Arnold & Annie’s All Electric High Efficiency Duplex

Posted on by Tomas Aguilar

Welcome to the future of housing. Looks like a normal house but it doesn’t act like one. From a super insulated and air-tight envelope to the elimination of all indoor combustion appliances, this house completely eliminates on-site pollution other than methane from its inhabitants. But even so the air is always fresh inside because of the Energy Recovery Ventilator or ERV that is constantly running pulling those odors out and bringing in fresh HEPA filtered air right back in to replace it.

Design

But enough about the technical features! Let’s look at the design. To start with this is an urban infill project with ridiculous zoning requirements that leave the property with a minimal amount of buildable area. In order to make the property more attractive to a wider variety of potential buyers this duplex feels more like a single family home with a basement unit. The single family home on top is a 3 bedroom / 3 bathroom two story house and the garden unit is a one bedroom apartment.

3 Bedroom / 3 Bathroom House on top of a 1 Bedroom Garden Unit.

Upper Unit (3 Bedroom / 3 Bathroom House)

Simple modern kitchen design with a touch of detail.
Kitchen from Living Room
Simple modern stairway
Upstairs Hall
Main Bedroom
Main Bedroom Closet
Main Bed Bathroom
Laundry Room
It’s not fancy, it’s not high tech, it’s just the most efficient off the shelf, pieces of mechanical equipment you can find. In the center on the floor is a hybrid heat pump hot water heater, above that is an ERV. On the left of the hot water heater is a digitally monitored electrical circuit breaker panel board and on the right is a salt-free water softener system. To the far left is a digital control center, modem, and data connection point.

Garden Unit (1 Bedroom Apartment)

Main Living Space
Bedroom
Bathroom (Progress Rendering)

Building Plans