UTK Construct House
The UTK Construct House was designed by Jared Pohl, Kathleen Lewis, Ryan Stechmann, Steven Whitmore, and Phillip Geiman as part of a national competition seeking a sustainable prototype for Habitat for Humanity.
As the winning entry for the competition, the home responds to the competition brief of specifying an Energy Star Compliant project and goes a step further by prototyping passive sustainable strategies that minimize the need to tap into an energy source, lessen the point source contribution of storm water and increase the standard of healthy living by promoting outdoor activity and movement.
With the wind load frequency primarily on a north-south axis, windows within the home have been oriented to utilize cross ventilation for needed cooling in Nashville’s humid, temperate climate. The wind travels across raised planters on the south side of the home and into the shared living space. Passive cooling is implemented through a sectional shift in the shared living spaces of the home, as the vertically heightened space promotes stack and Venturi ventilation strategies.
The home includes an extensive green roof planted with vegetation pre-established at a plant nursery. The living roof functions to further insulate from heat transfer, protect the roof membrane from UV deterioration, nearly doubling its life, and represents a progressive approach toward storm water management by retaining storm water and slowly releasing it back into the air through evapotranspiration.
This sustainable strategy also contributes to providing a habitat for wildlife. The visibility of the living roof is just as significant from a cultural standpoint, an attitude of cohabiting the site with nature is expressed to both the site occupants and surrounding Nashville community.
The home is constructed using structural insulated panels (SIPs). SIPs provide a high R-value, minimize waste typical of residential stick frame construction, provide structural support, and guarantee low air infiltration/leakage when installed correctly. The SIPs are the building envelope that wrap two intersecting volumes of public and private spaces. The efficiency of the small floor plan (1280 sf) eliminates the need for excessive energy input to condition the space. The L-shape form of the home establishes a courtyard and covered porch at the front of the site, which is designed to encourage the interaction between the residents and nature. The occupants tend to the natural organisms planted within the courtyard and, in turn, establish a sense of caring for them. As environmental caring and awareness is a driving factor of sustainability, this courtyard becomes a key architectural symbol for the design.
Furthermore, maintaining a narrow floor plan allows for daylight to penetrate the interior of the home, thereby reducing the loads of electric lighting and creating healthier interior spaces. Energy efficiency is also achieved through the use of a single, linear plumbing wall and a Closed Indirect Hydronic Radiant Floor Heating System. The close proximity of the plumbing fixtures reduces the length of the Hot Water Delivery System, and therefore reduces the amount of water wasted. Such a system indirectly utilizes components of the home’s high-performance mechanical systems, and the use of Energy
Star Compliant appliances provides extensive energy savings.
submitted by Katie Lewis
The Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) is a national organization dedicated to improving the communication of construction information through a diversified membership base of allied professionals and students. Composed of architects, engineers, interior designers, specifiers, landscape architects, contractor, and product representatives, CSI builds knowledge of construction processes by uniting all involved in the creation and management of the built environment. The Construction Specifications Institute is essential to improving project delivery and effectively communicating a designer’s vision.