photo. If you’re interested in more from Millhaus check out Emu Systems Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/emubldgscience/?hl=en

Big kitchen windows and providing lots of light and wonderful views!
The details on the steel accents are just fantastic
Lots of natural light!
Love this Coffee/Wet Bar with a window that looks into the living room!
I’ve been very excited to see this pantry completed since the framing tour, love the metal mesh and steel beams. This pantry is right in the middle of the home; the entryway, kitchen, hall toward bedrooms, access to garage all move around this central part and it has been designed to be such an interesting feature!
Recycled Brick mixed with the steel beams-love this rustic industrial look that was throughout and a nod to the Millhaus story!
Greg and Enrico opening up the tour with a discussion of design elements and passive house construction (I’m in the back corner with the black shirt, just enjoying the conversation!)

Efficiency

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As fall settles in, so does the cold and with that comes the firing up of heating systems. Here in Fort Collins, and likely other cities, we have a TOD or Time Of Day usage rate that increases the utilities rate for electricity during peak hours. In the winter, the TOD begins at 5:00p.m. and ends at 9:00p.m., which makes sense given this is when folks are coming home after a day at work or school and the demands on the grid increase. This TOD rate is meant to encourage folks to be more conservative with and in charge of, their electrical usage during these hours. The city recommends setting thermostats at 68F, opening up window coverings during the day to allow the sun to warm up spaces and preheating the home before the 5:00p.m. rate change and then “coasting” through those peak hours.

One great advice tip that many of us grew up loving to hear from our parents, and the city forgot to mention, is to “put on more clothes” 😉

I’ve read in some local online forums how frustrated people are that these increased usage rates exist, that folks find themselves in the cold dark months layering up, cooking less and avoiding lighting up their homes in the evening-just to avoid that larger utility bill.

As the climate changes (as it always does), demands on our power grid also change. Some years electrical demands in the summer are greater than the winter or vice versa. Regardless of what the climate is doing, one thing that doesn’t change is the demand for stability in the system and this is where building smarter and efficiently is of huge benefit.

We frequently get feedback from the homeowners in our previous builds about how well their home is operating. That even on the coldest days and without a grid tied heating system, everyone is staying warm and the energy bills aren’t dramatically increasing.

Building efficiently with air tightness in mind, with good insulation, daylighting and an overall design that considers how a home is really lived in and used by it’s occupants, helps not just in the winter but also the summer and leads to a more comfortable and healthy living environment overall.

If you’re thinking about building your new home and curious about our process for an efficient home build you can find our contact information on the “Welcome!” page, send us an email and let’s talk about your project!

Let’s Get Visual!

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From floor plan to built, there are many steps along the way and creating visuals is one way to help homeowners throughout the building process really grasp the concept of a homes design.

As mentioned in our previous post, we have been finding more and more ways to bring what is seen on a floor plan to life-before the building begins! Being able to see a space in more than one visual representation can be a very useful tool in determining how a space might feel once built. By creating different visuals early on, we as a team (homeowner(s) & builder) have the opportunity to discuss the likes and dislikes and make adjustments that can save on time and costs during construction.

This master closet set up was 3D printed and hand painted for a recent design meeting. It was paired with several other design components, such as a look book with a 3D photo rendering of the space and the floor plan and samples of cabinet and counter top materials.

Envisioning

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As builders and designers, we are always looking for ways to bring plan sets to life. With technology has come the opportunity to expand on that further than ever before. We can model spaces and homes with better graphics on paper or even create a virtual tour of a home design. As of recent, one medium we are enjoying exploring is 3D printing. It’s certainly a learning process but in the end; when the concept of a cabinet set-up, a entire kitchen or the framing assembly of a whole house can be printed out and homeowners can better envision spaces they see on a floor plan and how that works for their lifestyle, it becomes an invaluable tool to the process of home building!

Below are a few pictures of a small cabinet print I (Dusty) did recently. There are still improvements to be made; for instance I attempted as few supports as possible to get the detailing of the knobs and lowered the fill quite a bit which shows in the cabinet doors, but how interesting is it to see just how much can be translated from a floor plan to a 3D model printed in place! For reference, I am printing on a Prusa i3 Mk3s+ using PLA filament. Currently, I am working on printing out an entire master closet layout, and (if all goes well) I look forward to sharing those photos-along with the process of 3D printing as a useful tool in the home design process!

If nothing else, this print makes for a clever pen holder 🙂

Reclaimed Corral Wood

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We look at old barns, corral fencing and snow fencing and find beauty in the patina of the weathered wood, the chipped paint, the old knots and the rust stained nail spots. We see structures that stood the tests of time, kept livestock , stored equipment and fodder and delineated boundaries and we think to ourselves, “that wood is really something”, and we seek it out, giving these old timer barns and fences that have become dilapidated, abandoned or unuseful a new purpose. Restoring vitality.

Reclaimed wood can have some very interesting qualities to it making it an ideal wood for cladding. For the most part, much of the early barns and fences were built from wood out of slow growth forests. The most common early building wood came from pine, oak and chestnut. The trees from these areas grew taller and straighter and typically had much denser grain. After they were harvested, milled, affixed and matured their resistance to rot and insects increased as did their strength. Reclaimed wood is having it’s day, as more architects and builders look toward “greener” practices and incorporate it into their designs.

Reclaimed Corral Wood out of Montana, sourced by Western Hardwoods in Wellington, CO

On our Steamboat Springs project we have had the opportunity to work with Western Hardwoods out of Wellington, CO for our exterior siding and interior ceiling finishes. For this project we are installing reclaimed corral wood, coming out of Montana. Looking back to last spring, the addition project we did incorporated reclaimed snowfence from Laramie, WY as the exterior window cladding finish. On our Steamboat project, the wood fits so perfectly with the outdoor environment that the mountains continue to be the focal point of the space and the structure itself looks like it has been there for generations. On our addition project last year, the stucco color and overall design/shape of the house incorporated with the snowfence fit perfectly into its prairie surrounding. There’s so much to appreciate about good design and making a new structure fit right in with its natural surroundings!

Reclaimed Corral Wood out of Montana, sourced by Western Hardwoods, being used on the Siding, Sofit and Fascia of our Steamboat Springs Project
Reclaimed Snowfence out of Laramie, WY as the finish detail around the windows of our Fort Collins Addition Project

Have you checked out Western Hardwoods? Every time we stop by it’s to talk about a project, but before we leave we get plenty of lovin’ from the shop horses…I mean the Great Danes 😉 and we get to check out all the new creative things taking shape from their talented crew! From custom doors and furniture to mantles, beams and siding there’s a lot of cool things going on all the time over there! I’ve attached a link to Western Hardwoods website, if you’re interested in reclaimed lumber for your next project check them out! https://westernhardwoods.com/

Steamboat Studio Timber

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For the Steamboat Studio Project we have had the opportunity to team up with Traditional Roots Joinery and watch as they build using the techniques many of our ancestors used to build homes: with large beams and precision mortise and tenon joints. The framing of this project went smoothly, thanks to months and months of planning and the many hands that came together with years of knowledge and expertise.

Matt and his team do such beautiful work and this frame fits just perfectly on this scenic homestead property. You can tell that Matt takes great pride in his craft, he is humble and generous, always happy to answer questions, explain the process, eager to talk about building in general and share his reasons to build in a traditional way. If you’re interested in learning more about or working with Traditional Roots Joinery, check out their website: http://www.traditionalrootsinc.com/

Ok, now on to some photos of the timber framing, and SIP’s (structural insulated panels) that make up the envelope of the Studio!

The first six photos are dedicated to the scarf joint that we just can’t get enough of. Seeing craftsmanship this good makes us feel all warm and fuzzy inside!

Hygge Is Aproaching

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Seen in picture: DalTile American Reserve OneQuartz, Solid Tone Cabinet Face, DalTile Multitude 12×24 Tile and Sherwin Williams City Loft paint chip.

As cooler mornings set in, as the sun sets earlier, as cafe’s start advertising pumpkin spice everything, one can’t help but start seeking out the things that make down time more cozy. This design pallet of cool grey tones has me (Dusty) imagining ultra fluffy blankets, warm tea and a new kitchen look, haha!!

Happy first day of September!