apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Location: Carrboro, NC
Size: 2100 sq ft (not including basement)
Years lived in: 3 weeks
Time to build: 2 years

Upon entering this house, it just felt like "home". Warmth was an understatement, with the custom woodwork and well planned lighting, thanks to the south facing windows, LED canister lights and solatubes. And the house is well sized - with a place for everything. From the media closet, to the custom bar, to the window seat with built in drawers in the master bedroom, this home is big on custom and low on waste.

Custom designed by the owners with help from architects and builders, this home features beautiful custom woodwork from sustainably harvested douglas fir, cherry doors from a local craftsman with sustainable wheat board core and bamboo hardwood floors.

Family Room:

The orientation of the family room was to the South in order to maximize winter solar heat gain. Low E 78 glazing is used on the windows. The heating system is intricate and includes passive solar design, solar heated hot water, radiant hot water heating in the polished concrete floors and a gas fired on demand water heater.

Custom Vanity:

Other green features include:

• Solatubes
• LED can lighting (barely warm to the touch!)
• Dual flush toilets
• Sealed crawl space
• Water collection and reuse system
• Drought resistant landscaping
• Energy star and low-flow appliances
• Pre wired for future roof mounted solar electric production
• Six inches of insulation in the north wall
• Fully insulated basement
• Copper railing on balcony
• Outdoor shower
• Sandstone counters
• Dual facing fireplace
• Glass tile in bathroom