Is this a house for “real people”?
This 6,800-sq.-ft. house in northern Massachusetts was designed by Maria Hars' father for a family of six. Hars doubts that contemporary green design are as successful as this one in matching the lifestyles of their occupants.Image Credit: Maria Hars
More Q&A Spotlight
Is green building too narrow in focus, suitable only for people who keep the windows closed and let mechanical systems regulate temperature and humidity? What about people who like fresh air, even in winter, and are looking for minimal intervention from mechanical heating and cooling equipment?
That seems to be at the heart of a question from Maria Hars, a GBA reader who lives in a passive solar house built 30 years ago in northern Massachusetts.
“I keep my bedroom window open 24/7,” she writes in a Q&A post at GreenBuildingAdvisor. “I love the smell of the outdoors and the fresh breezes from the fields. In the winter I have blankets that keep me warm with the window open. I turn down the thermostat to almost off in the winter and off the rest of the year.
“In the winter I sit in front of the southern windows & feel the warmth of the sun on me (I wear short sleeves). At night or cloudy days I wear warmer clothing. In the summer the windows are shaded from decidious trees (no a/c) with 30″ roof overhangs. The house stays cool.”
Her question: with all of the building science and advanced materials at our disposal, how should a house be designed and built for “real people” like her?
That’s the subject of this week’s Q&A Spotlight.
You already have the right house
To GBA senior editor Martin Holladay, Hars already has it figured out. “It doesn’t sound like you have any problems,” he writes. “Keep living in your house and be happy.”
Mike Collignon agrees, but he also wonders whether mass-market home buyers are ready for the connection with nature that Hars…
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11 Comments
1974 "Hippie House"
Martin,
I think your 1974 house had "charm".....
not exactly an extremely simple shape that you seem to encourage now-a-days.
Now-a-days you seem to frown on dormers and "bump-outs"
Is that an observation tower? A "crows-nest"? A ventilation chimney?
What became of the house? Is it still standing?
I think Albert Rooks was correct recently when he encouraged us to develop details that can accomodate the not-so-simple and the whimsical forms.
Response to John Brooks
John,
Yes, the house is still standing. Yes, it has charm. The tower is a whimsical feature. Visiting children seem delighted by the house, which has several ladders, lofts, and cubbyholes to play in.
Yes, green building is for everyone...
Green Building, as in Sustainable, energy efficient and healthy building, is the way to go. I doesn’t matter what climate zone you live in; you need to practice passive solar design, tight envelope, good water and moisture management, efficient HVAC system and IAQ, sustainable and low VOC material selection, and good homeowner education and maintenance plan. Only then, if you like to live with windows and doors open and let the fresh air come in, you are doing so by choice.
It’s worth noting that some folks choose to live mostly in a conditioned and filtered air, and others have respiratory problems and allergies that may prevent them from living “alfresco”. All those are considerations taken by good home designers and builders who work for individual clients or a spec. market.
Comfort range
Check out Steve Mouzon's take on appropriate comfort ranges: http://www.originalgreen.org/blog/4---the-expanded-comfort.html I like the way he explains the concepts and range of human comfort and how he manages it personally. Similar to how Maria Hars does, and something I seek to do in my house. I am regularly amazed when I have my windows open on beautiful days to hear my neighbor's heat pump cranking away for much of the day.
comfort range
I am sorry, but the "expanded comfort range" blogs are just goofy. Yes there are people like Marie who like open windows and don't mind when it's 40 degree's in the house. People can survive in houses with low temperatures during the winter and high temperatures during the summer. However, the vast majority of people like COMFORT. The like it so much that they are willing to pay for it. They buy thermostats, air conditioning, radiant floor heating, etc...for COMFORT. If the real goal of GBA is to reduce energy usage for average folks, you will not convince them that wearing three sweaters is required to save energy. However, you can sell them on that fact that thick insulation, air sealing, triple pane window etc...won't just save energy, it will make them more comfortable. Selling comfort with energy savings will work.
PS Maybe I am wrong but Marie's original question seemed a bit self serving. She lives in a 6,800 sqft house with a pool. If she really is intrested in being more green, she should subdivide the house and infill the pool....
Agreeing with Peter Yost
I agree that it makes sense to "condition" the people rather than the space, at least to some extent. Think about this for a second: you don't need a sweater to be 6" thick or 12" thick to stay warm in the winter. The reason it takes that much insulation to keep heat inside a house is the surface area is greater, and heat loss is proportional to surface area. Wearing a sweater (just 1/4" thick) keeps the heat where it's needed.
I predict the attitude Mr. Robertson expressed (above) will fade away as energy becomes less available and people come to their senses about what it takes to enjoy life on this planet. It does not take thousands of gallons of heating oil to have a good life.
Agree - Green Building (Living) Is For Everyone
Certainly agree with Armando that green building (and more widely green living) is for everyone. Green building isn't specifically all the high-tech and building-tight new construction practices. It's the method of building, renovating and living in a more sustainable fashion that works with your locations and needs.
cool house temperatures
I was told by someone who recently moved to New Zealand that it is very common for folks to have their houses heated only to 40 or 50 degrees F. Maybe a 70*F indoor temperature average is culturally determined, not some biological imperative? Or maybe Kiwis like wearing wool...
Is Green Building for Everyone?
The title of the article drew me in, but I lost it when I read that Maria's house is 6,800 square feet. Is she living in this enormous space by herself? Now I understand why she is puzzled by the movement to build greener to conserve energy and resources. I DO understand her need to have less precisely controlled indoor air. I have the same mindset. I love fresh air. That is part of why I chose carpentry as a career - I love the outdoors. Cold, hot, rainy, sunny - you'll find me outside doing stuff. It is beyond my understanding that people can live their lives in enclosed conditioned spaces. Where allergies or asthma are concerns, that's different.
What really puzzles me is the fact that we attempt to tighten our houses and condition the air to the point that we must include mechanical fresh air exchangers. ??? What ever happened to opening a window?
Response to Wendy
Wendy,
You asked, "What ever happened to opening a window?" Opening a window works well when the temperature is above freezing. When it's 10 or 20 below zero,however -- not so well. At that point, all you are really doing is letting (expensively) heated air escape outdoors and putting your pipes in danger of freezing.
Vested Interest
One thing to keep in mind - designers and engineers will always use design and engineering as the route to a good solution (I am one...). I see two movements, one positive, one negative:
Positive: Working with the environment. Siting; orientation; utilizing passive methods. Also, the focus on good building practices is great. Lot's of great work here is going on by some smart people.
Negative: Over-engineered, expensive systems (cost now and maintenance later); non-proven products; and a fair amount of hype. The people selling the new products, writing the articles, getting master's degrees in "green" have a vested interest in perpetuating a lot of this. I don't see it as all bad - they are trying to make a living. I have a vested interest in my industry - but the key point is I'm not pushing it as the moral high ground either. This, like all other industries and movements will have its scientist, prophets, martyrs, hucksters. It will also have it's fair share of goofiness (cold air is bad for your health, and the earth is flat).
As for me, I have no desire to spend most of my time in conditioned spaces. My goofy belief is that it leads to both physical and metal health problems.
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