Sustainable Duplex Design

SYMBI’s Duplex One brings a sustainable two-step to the Washington, D.C. housing market.

What good is a sustainable home if there’s no way for people to enjoy it? That’s the question that construction specialists Nicole Tysvaer, Matt Kulp, and John Linam asked themselves a few years into collaborating on custom new homes and remodels around the Washington, D.C. area.

In 2018, they decided it was time to handle matters themselves when it came to sustainable housing. “We are all passionate about sustainability but found few opportunities to build green in the custom market,” says Tysvaer. “Therefore, after completing three energy-efficient prototypes and creating a model that could be replicated on a larger scale, we launched SYMBI as our real estate development company.” 

After more than five years of research and prototype development, SYMBI completed its first demonstration project, “SYMBI Duplex One,” in March 2021. The Mt. Rainier, Md., project – which is Green Builder’s 2022 Home of the Year winner in the Most Sustainable Multifamily Residence category—was built as a side-by-side duplex of five bedrooms and four full bathrooms, as well as a one-bedroom basement apartment with separate entrance. 

Key features of a SYMBI home include air and water filtration, biophilic designs that connect home to nature, a highly insulated pre­fabricated shell, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Zero Energy Ready Home (ZERH) certification, and ongoing home performance monitoring. 

Other sustainability features include an energy-efficient five-zone Mitsubishi heat pump HVAC system, advanced thermal moisture protection with an exterior Benjamin Obdyke Slicker MAX rainscreen, WaterSense plumbing fixtures and LED lighting throughout, eco-friendly Amorim WISE Cork flooring, Sherwin-Williams Harmony zero VOC paint, age-in-place first-floor design, and advanced air and water filtration. The home also features beyond code-level insulation (R-22 walls and R-47 roof).

Second Floor

According to Tysvaer, who is now SYMBI’s CEO (Kulp and Linam serve as the company’s vice president of production and vice president of design, respectively), Duplex One was designed with replication in mind. Built on a single-family lot, the units boast higher ceilings and more glass to create spaciousness and maximize storage. 

“We started this company with a theory that we could build to a smaller footprint, load up our homes with a host of sustainable features, sell for a price point similar to conventional construction, and appeal to a whole new generation of buyers,” she says. “We exceeded our expectations!” 

As a result of the lack of net-zero new construction around the D.C. area, SYMBI Duplex One sold out halfway through the construction process. Both units were purchased by millennial couples with a deep appreciation for SYMBl’s environmental consciousness, Tysvaer notes. 

In addition, the project spawned a waitlist of interested buyers. “SYMBl’s enlightened approach to home building has achieved a very desirable sweet spot in green residential construction, filling the gulf between mass-produced prefab affordable housing projects and the super high-end custom net-zero homes unattainable to most,” Tysvaer says. “Duplex One incorporated a holistic pathway to sustainability, while also reflecting a superior level of craftmanship, quality, and beauty.”