But, there’s no harm in embracing the “what if?” philosophy—which is why residential construction and design firm Green Hammer enthusiastically accepted a request for a home that would be self-sufficient in its use of water and energy.
Through an integrated design-build process, Green Hammer designed and built such a dwelling in Portland’s urban and trendy Richmond neighborhood. The two-bedroom, 1,757-square-foot home is “right-sized” for the owners: a young couple interested in minimizing their environmental footprint, according to Green Hammer co-design director Jonathan Lundstrom.
“The project’s unique zero-energy, zero-water goals made it an excellent fit for Green Hammer,” Lundstrom says. “The thoughtful intention of the owners to explore how to reduce the project’s overall impact was inspiring.”
This home, nicknamed the “Richmond Residence,” replaced the original 1908 one-story house, which was energy inefficient, contained toxic chemicals, and had little natural light and a rigid layout, Lundstrom notes. The owners decided to reduce material waste by carefully deconstructing the existing home, salvaging content for reuse, and limiting the dispersal of hazardous material in the air, water, and soil.
Name: Richmond Residence, Portland, Oregon
Builder: Green Hammer
Architect/Designer: Green Hammer
Developer: Melissa Medeiros, Landline Design
Photographer: George Barberis/George Barberis Photography
The house has earned a Safe + Sustainable Site Certification from environmental real estate nonprofit Earth Advantage. It’s also received praise from the judges of the 2023 Green Builder Home of the Year (GHOTY) competition, in which the Richmond Residence won in the “Drought Ready” category.
“I appreciate the time and effort to successfully deconstruct an existing home,” says GHOTY judge Nathan Kahre, who is innovation and initiatives manager at EnergyLogic, an applied building science company based in Berthoud, Colorado. “So much waste can be diverted from the landfill with thoughtful processes.”
Green Hammer took a “right-sized” approach to living space planning to ensure that it provides necessary functional areas and amenities without oversizing the home. This also allows the project to achieve the resiliency measures desired, Lundstrom notes.
The sustainable elements are numerous:
“Not only is the project pursuing zero net energy, but with ample storage of rainwater, it’s also ‘zero water,’” Lundstrom says. “The project will be almost entirely independent from the municipal water supply, reducing the strain on an increasingly concerning resource.”
The home was designed with a 9,000-gallon cistern to satisfy 100 percent of its annual potable water needs through rainwater harvesting, on-site water filtration, low-flow fixtures, and right-sized plumbing design.
And, the landscape has a drought-tolerant design that significantly reduces the water needed for irrigation.
The home received Earth Advantage Platinum + Zero Energy certification for its highly effective airtight enclosure, a super-insulated envelope, thermal-bridge-free construction, triple-pane windows, all ENERGY STAR appliances, LED light fixtures, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood, and a high-efficiency mini-split heat pump.
Adding to the house’s comfort and the low energy consumption is a heat pump water heater that uses CO2 as the natural refrigerant. The heat pump water heater powers an in-floor radiant system on the lower level, which provides domestic hot water for the home and a soaking tub in the backyard.
Alternative Building Systems: Advanced Framing
Appliances: Hood vent (Vent-a-Hood); induction cooktop, oven and dishwasher (Miele); Microwave (Sharp); refrigerator (Sub-Zero, panel ready); washer and dryer (Miele)
Automotive: Tesla charger
Building Envelope: Siga air sealing products
Cabinets, Shelves, Millwork: Bathroom/kitchen cabinets: Custom, rift cut white oak; laundry room cabinets: IKEA (Veddinge) door and drawer front.
Caulks and Sealants: Hannoband expanding foam tape
Countertops: Bathroom and kitchen: PentalQuartz
Decks: CaliBamboo, composite BamDeck 4G
Doors and Hardware: Pocket door: Cavity Sliders; Bi-pass door: Emtek Bipass Door Hardware; Swing Door: Emtek, Stuttgart Lever with Square Rosette; Exterior door: Zola Door Hardware
Electrical: Ceiling Fan: Big Ass Fans, Haiku Indoor Ceiling Fan with Light
Exterior Finishes: Sustainable Northwest Wood (custom FSC cedar siding)
Fireplace: Ethanol Fireplace (EcoSmart, Flex 50SS)
Flooring: Zena Forest Products, FSC Oregon white oak (engineered)
Garage Doors: Pacific Overhead Doors (Apollo Insulated Aluminum)
HVAC/DUCTS: HRV D (Zehnder, ComfoAir 350); heating and cooling equipment (Fujitsu ducted heat pump [first floor]); Taco X-pump block (in-slab radiant heat [basement, main bath]); bath timer: Leviton, Decora; Make-Up Air Damper (MUA): Broan, Universal Auto Make-Up Air Damper; Make-Up Air Filtration (MERV 13 inline filter boxes); garage exhaust (Panasonic WhisperSense w/WhisperControl motion sensor); Floor Grille (Supply; Shoemaker, LDW—Linear Side Wall); Make-Up Air Grille: Shoemaker 1000S - Sill Supply Grille
Insulation: Greenfiber cellulose
Landscaping: Landscape lights: WAC Lighting, Ledge LED 12-volt Path Light; Dripline: Landscape Products, EZ-ID CD; Hydrawise software and controller: Hunter, Pro HC; PVC Pipe: solvent weld, pressure-rated; Slabs: Mutual Materials Hardscape, Architectural slabs
Lighting: Stair pendant: Cedar and Moss, Alto Rod; Living room mount: Cedar and Moss, Alto Compass; Dining room pendant: Cedar and Moss, Alto 6-inch Waterfall; Kitchen Island pendant: Cedar and Moss, Fjord Rod pendant; bathroom sconce: Cedar and Moss, Vista 2; primary bathroom sconce: Cedar and Moss, Timberline Sconce; Primary bedroom sconce: Cedar and Moss, Articulated Ridge Sconce; Outdoor Lights: Tech lighting, Pitch; Bathroom sconce: Cedar and Moss, Swift; Bedroom sconce: Cedar and Moss, Ridge Sconce; Interior and exterior LED: Lithonia Lighting, Wafer Integrated LED Recessed Kit; Undercabinet light: Aspect LED, Narrow Tape Light; Closet light: GE, LED Direct Wire Under Cabinet Light
Paints and Stains: Exterior stain: Timber Pro; Paint: Benjamin Moore, Aura
Plumbing/Plumbing Fixtures: Kitchen and laundry faucet: Brizo, Litze in Luxe Gold; Kitchen Sink: Blanco, Diamond Super Single Silgranit Sink; Bath faucets: Brizo, Litze Single Handle Wall Mount Lavatory; Bath sinks: Kohler, Verticyl Rectangular Undermount sink; Shower head: Brizo TempAssure Thermostatic Shower Only—Less Handles; Toilets: Toto Aquia IV 1G Elongated Bowl; Shower drains: QM Drain, Mist (Tile-In) Linear Drain; Laundry sink: Blanco Liven Laundry in Silgranit; Soaking tub: Zen Bathworks Ofuro Bathtub/Kyoto; Outdoor shower: Signature Hardware Stainless Steel Exposed Outdoor Shower
Rainwater Filtration System: Conservation Technology
Renewable Energy Systems (solar, wind, etc.): Silfab 9.6kw solar array; Generac battery and inverter
Roof: Taylor Metal Easy Lock Standing Seam Metal Roof
Specialty Products: Rainwater tanks: (3) 3,000-gallon concrete tanks by Willamette Graystone.
Structural Components: Framing: 2-by-8 FSC; Sheathing: FSC plywood; Roof: Trusses;
Floor: Trusses
Ventilation: Zehnder Q450 HRV
Water Heating: Gen4 SanCO2 Heat Pump;Tankless Backup Water Heater: Rheem, RTEX; Circulator: ACT D’MAND Builder Series 1 speed pump 100 model
Water Management: Conservation Technology
Windows, Patio Doors: Zola Windows and Doors
As we move from one major lifestyle challenge—an emergent pandemic—to another, with historic storms and record heat, builders have been continuously challenged to adapt. Green Builder’s 2023 Green Home of the Year winners are well constructed, energy efficient and creatively designed. But our grand winner topped them all by emphasizing the local economy and the environment.
Our expert panel of judges evaluated projects in terms of overall sustainability, resilience, synergy with the environment, affordability, creativity and the depth of science employed.