True sustainable living starts at home. Tom Kelly's cabin near Oregon's Mt. Hood is all about family, the outdoors, and treading lightly on the land. "It was important that our getaway be as eco-friendly as possible," says Kelly, who owns a design/build and remodeling business on the forefront of green building practices.
Inspiration came from an article in the New York Times about a loftlike concrete-and-glass house on Idaho's Coeur d'Alene Lake. "We liked its industrial simplicity, with all the concrete block and exposed electrical conduit," Kelly says. "But we didn't want to mimic a specific style. We just wanted a place that was comfortable and suited its rural setting."
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| Thomas J. Story |
| A breathtaking view of snowcapped Mt. Hood is the backdrop for this low-maintenance, durable, and energy-efficient cabin. |
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Kelly and his wife, Barbara Woodford, gave the design task to their niece, architect Liz Olberding She organized the house around a hydronically heated concrete floor and structural walls made of Durisol, blocks of recycled wood fiber and cement that contain fiberglass-like rock-wool insulation. Terra-cotta-colored clay-plaster accent walls, exposed wood trim, and wool rugs in a similar ruddy palette add a layer of warmth. The honed concrete-block walls retain heat from sunlight; as with many of the cabin's materials, the blocks are extremely durable and locally produced to lower the "embodied energy" of transportation costs. The home boasts so many innovative components, it was the first Western residence to receive LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), a rating system developed by the nonprofit U.S. Green Building Council.
EFFICIENT, INNOVATIVE DESIGN
The goal was to have a compact home with flexible spaces for gathering. Cooking, dining, and hanging out all happen in one spacious, airy room on the main floor, with a dining table of reclaimed Douglas fir from Portland's ReFind Furniture. Large windows line the walls, framing spectacular views and allowing sunlight to enter.
"I'm part of a large family — I have seven brothers and sisters, and they all have children," Kelly says. "Even with everyone here, the house works perfectly. We've also had a few receptions for 100."
COMING AND GOINGFor their outdoor-oriented family, a mudroom for boots, sports gear, backpacks, and jackets is a must. This cabin's main winter entrance is through a double-doored space called an arctic entry, which reduces interior heat loss.
Other entrances and doorways are equally well thought-out. Internal sliding doors are made from Douglas fir "sinker logs" salvaged from the Columbia River. An exterior concrete stairway features broad risers that serve as platforms for flowerpots in summer and wood storage
in winter. Extended eaves over the stairs provide shade and temperature control.
CONVERTIBLE GUEST ROOMS
A small office space doubles as extra sleeping quarters, thanks to a Murphy bed that tucks into an alcove in the concrete-block wall. On the other side of the wall, in the living room, is a fireplace that warms the bed before it's opened on cold winter nights.
WHAT MAKES IT EARTH-FRIENDLY[SPECIAL_CHAR {63}]
The Kelly family built their home from the ground up, so they incorporated green ideas in energy, construction methods, and material choices.
Thomas J. Story | Kitchen details Non-outgassing, formaldehyde-free wheatboard — an eco-wise alternative to plywood — was used for the cabinet shells. Inset panels on cabinet fronts are Kirei board, a product made of sorghum stalks; the fir for the kitchen cabinets is from remilled boards.
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Thomas J. Story | Sustainable wood Kelly carefully considered the sources for all wood used in the house. The framing lumber and overhead beams are made of Forest Stewardship Council–certified sustainably harvested local wood.
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Thomas J. Story | Materials and systems The hydronically heated floors are made with concrete poured over corrugated steel panels and a grid of pipes, which circulates warmed water to keep the floors toasty. Using steel panels instead of traditional floor joists is a commercial construction technique that reduces the amount of wood required for framing.
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Thomas J. Story | Solar power Located 50 feet from the house are two solar-tracking arrays with a total output of 3 kilowatts. The system is tied to the power grid, feeding excess electricity back to the electric company in a process known as reverse metering. The home is designed to produce more energy than it uses.
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INFO
Design: Liz Olberding, Anchorage (907/230-9871).
Design/construction: Tom Kelly, Neil Kelly Company, Portland (503/288-7461).
Interior design: Therese DuBravac, Neil Kelly Company, Portland (503/288-7461).
RESOURCES
Patio: Carlo chairs in gray iron by Kettler ($159 each) from Fishels Contemporary Home Furnishings, Portland (shipping to Oregon and Washington; 503/235-8941).
Kitchen: Counters are IceStone in Amber Pearl (718/624-4900). Kirei board cabinet panels (619/236-9924). Skyport pendant light ($356) from Rejuvenation (888/401-1900).
Dining area: StreamLine table (from $900; $3,000 as shown) from ReFind Furniture at the ReBuilding Center, Portland (503/445-1756). Kyoto dining chairs in coffee ($100 each) from Design Within Reach (800/944-2233). Dakota Red natural earth plaster on walls from American Clay Enterprises (866/404-1634). Generations Collection rug ($899 for 8- by 11-foot rug, as shown) from NW Rugs (503/682-7847). Bar-height counter is PaperStone from Paneltech International (360/538-9815).
Solar power: Solar electric system (3.06kW dual-access tracking photovoltaic system) by Imagine Energy (866/982-6800).
Guest room: Wooden Murphy bed front is custom-designed. Bed mechanism from Wallbeds of Oregon (800/452-4768). Additional building materials: Durisol insulated concrete forms (905/521-0999). FSC-certified framing lumber from Warm Springs Forest Products Industries, owned by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs (541/553-1148). FSC-certified glued-laminated beams from American Laminators, Drain, OR (541/836-2000).
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