Projects

16 Ridgewood is a remodel project which transformed the 50 year old existing house to a modern home. The goal was to update the home with durable affordable materials.

The house had the original cedar siding. Over the years woodpeckers and insects had significantly deteriorated the siding. After considering a wide variety of products we decided to incorporate a Hardie board product into the facade. This product is impermeable to insects and woodpeckers, fire proof, and has a factory applied finish. We expect to save recurring costs with repainting or staining over the years. We also added an oversized LED light with the house number, easily visible from the street, day or night.

Providing quality insulation is sometimes an overlooked aspect of the building envelope. After all, you do not really see it! For this project we focused on a number of techniques to improve the thermal and moisture performance.

For the attic we incorporated an open cell spray foam insulation. For the exterior walls we added a cellulose product comprised of 85% recycled paper.

We also found opportunities to insulate in areas like the ceiling of the garage which have living spaces above. By re insulating the house we can reduce the energy consumption for heating and cooling significantly. This is a recurring cost savings. Also it makes the spaces noticeable more comfortable to be in year round.

The original single pane windows were a large source of heat loss in the winters. By replacing the windows, with custom wood double pane windows we significantly improved the energy performance of the building envelope and it's a much more comfortable space to be in.

By creating a more air tight building envelope there is not just a cost savings to heat and cool the space, but it is noticeably a much more comfortable environment to live.

The inside is finished with a ceramic tile floor, electricity and a mini-split system providing heat and air conditioning to the space.

We removed the oil fired boiler and fuel tank. The house is now heated with a combi boiler unit powered by propane. This suitcase-sized unit produces all the hot water instantly for the home. It also produces the hot water to run the traditional radiator system. This efficient, tankless system also provided more room in the utility area.

As part of this upgrade a series of propane tanks were added to the property. Overall this is a more fuel efficient system, there's less harmful exhaust and propane is typically cheaper than oil.

This project is an addition of a casita to an original house located in Carefree Arizona. Seen here on the right, the structure acts as a bookend to the assemblage of the house, providing a visual balance of the street elevation.

An open breezeway was incorporated into the project to allow for easy access to the main house while also providing privacy for the guests.

High ceilings helped create a sense of open volume in the casita and exposed wood beams and alder wood casework create a sense of warmth in the space while paying homage to it's southwest roots.

This project started with an original 2,400 sf house and we effectively doubled the size. The original house was based on a radial grid system with a courtyard and pool at the center.

The design was conceived of to maximize the views of the mountains. A tall bank of windows were incorporated into the main living space to enhance the connection with the outdoors.

A large multi purpose living space was created creating a great forum for entertaining right off of the gourmet kitchen. A gas fireplace adds visual interest while still being convenient.