Project Summary
Riptide, noun [ rip-tīd ]: a strong current or tide flowing outward from a shore that results from the return flow of waves and wind-driven water.
This house, like it’s namesake implies, is a powerful oppositional force against the standard housing stock seen in all neighbourhoods across the nation. Riptide House is a case study to do better. The clients, an East Coast surfing family, wanted to build a home for themselves. A home that fits in with their established urban neighbourhood (walkscore of 74 and Bikescore of 83) while simultaneously addressing the environmental issues our society is facing. Stocked with an understanding of the historic neighbourhood vernacular, modern architecture, and Passive House design and detailing principles, our task was to marry these three components into one cohesive design.
We carefully studied the scale and formal elements of the surrounding homes and used this as a basis of design in which to develop the clean, modern form of the house; modernization of the deep-rooted wooden gable typology of homes on the Atlantic coast. The resultant design is a modest 2200 square foot three-bedroom home. The minimal budget of the project is important. This project embraced the challenge to design a home for a typical Nova Scotian family in a typical Nova Scotian community with a typical Nova Scotian budget without resulting in the “typical” tedium.
The house’s site is in a highly desirable area of urban Dartmouth. This is very important as the area is highly trafficked and gained considerable attention during construction. The house can be an example of how sustainable design can fit into the ‘ideal lifestyle’. From an architectural perspective, we used Riptide House as a case study in sustainable design that uses Passive House Principals without going fully Passive House or pursuing Passive House certification. Many private homeowners are interested in Passive House but do not necessarily want to go all the way to certification. This was a study in how to use the best elements of Passive House design, but keep it as affordable as any other code built home.
Community
The home’s urban site is critical to the success of the project. The home is situated in one of the city’s most desirable school districts, steps away from downtown Dartmouth and several of the city’s most popular paddling clubs, and directly across the street from the community recreation centre. The aesthetic of the home needed to speak to its neighbours in the established neighbourhood, but also be different enough for people to ask questions and learn more about the design decisions made to increase the efficiency of the home.
Strategic Decisions
The parti saw this simple gable cut and shifted, thus, establishing a primary form to hold the served spaces of the house (open concept living room, dining room, kitchen and bedrooms upstairs) while the second smaller gable forms the home's the service spaces (laundry room, washrooms, and stairs). The traditional form of the home was modernized through tight eave detailing and a clean material palette. The area where the shift occurs makes way for a covered front entry to the street, and a back entry mudroom to the private south-facing courtyard.
Site Ecology:
Before construction began on Riptide House, an older home past its useful life was demolished. This older home was centrally located on the site and was further back from the street in comparison to its neighbours. When the new home was built, we brought its front face in line with the neighbours completing the street face. Doing this also allowed for a large south-facing courtyard in the rear which will allow for expansive gardens of native plantings. In the future, the courtyard could be turned into a site for a secondary suite increasing the urban density of the city.
Light and Air
When designing a smaller home, the quality of light and air is increasingly important. The south side is designed with several large windows to take in as much natural light as possible, while the other facades are more subdued. They have enough openings to ensure every room has access to an operable triple-glazed window, and that the fenestration matches that of neighbouring homes, but no more. The detailing of the windows within the envelope also was done with light control in mind. The windows are set back and centred in the insulation layer, to ensure minimal thermal bridging and adequate shading in the summer months. The coupling of a highly efficient ventilation system and robust building envelope means that fresh air exchange is done with control, disallowing air leakage from the outside.
Energy Efficiency Considerations
Every consideration for the home’s design was done with energy efficiency and future sustainability in mind. For example; the home is open to the south side for passive solar heating and has windows on all sides to attain maximum passive ventilation. All of the mechanical and electrical systems, as well as the appliances, are above energy efficiency requirements. They either meet or exceed requirements for EnergyStar.
The assemblies were all designed as robust thermal masse. And it was decided to install a drain water heat recovery unit to ensure that the heat from wastewater could be recycled.
We chose sustainable materials for the project including wood siding, wood studs, and recycled cellulose insulation which also reduces harmful pollution. Against code minimum targets, the home’s expected energy usage is 43% lower, and it’s greenhouse gas emissions are to be 40% less annually.
Building Life Cycle Considerations
The exterior palette of the cladding, 2” v-groove cedar siding and corrugated aluminium were chosen for their future recycling capability. Additionally, these materials were chosen for their local availability to minimize the effects of transportation.
Materials and Resources
Local availability of materials and occupant health were our top priorities for the design of the home. Natural materials were used for cladding and assemblies including wood siding and recycled cellulose insulation. All of the windows in the house are triple-pane, high heat gain windows that were fabricated and sourced by a local supplier. All windows were centred on the insulation layer allowing for deep, sunny window sills while minimizing thermal leaks. This detail serves both function and aesthetics as it allows for a tight and efficient envelope and clean, modern look.
The detailing of the exterior doors is similar to that of the window, with the door set to the midpoint of the insulation layer with rigid insulation covering over the door frame itself. This gives the house an extremely minimalistic, modern look, avoiding the mass-manufactured look of bulky trims and frames while better detailing the weakest link of the common building envelope, the window frame.
Testimonial from the client:
RHAD Architects are an amazing firm to work with. We knew right away that we had similar visions, beliefs and goals. Rayleen really listened to our first meetings and. was able to transform our words/vision into a beautiful place we call home. Having Megan as their Passive designer on hand was a bonus for us as she offered opinions that came to life as the project came to life. I really appreciated that I could call, stop in and ask questions when needed. The entire team helped us on this project. Thank you to all.
