Candlewood Mountaintop Contemporary

Department of Energy 2013 Housing Innovation Award Winner

This new three bedroom, three bath contemporary home was built on the foundation of an old summer cottage on top of a mountain with panoramic views over Lake Candlewood. The owners are both commercial architects who designed the house for themselves as a weekend home now that will become their retirement home when they are ready.

Special Features

Open concept living/dining/kitchen area
Raised ceilings with built-in high shelf to display owner’s antique radio collection
Sunroom with glass roof and folding glass doors
Dumbwaiter for moving heavy objects to the 2^nd floor
Main staircase has steps with reduced rise and extended run for effortless stair climbing
Fiber cement clapboard and panel siding
Stainless steel flashing and scuppers
Propane fireplace can heat the entire house in emergencies
Back-up generator

Green Building Approaches

Flat roof is ready for future solar hot water or PV for electricity
Tile floors on 1st floor rest on 6” of rigid foam insulation installed over an existing slab
10” double wall framing, insulated with dense-pack cellulose
Continuous adhesive membrane wraps the walls to achieve exceptional air-tightness of 0.4ACH50 that exceeds Passive House standard
Canadian fiberglass triple-glazed windows with u-values of 0.18
Fiber cement siding installed over ¾” drainage plane
Condensing propane boiler provides HW for space heating and domestic water
Home is heated by hot water radiant floors and hydro-air forced-air system
Central dehumidifier ties into air handler
Energy recovery ventilation