Michael R. Carlson, Architect

LEED for Homes Platinum Certified

New Construction
4,200 SF

The Birch Haven Residence is located on a lake in Southwest Michigan. It is a 4,200 SF residence that is LEED for Homes Platinum certified. The home includes 5 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, a game room and features a dynamic 2 story central living space that overlooks the lake. The home uses Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) for its wall system, and many energy and water saving features throughout. The design uses universal design principles, including an elevator to make it fully accessible to all who use it. The design process started with a LEED Charrette with 20 project team members; including Carlson Studio Architecture, architect, True North, general contractor, GreenHome Institute, LEED for Homes Provider and LEED Green Rater, and many subcontractors, material suppliers, and landscape designers. All features of the home were discussed as well as all systems necessary to construct the home. The entire team went through the LEED checklist and looked for synergies between various systems and other design and construction strategies to improve the home’s design to a point where we could receive platinum certification.

The residence is new construction, replacing a cottage that was demolished, while attaching to the existing garage. The residence aims to reduce construction and demolition waste disposed of landfills and incineration facilities by recovering, reusing, and recycling materials. This can be seen through many examples, including the knotty pine wood interior siding, which was located in the previous cottage as interior wall paneling and is reused in the new residence as interior ceiling paneling and wall paneling.

The HERS score on this home is 26. Design features include a 7.2 KW photovoltaic array, a heat recovery system, heat pump water heater, and passive design elements such as solar orientation and natural ventilation.

THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY

Tap on the image links below to learn more about the entire design and construction process.