Materials were selected based on a number of criteria, but in general reflect the long life cycle nature of the home’s design, due to the multiple themes of zero net energy performance, aging-in-place life planning, and multi-generational living, all of which have a potential long ownership plan associated with it. Durability and low maintenance held a particularly strong place in that field, but they also play into the themes of our sustainable, recycled and/or recyclable, and green criteria as well. For example, long life CertainTeed products were used for roofing, siding, trim board, decking, railing and soffit applications. We also took advantage of locally sourced products wherever possible, but never to the detriment of life cycle. For instance, all the ground cover (bark mulch or wood chips) were either created on site with site materials or made 25 minutes away from wood waste products. Also, our large architectural timber frames, timber trusses, and wood beams were fabricated by Thurston Millworks, a millwork shop just ¼ mile away, from domestic, sustainable forest timbers.

Interior/exterior materials include US made, high recycled content porcelain tile flooring by Stonepeak Ceramics for long life and low maintenance; painted concrete flooring, integral colored concrete flooring; Greenguard certified cabinetry by Executive Cabinetry; a small zero carbon footprint manufactured outdoor spa tub by Hydropools; and zero VOC paint finishes by Glidden Professional. US made interior hardwood doors, stair parts, hardwood flooring, hardwood work benches, and office work benches all came from Baird Brothers Fine Hardwoods, a company that heats and cures with its own wood wastes and generates its own electricity from a methane gas field.

On the site wood waste, cardboard, and loose metals were not permitted in the dumpster. All wood was cut for use as space heating or recycled into site (bark mulch/wood chips) landscaping products. All cardboard and metals were hauled to local recycling centers.