Department Of Energy | TC Legend Homes

TC Legend Homes ‘House-in-a-Hollow’ Home Wins 2022 Housing Innovation Award!

by Senna | Aug 16, 2022 | Uncategorized

Written by: Nicole Miller

For TC Legend Home’s 9^th time, we are thrilled to announce another Department of Energy Housing Innovation Award (HIA) winning home!

House-in-a-Hollow has won the grand prize for the ‘Custom for Buyer less than 2500 Square Feet’ category. We could not have achieved this award without the amazing homeowners who helped us push the envelope and our extremely skilled field crew who nailed the execution (pun-intended). 🙂

Our very own Talia receiving TC Legend Home’s Department of Energy 2022 Housing Innovation Award!!
Talia had a blast at the EEBA conference last week in Scottsdale, AZ and loved seeing The House in the Hollow showcased!

Each year the HIA updates their application pushing companies to innovate more and change with the times, and this year was no exception.

Along with the house performance, design and materials/sustainability information required, the award also requires the builder to submit information on their business metrics and how they create quality construction.

This year, they added the “Advances Home Concepts” section which consists of written portions on the company’s advanced building practices, smart building techniques and environmental impact.

Much like the Seattle based Built Green program, they have also added a portion to evaluate the company’s sustainable business practices which includes their diversity, equity and inclusion practices, and workforce training.

These latter additions are very valuable as the industry recognizes the interconnection between sustainable housing and equitable housing. Sustainable housing should not just be for the wealthy and, in fact, those of lower incomes are far more likely to live in homes or areas that negatively impact their health.

This is due to the homes being less desirable to the wealthy and therefore cheaper, creating a market where the only homes that are financially available to folks with lower income, are the ones that are unhealthy. It should go without saying that this is unfair and unjust. Making it that much more important the sustainable housing be available for everyone.

#2022HIA

Award Winning Features of House-in-a-Hollow

House Description:

Size: 1935 sf
Bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 2.5
Lot Size: 9.88 acres
Garage: separated and unconditioned
HERS Index (With PV): -23
Annual Utility Costs: -$278.00
Energy Savings: 20,354 kWh
Net-Zero: Yes
Aging-in-Place Design: Yes
Clerestory Design: Yes

Certifications:

ENERGY STAR
Zero Energy Ready Home
EPA Indoor airPLUS
Built Green 5 Star

Construction:

Walls: 6.5 inch Neopor SIP panel (R-29) with Hardie plank lap siding
Roof: 10.25” and 12.25” Neopor SIP panel (R-49 and R-59), IKO Armourshake asphalt roofing, foam splines in place of wood splines
Air Sealing: Aerobarrier sealed to 0.54 air changes per hour (ACH)
Foundation: Slab on grade with R-20 underslab insulation and insulated concrete form (ICF) stemwalls
Windows: Vinyl, Triple-pane, Low-e3 coating, Argon-filled, Fixed U-value of 0.15, Casement U-value of 0.18
Additional: Extended roofs/eaves and clerestory windows for summer shading and passive winter gain

Mechanical:

Ventilation: Zehnder Comfoair 550 whole-house HRV, Fantech HEPA filter, whole house CO2 & humidity sensors
Heating/Cooling: Chilltrix CX-34 air-to-water heatpump with Comfopost, radiant in-floor heating on first floor, and fan coil unit heating on second floor
Hot Water: Domestic hot water is heated by the Chilltrix heatpump
Photovoltaics: 10.56kW rooftop array with microinverters on each panel
Electric Vehicle Charging Station: Yes
Additional: Awair Indoor Air Monitor that tracks the internal humidity, temperature, chemical pollution (VOCs), PM2.5, and CO2

Finishes:

Low Emission Finishes: GreenGuard certified flooring, GreenGuard certified Neopor SIPs, hardwood trim, solid maple cabinets, no-VOC paint, low-VOC sealants, waterbased caulk
Additional: 100% LED lighting, Energy Star appliances, WaterSense and low-flow plumbing fixtures, low-emission finishes

Land Development

Undisturbed Land: 98%
Tree Retainage: 74%
Wetland Buffer Mitigation: Installation of 630 native trees & shrubs
Landscaping: Installation of only native plants that require no potable irrigation
Grass: No
Additional: Large rocks placed along perimeter to deter human impact on wetlands, a few trees removed on the immediate South side of house for passive solar gain & PV array, trees to East & West retained to shade house

Learn more about other innovative builders and award winners here:

https://www.energy.gov/…/buil…/housing-innovation-awards

Bellingham Eco-Home Builder Wins 2020 Housing Innovation Award from the Department of Energy

by Senna | Aug 7, 2020 | Uncategorized

Bellingham eco-home builder wins 2020 Housing Innovation Award from the Department of Energy.

Solar-panel powered house with Scandinavian influences.
Nationwide competition to promote zero carbon footprint housing
Cutting edge panelized materials. Voice activated systems.

July 2020. The Department of Energy announces that TC Legend Homes wins a Housing Innovation Award in the sub 3000 square feet (sf) custom-home category. The house is located in Everson, Washington State.

Facing directly towards the sun, the huge south roof collects enough solar power to run the house all year and power an electric car. This house represents the future of Pacific Northwest (PNW) housing. The new homeowner is delighted:

“I am astonished almost every day with how well this house works for us. Of course, it was designed for us but even so, it is a very efficient, real world design. We wanted a house that would run the (electric) meter backwards. If there is a better way to do it; build a house that powers itself, why wouldn’t you…?” – John Trax.

The house is made from SIPs (structural insulated panels). Factory made, the foam sandwich panels arrive on-site with doors and windows already cut-out & assemble fast, a bit like Legos. Triple pane windows and cutting edge mechanical systems enable this home to classify as ‘Net Positive,’ which means it makes all its own power, and excess, over the year.

The competition received hundreds of entries from all over the USA. An exhaustive assessment by the Department of Energy considered a range of factors other than the house energy systems. From wetlands and stormwater conservation, to cutting edge centrally ducted air conditioning and Alexa-controlled lighting and blinds; many aspects of this modest and modern ‘Superhouse’ led to the to the US government award.

“Housing Innovation Award winners such as TC Legend Homes are leading a major housing industry transformation to zero energy homes. This level of performance is the home of the future because it improves the way Americans live by substantially reducing or eliminating utility bills, ensuring engineered comfort way beyond traditional homes, protecting health with a comprehensive package of indoor air quality measures, and helping maximize the largest investment of a lifetime,”
– Sam Rashkin, Chief Architect at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office.

About the US Department of Energy Housing Innovation Awards:

Department of Energy plans to eliminate energy use from American housing. The Housing Innovation Award is a strategy to focus industry and public attention on the reality that energy efficient housing is readily available now.

If there were absolutely no fossil fuels used in the production, or running of this home, it would be a Zero Carbon Embodied Energy building, which is where the Housing Innovation Awards are taking us all.

About TC Legend Homes:

TC Legend Homes is a design-build company based in Bellingham, WA. Designing and building about (5) net-positive SIPs homes a year. Constantly innovating, the company is making significant advances, refining the model for affordable Net-Zero housing in the Pacific Northwest (PNW). The company goal is to research, design and build the standard affordable Net-Zero home for the PNW, ready for volume-construction.

Further details: