DesignRail® aluminum railing with LED lighting on stair railing. Can Light on post. Photo by Danny Gray Studios
Deck - contemporary deck idea in San Francisco

Half front porch with curved entry and square columns. Designed and built by Georgia Front Porch.
Mid-sized classic stone front porch idea in Atlanta with a roof extension

This modern green home offers both a vacation destination on Cape Cod near local family members and an opportunity for rental income. FAMILY ROOTS. A West Coast couple living in the San Francisco Bay Area sought a permanent East Coast vacation home near family members living on Cape Cod. As academic professionals focused on sustainability, they sought a green, energy efficient home that was well-aligned with their values. With no green homes available for sale on Cape Cod, they decided to purchase land near their family and build their own. SLOPED SITE. Comprised of a 3/4 acre lot nestled in the pines, the steeply sloping terrain called for a plan that embraced and took advantage of the slope. Of equal priority was optimizing solar exposure, preserving privacy from abutters, and creating outdoor living space. The design accomplished these goals with a simple, rectilinear form, offering living space on the both entry and lower/basement levels. The stepped foundation allows for a walk-out basement level with light-filled living space on the down-hill side of the home. The traditional basement on the eastern, up-hill side houses mechanical equipment and a home gym. The house welcomes natural light throughout, captures views of the forest, and delivers entertainment space that connects indoor living space to outdoor deck and dining patio. MODERN VISION. The clean building form and uncomplicated finishes pay homage to the modern architectural legacy on the outer Cape. Durable and economical fiber cement panels, fixed with aluminum channels, clad the primary form. Cedar clapboards provide a visual accent at the south-facing living room, which extends a single roof plane to cover the entry porch. SMART USE OF SPACE. On the entry level, the “L”-shaped living, dining, and kitchen space connects to the exterior living, dining, and grilling spaces to effectively double the home’s summertime entertainment area. Placed at the western end of the entry level (where it can retain privacy but still claim expansive downhill views) is the master suite with a built-in study. The lower level has two guest bedrooms, a second full bathroom, and laundry. The flexibility of the space—crucial in a house with a modest footprint—emerges in one of the guest bedrooms, which doubles as home office by opening the barn-style double doors to connect it to the bright, airy open stair leading up to the entry level. Thoughtful design, generous ceiling heights and large windows transform the modest 1,100 sf* footprint into a well-lit, spacious home. *(total finished space is 1800 sf) RENTAL INCOME. The property works for its owners by netting rental income when the owners are home in San Francisco. The house especially caters to vacationers bound for nearby Mayo Beach and includes an outdoor shower adjacent to the lower level entry door. In contrast to the bare bones cottages that are typically available on the Cape, this home offers prospective tenants a modern aesthetic, paired with luxurious and green features. Durable finishes inside and out will ensure longevity with the heavier use that comes with a rental property. COMFORT YEAR-ROUND. The home is super-insulated and air-tight, with mechanical ventilation to provide continuous fresh air from the outside. High performance triple-paned windows complement the building enclosure and maximize passive solar gain while ensuring a warm, draft-free winter, even when sitting close to the glass. A properly sized air source heat pump offers efficient heating & cooling, and includes a carefully designed the duct distribution system to provide even comfort throughout the house. The super-insulated envelope allows us to significantly reduce the equipment capacity, duct size, and airflow quantities, while maintaining unparalleled thermal comfort. ENERGY EFFICIENT. The building’s shell and mechanical systems play instrumental roles in the home’s exceptional performance. The building enclosure reduces the most significant energy glutton: heating. Continuous super-insulation, thorough air sealing, triple-pane windows, and passive solar gain work together to yield a miniscule heating load. All active energy consumers are extremely efficient: an air source heat pump for heating and cooling, a heat pump hot water heater, LED lighting, energy recovery ventilation (ERV), and high efficiency appliances. The result is a home that uses 70% less energy than a similar new home built to code requirements. OVERALL. The home embodies the owners’ goals and values while comprehensively enabling thermal comfort, energy efficiency, a vacation respite, and supplementary income. PROJECT TEAM ZeroEnergy Design - Architect & Mechanical Designer A.F. Hultin & Co. - Contractor Pamet Valley Landscape Design - Landscape & Masonry Lisa Finch - Original Artwork European Architectural Supply - Windows Eric Roth Photography - Photography

At the Flaviani home we sanded and refinished the rails and newel posts to match the wood floors, installed our PC4/1 and PC6/1 wrought iron balusters with classic black finish, and re-secured the newel posts. We also re-spaced the balusters to code and touched up to complete the classic profile of the stair

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

A beautifully boarded stair hall welcomes you into this inspirational modern Cape Cod home. The spacious floor plan includes an expansive kitchen, dining, and living area, complete with a charming butler's pantry and home office. Photo Credit: Scott Amundson

By Adventures In Wood, Rail this long span supports a incorporated "Iron Newel" that is buried into the knee wall and mortised up under the handrail at the half way point these specialty iron newels are required to support the lateral pressure of 200 lbs required by local codes.

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

Staircase was already there, we just created custom posts to match existing staircase and to meet code. Instead of just slapping in some standard posts, we customized these to really go well in the space.

Updating historic John Hudson Thomas-designed Berkeley bungalow to modern code. Remodel designed by Lorin Hill, Architect included adding an interior stair to provide access to new second-story bedroom with ensuite bath. Main floor renovation included new kitchen, bath as well as bringing all services up to code. Project involved extensive use of traditional materials and craftsmanship.

Aesthetic Value: The modern industrial angles of the metal balustrade and faceted wood treads create a juxtaposition with the living wall featured prominently in the stair well. The natural textures of the wall bring a warm feel to the assent of the stairway. Stair Safety: The stair adhered to the 2015 IBC codes for commercial stairway. With 36" grab rails and 42" guardrail. With all open spacing being well within code boundaries. Quality: The wood used was stranded bamboo selected for color uniformity. Each tread having precision milled metal traction bars inlaid in the leading edge. Strict adherence to control sample was maintained in final finishing. Technical Challenge: The most challenging part of the construction was creating the multifaceted wood covers for the steel substructure. All wood pieces had to be assembled so no nail holes or plugs would be showing.

San Francisco lots are very narrow, typically 25' wide. Setting back the walls more than the minimum code can result in very attractive landscaped spaces that allow sunlight into the addition.

Builder: John Kraemer & Sons | Developer: KGA Lifestyle | Design: Charlie & Co. Design | Furnishings: Martha O'Hara Interiors | Landscaping: TOPO | Photography: Corey Gaffer

Aesthetic Value: The modern industrial angles of the metal balustrade and faceted wood treads create a juxtaposition with the living wall featured prominently in the stair well. The natural textures of the wall bring a warm feel to the assent of the stairway. Stair Safety: The stair adhered to the 2015 IBC codes for commercial stairway. With 36" grab rails and 42" guardrail. With all open spacing being well within code boundaries. Quality: The wood used was stranded bamboo selected for color uniformity. Each tread having precision milled metal traction bars inlaid in the leading edge. Strict adherence to control sample was maintained in final finishing. Technical Challenge: The most challenging part of the construction was creating the multifaceted wood covers for the steel substructure. All wood pieces had to be assembled so no nail holes or plugs would be showing.

Aesthetic Value: The modern industrial angles of the metal balustrade and faceted wood treads create a juxtaposition with the living wall featured prominently in the stair well. The natural textures of the wall bring a warm feel to the assent of the stairway. Stair Safety: The stair adhered to the 2015 IBC codes for commercial stairway. With 36" grab rails and 42" guardrail. With all open spacing being well within code boundaries. Quality: The wood used was stranded bamboo selected for color uniformity. Each tread having precision milled metal traction bars inlaid in the leading edge. Strict adherence to control sample was maintained in final finishing. Technical Challenge: The most challenging part of the construction was creating the multifaceted wood covers for the steel substructure. All wood pieces had to be assembled so no nail holes or plugs would be showing.