Winsome Construction an Award Finalist with DJC TopProjects

DJC Oregon’s TopProjects is a premier award program which honors the best building and construction projects in Oregon and SW Washington’s building community. Winsome’s Nathan Good Vineyard Estate (custom residential home) was honored as a finalist. Projects were judged based on scope of work, challenges and obstacles, budget and schedule considerations, quality, and overall project.

Project Description

High on a Yamhill, Oregon hilltop overlooking a 40-acre working vineyard, the Nathan Good Vineyard Estate is an extraordinary home. Part of what makes this property so special is in the name itself: renowned and award-winning green architect, Nathan Good, designed it. Based in Portland, Oregon, Nathan Good is recognized by NW Home Magazine as one of the Top 50 Architects in The Northwest and Fine Homebuilding Magazine featured one of Nathan’s projects on the cover of the August/September 2011 issue.

Every aspect of this home’s plan incorporated three goals: respect for the environment, homage to the beautiful setting of the vineyard, and comfort of the residents and guests of the vineyard. Completed in February 2013 the home received LEED certification and is on target to attain Net Zero status.

Great care was taken to cause minimal site disturbance throughout site prep and construction. From protecting the site from erosion to construction waste reduction – 72.5% of waste diverted at this project.

The Nathan Good Vineyard Estate home was constructed with Advanced Stick Framing, also known as Optimum Value Engineering (OVE), a building technique that improves material efficiency and the energy performance of the building by eliminating non-structural wood from the building envelope and replacing it with insulation. Spray foam insulation greatly reduces air infiltration through the walls, minimizes mold liability, has sound deadening properties, and increases the rigidity of the frame.

Other green techniques and technologies integrated into the home include: poly-iso nail base insulation, radiant floor heating, 9kw photovoltaic array panels made in Oregon, native oak flooring and cabinetry, stone sourced from nearby quarries (within line of sight), a Zehnder heat recovery ventilator, a Daikin Altherma Heat Pump System, a high-efficiency irrigation system, high-efficiency fixtures and fittings, efficient hot water distribution system, a heat recovery system that enhances outdoor air ventilation with continuous ventilation. A non-ducted HVAC system, radiant floor system with thermostatic controls in every room. 85% of roof area is used for harvesting rainwater.

We use Forest Stewardship Council certified lumber, kiln dried materials, and recycled/salvaged materials whenever possible. For this project we were able to source several architectural components from a windblown 300 year old douglas fir tree from the property, reclaimed into flooring, cabinetry and beams.

Challenges & Obstacles

The Nathan Good Vineyard home project faced several logistical and technical challenges. The goal was to create a truly cutting edge, certified green built home. The home is nestled into one of Oregon’s premier vineyards and has over a mile of hillside driveway. Construction traffic, runoff and dust had to be tightly controlled. In order to protect and reduce impact to the vines, an integrated 10,000 gallon cistern storm water collects water and provides landscape irrigation during the dry months. Net zero energy was a design goal, which we achieved with the help of a 9 kw photovoltaic array. Certified native Oregon white oak was used extensively in the finishes. The use of ultra energy-efficient appliances and several air sealing techniques made the house very energy efficient and ensured superb indoor air quality. Triple glazed windows were used, as was radiant floor heating. The home also features a green roof over the garages. This and the open floor plan required the use of structural steel. We are also close to achieving LEED Platinum status.

Budget & Schedule Considerations

Even on a million dollar home, the budget matters. Our initial cost estimates placed the build close to 1.9 million. Through value engineering and tight management, we were able to complete the job and bring our costs under budget for 1.58 million. Having a rural site and great owners gave us a great schedule and good site logistics. Architectural and associated costs brought the total cost to 1.9 million.

Details

• HERS score: 23
• Renewable energy: Solar photovoltaic panels, 9000 watts of renewable energy installed. Panels made in Oregon.
• Construction waste management: 72.5% of waste was diverted
• 4,446 s.f. total floor
• 1.5 ACH 50 test
• Fly-ash in concrete – sequesters fly-ash from coal plants
• Thermal Envelope Insulation: Spray Foam Home fully wrapped in poly-iso nail base insulation
• 10,000 gallon catchment cistern
• Loewen triple-glazed windows
• Radiant flooring
• Zehnder heat recovery ventilator (HRV)
• Daikin Altherma heat pump system
• 3 quarries used on this project are within line-of-sight
• Artisan quarry stone veneer
• Native oak flooring and cabinetry from Zena Forest Products
• Architectural components sourced from blown-down vertical-grain Fir on the property
• Drip irrigation installed in landscape beds, & drip irrigation zones, terracing, retaining walls
• Passive Radon system installed
• 5 types of regional materials are used for major elements of building.
• Salvaged materials used for 2% of total construction cost.

Call Winsome for More Information 503-472-7402