Portfolio: Home in Bahama, NC

This Mediterranean style, 2814 square foot, 3-bedroom 3-bath, home has 10' ceilings and is primarily a one story with the exception of the bonus room over the two-car garage.

The home is oriented on the 2-acre lot to take advantage of the sun’s southern rays for natural passive solar gain in winter. The concrete slab foundation system soaks up the sun’s rays in winter and releases this heat slowly. There is no crawl space for unwanted molds, rot, and mildew to exist.

The home has beautiful terra cotta tile floors throughout the public rooms and continues out onto the patio and screened porch. The bathrooms have stone tile and there is hardwood laminate flooring in the bedrooms and bonus room.

There is an active solar hot water system with the solar panels on the roof's southern exposure. The solar capabilities of this house qualify it for the 35% tax credit offered by the State and Federal tax credits. This house was built with special attention to sustainable building techniques that will make it comfortable, economical, durable, attractive and environmentally responsible.

In summer the overhang of the roof and the inset windows block the higher summer sun shielding the inside from direct sunlight. The sun doesn’t heat up the space so that the high efficiency HVAC keeps the interior cool and comfortable.

The windows and doors are beautiful Norco low-e, high efficiency. The south wall has low e 178, this means that the low e is on the third surface to let in solar heat and bounce it back into the room. On cold winter days, these windows heat up the room and the concrete floor.

The concrete floors have radiant heat, the passive solar helps this system heat up. The highly efficient Unico Chiller HVAC system will keep this home comfortable through every season. This one system provides hot water that circulates through the floor in winter and sends cold water to the air handlers sending cool air through the ductwork to keep the house cool in the summer.

The exterior walls are concrete manufactured by Superior Walls. They are 10 ¼" thick, cast in factory concrete wall, with an insulation rating of R15 +. Additional R11 insulation was installed which brings the insulation factor well over the building code requirement. Stucco was applied directly on the exterior concrete wall and trim for an exquisite Mediterranean finish. Being concrete, there is less worry about fire, termites and air infiltration. The roof is Dura-loc metal with the beautiful look of Spanish Tile. The roof sheathing is a foil faced OSB to keep the attic cooler in summer. These materials were picked for the homeowner’s requirement of very low maintenance.

On the south of the house there is a large kitchen/dining/family room combination that opens on one side to a patio and to a screened porch on the other.

The kitchen features Silestone solid surface counter tops, two under-mount sinks, double wall ovens, conduction cook top, and all are energy star appliances.

Open foyer and living room features a long wall of built-in bookcases.

Spacious owner's suite on the first floor opens onto a patio. The suite includes the main bedroom, a large walk-in closet, large luxurious bath, air jet garden tub, two vanities with sink and a large shower.

Two bedrooms on first floor share a full bath with beautiful stone tile.

Large downstairs laundry with sink includes front loading energy star washer and dryer.

The room over the garage could be used as another bedroom. It is rough plumbed and wired so that a future kitchen could be added and, with its existing full bath, it could become an apartment. The homeowners are using it as a home office.

There are four-64 gallon rain barrels with a pump for rainwater collection to supply water to the permaculture garden. The landscape includes fig trees, persimmons, blueberry bushes, herbs, drought resistant ornamentals and decorative grasses.