DOE Tour of Zero: Jewels Court by Greenhill Contracting
Photos
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Greenhill Contracting built this 3,912-square-foot house in Esopus, New York, to the performance criteria of the U.S. Department of Energy Zero Energy Ready Home (ZERH) program, resulting in an estimated energy cost savings of nearly $5,400 per year compared to minimally code-compliant house.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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All of the home’s windows are ultra-efficient triple-paned with vinyl frames and are much more efficient than standard windows.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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The builder installed a 13.44-kW photovoltaic electric generation system that adds about $2,000 per year in energy cost savings to the already efficient home.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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The builder took advantage of a sloping lot to include a conditioned daylight basement that permits more living space on a smaller footprint.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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The home was equipped with a high-efficiency ENERGY STAR refrigerator, dishwasher, and clothes washer, as well as a heat pump clothes dryer for energy and water savings.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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Greenhill Contracting used a variety of flooring, carpets, low-VOC adhesives, and cabinets that emit no or few air contaminants to help meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Indoor airPLUS criteria.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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The water-saving shower is EPA WaterSense compliant and incorporates aging-in-place design features.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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The home’s ground source heat pump preheats domestic hot water for the heat pump water heater. A manifold plumbing system mounted on the wall behind the water tanks provides efficient distribution of the hot water.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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An ultra-efficient ground source heat pump heats and cools the home with efficiencies of 5.7 COP. The comfort system is equipped with a variable speed fan on the air handler and all of the ducts are sealed and located in conditioned space for further energy savings.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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A balanced fresh air system consisting of an energy recovery ventilator supplies all living spaces with filtered air.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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Closed-cell spray foam insulation beneath the foundation slab and insulated concrete form (ICF) walls form a continuous thermal blanket around the building’s foundation.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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Insulated concrete forms will provide durable and ultra-efficient insulated walls for the entire structure. Here, waterproofing has been applied to below-grade portions of the walls.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
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Insulated concrete forms provide R-22 insulation for all walls and serve as a continuous thermal blanket, comprehensive draft protection, and continuous wall water barrier.
Photo courtesy of Greenhill Contracting
“There is a noticeable difference in air quality inside our home, especially during allergy season. For a family of allergy sufferers this is invaluable.”
“Our home has exceeded all of our expectations. We have yet to pay more than a connection fee to our energy company … as we have generated more energy than we used this year. There is a noticeable difference in air quality inside our home, especially during allergy season. For a family of allergy sufferers this is invaluable.”
– Homeowners
