Te exterior of the house features limestone-capped
masonry columns and half-walls emulating the design of
the existing front porch. Tis design is extended to new
masonry planter boxes that tempered the visual height
and mass of the home's new southern face.
Although sustainability wasn't at the front of the clients'
minds, they did express an interest in being as sustain-
able as possible within their budget. Spray polyurethane
foam insulation and air sealing tightened the envelope,
and a mechanical and distribution system, including a
new furnace and water heater, was installed. Some new
energy-efcient windows, paired with the other energy
improvements, helped reduce the energy consumption by
half. Te homeowner tracked the gas usage and found
in the winter of 2010 and 2011, she averaged 32.2 Mcf.
For the same period in 2013, the house averaged only
16.2 Mcf.
Other sustainable elements include reclaimed brick
from Detroit, rapidly renewable cork fooring in the kitch-
en and locally harvested wood for the cabinets and trim.
Te kitchen's corner sit-to counter was fashioned from
3-in. yellow pine slabs the homeowner's late carpenter
father had salvaged decades before.
|
Te new den easily accesses the kitchen and rear yard
via the rear porch. Te stairway was relocated to the
kitchen's former location, allowing for more direct, safer
access to the lower level. Its new location also aforded the
staircase the space to become a key design feature of the
house. Taking design cues from the existing second-foor
stairway, elements such as banister, newels, treads and
risers are repeated. An Arts and Crafts styled wainscot
envelopes the passageway to the lower level.
SEE MORE PHOTOS
of this project on
ForResidentialPros.com/
11777755
After
Before
Photos: Beth Singer Photographer
ForResidentialPros.com QR December 2014 25