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For many homeowners, the decision whether to build a high-performance home is a financial one. If you have to make the decision between installing solar panels or getting a few more of the amenities on your wish list, it can be a difficult choice to make. However, if you look at your home as the long-term investment that it is, building green just makes sense.

It’s possible that working from home has been your modus operandi for some time now. Others may be recent converts because of our current world circumstances. Either way, we’ve collected a few ideas to make a home office productive and comfortable, and have some tips for how you may adapt it to a high-performance home.

The world of architectural design is exciting, rewarding, and filled with creative people adept at finding solutions. So when we were approached by the team behind HGTV’s Celebrity IOU, we had a feeling that although we had no idea what to expect, we would be up for the challenge!

We are delighted to welcome Alex to the BrightBuilt Home team, where he will be bringing his expertise in client communications and account management to the Project Pilot role. As a way to get to know him better, and to introduce him to our BrightBuilt family, we thought we'd ask Alex some of our signature pointed questions.

When designing the interior of a new home, selecting tile plays a key role in the functionality and overall feel of the space. Here are a few things to consider and tips from our interior designer!

When designing the interior of a new home, lighting selections play a key role in the overall feel of the space. Here are a few tips from our interior designer to help you find the light (so to speak)!

If you’ve been following our blog and newsletters for a while, you’re probably fairly familiar with the concept of the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU). So, let’s say you’re interested in the potential they could bring to your property. What happens next? To help simplify your fact-finding process we’ve put together a few key things to have in place to prepare for the addition of an ADU.

In order to shed some light on the design process of a BrightBuilt Home, we will be featuring a series of snapshots focusing on the experience from a client's perspective.

In order to shed some light on the design process of a BrightBuilt Home, we will be featuring a series of snapshots focusing on the experience from a client's perspective.

Not all heroes have Sidekicks, but those who do tend to have it a little easier. These allies take the daily, domestic stressors off a hero’s shoulders, so they can focus on other noble pursuits. Sidekicks protect their partner from elemental perils, keep the bad guys at bay or lock them away, and even harness the power of the sun to fuel various super gadgets. BrightBuilt Home has an entire fleet of Sidekicks to help you on your next mission, whether it be fighting crime or keeping a houseplant alive.

You have your team together, and now it’s time to go to bat. So it’s important to know the rules of the game. This boils down to one document: the appraisal. In evaluating a green home, the appraisal process aims to acknowledge the long-term value of your home. When the value is appropriately recognized by the appraiser, lenders will grant a higher sum to finance a green home’s construction, acknowledging that the long-term safety net of predictable (or no) monthly costs is far superior to that of the average home. Assigning value, though, is complicated by the fact that not all high-performance homes are equal and that few of them exist for setting the standards in this data-driven numbers game.

The season of frenzied cooking and colossal meals is fast approaching - can your kitchen keep up? High performance home design considers the efficiency and functionality of every detail, including the layout and outfitting of the rooms we use most. A well-designed kitchen improves not only the aesthetics of the space, but also its comfort and usability. To everyone who has ever dealt with a sink too small to wash pans in, or had to banish a partner from the room so there would be enough space to open the oven door; we see you, and would never do you dirty like that.

With the Common Ground Fair going full digital force this weekend, we wanted to introduce you to one of BrightBuilt Home's builders who also just so happens to be an organic farmer! Meet John Roscoe, of Roscoe Builders, who is based in Sullivan, Maine, where he splits his time between construction zones on MDI and the farmstead on the mainland. I mean.... can we have baby goats on ALL of our job sites, please? Check out what John has to say…

Meet the owner of Maker Construction, Ryan MacEachern (top photo), and his crew. They're the team of individuals that take a module off of it's flatbed and set it securely on to a foundation. More than that, they are a bit nerdy and they pay attention to the details; they know how important that air barrier is and ensure that the house is fully "buttoned up" at the end of a set day. Their work is a key component in making modular happen; they work swiftly and with ease, but their job of securing 30,000 lbs while it hangs in the air (among many other things) is anything but easy. It takes talent, planning, and attention to detail. They have recently set a BrightBuilt Drisko, Perkins, Cushing, and 2 Frenchboros. We thought we'd throw a few questions Ryan's way, so that you can get a taste for the team behind this part of the process.

Today we complete our 3-part series on building costs – what to expect, and what to include, as you weigh what you want to build and what your budget should be – and whether those numbers from other vendors are truly apples-to-apples. If you’ve been following along with our last few blog posts (or newsletters), you’ve glimpsed some clues to what’s hidden in the costs behind door number 1 (site) and door number 2 (house) already. To close out the series, we will explore what hides behind door number 3: the costs of those seemingly elusive “extras”…

Today we launch a 3-part series on building costs* – what to expect, and what to include, as you weigh what you want to build and what your budget should be – and whether those numbers from other vendors are truly apples-to-apples. Without a doubt, one of the hardest questions to answer in the architecture and construction world is: “How much will it cost?” Invariably, and with good reason, the answer is: “It depends!”

Meet Colin Lindberg, builder of our most recent Jewell. He is owner of Shelterwood Construction, a general contractor out of Moretown, Vermont. He and his team completed this Jewell in 2018. Colin was gracious enough to answer our burning questions, and show off his fun-loving and hard working ethos, for all to enjoy.

WIth so many of us working from home these days, we wanted to reach out to some of our BrightBuilt Homeowners who have home offices, and see if they could share some snippets on their WFH experiences. Cristos and Emma completed their Mackworth in South Portland a few years ago, not long before welcoming the arrival of their adorable toddler. As he has been working from home during our current times, Cristos had some great insights on what it's been like for him.

Today we continue our 3-part series on building costs – what to expect, and what to include, as you weigh what you want to build and what your budget should be – and whether those numbers from other vendors are truly apples-to-apples. While we explored the mysteries of site costs in our last newsletter (and on our blog, read it here), this time we're diving into the good stuff: the house itself.

Building a new home is a big deal, and when you make such a major investment, you want to feel confident that the people performing the work are doing it right. As with any other types of products or services, builder quality can vary significantly, especially if you are building a high-performance home. How do you know if you’re choosing the right builder for your new home? Ask these important questions.

Our latest Little Diamond is coming together nicely, getting some final finishing touches (by the team at Island Carpentry) as it gets comfortable on its new site on the Kennebec River. The homeowners, Mike and Pattee, have been so excited to see their dream come together, so we asked if they might answer some questions, and share some reflections on their process to date (and perhaps a dose or two of that contagious, much-needed-right-now enthusiasm!).

The air exchange system: The system in our homes that perhaps remains the biggest mystery to new homeowners. We throw the acronyms ERV and HRV around as though they're as universally understood as PB&J or LOL, but to many, the notion of active, pre-filtered fresh air exchange in your home is at odds with most homeowners' experience with the drafty New England farmhouse (which our homes, of course, are not). To help shed some light on what these systems are and what they do, we tapped local expert, Kurt Johnson, of Fresh Air Ventilation in Lewiston, Maine. He offers some great insights, tips, and clear explanations on these critical systems.

1.) Do you remember the moment that you decided you wanted a BrightBuilt home? What lead you to that decision? J&L: Joe knew early on that looking at energy efficient/green technologies in our next home was the way to go. Our millennial kids where pushing us to shrink our carbon footprint at the same time that we were looking to downsize. Every thing came together when we met with J.

Bigger isn’t always better, and the Torrey is evidence to back that up. Maybe you are ready for downsizing into your forever home, aging next to your children, or putting up a small structure at your family camp. Whatever is it, we’ve got a Torrey for it. The Torrey shows you how it’s possible to live in a smaller footprint while still having the comfort and amenities you may have experienced in larger homes. Besides, it’s dang cute!

For those of you from Maine, you might recognize Cushing as one of the islands off Portland in Casco Bay. Locals call it “Cushin’” which makes us think of “cushy,” which is an adjective that is defined as “undemanding, easy, or secure.” This is a perfect definition for the BrightBuilt Cushing. Narrower than our other designs at 24” wide, it manages to pack a big, precise punch. This house is great for narrow lots and if you are looking for first floor living, but with additional space to spread out when needed. The Cushing accurately replicates a farmhouse with a full second story. As designed, it is an incredibly efficient and comfortable space. Size: 1,975 sq ft Bedrooms: 3+ Bathrooms: 2.5

...Just kidding. Her name is Parlin Meyer, and she's been part of the BrightBuilt squad since back when the origin story was still being written. Our office-everything-extraordinaire, Rachel, took a few minutes to sit down with Parlin for a fun and informal Q&A.

High-performance homes are not only energy efficient, they also allow for "rooms to breathe" When someone says “air pollution,” is the picture that comes to mind cars spewing exhaust? Maybe smoke billowing out of a factory? Or is it smog hanging above a city? In all of these scenarios, the air pollution is outside, but recently more research has been done to understand what air pollution looks like inside. And it doesn’t look good.

We've been having some fun with drone photography lately, and are gaining an entirely new perspective on our designs and net-zero in general. We thought it would be fun to share some of these recent bird's eye views (and of course some pretty shots of the interiors, too!).

This week's question was fielded by our founder, principal, and architect extraordinaire, Phil Kaplan... "I sell new construction, and am seeing homes that are steeply increasing in price due to rising costs in materials. Since BrightBuilt is made in a controlled environment, does this help offset some of these increases?" -B. Morrison, New Hampshire

We're celebrating the new year by delivering you new designs! First up, we've converted one of our custom designs into a standard offering... Meet the new kid on the block, the Modern Farmhouse.

Though we live in an increasingly polarized society, one of the few things that we can all agree on is that the world is becoming more and more perilous, our prospects are unsteady, and the future is impossible to predict. Between the real or imagined threats of climate change, nuclear war, and zombies, it’s sometimes difficult to see past the parade of horrifying news stories, devastating storms, and overzealous Second Coming preachers that batter us with their end-of- days prophecies. We don’t have to agree on how or when the world will end, but let’s be honest – we’re all wondering how we’ll get through it.

A lot has been written lately about the rise of intergenerational households. In this country it is commonly presented as a growing problem, as it is caused at least in part by reduced retirement security and adult children who wait longer to leave the nest than in the past. As much of the rest of the world has demonstrated, however, there are plenty of reasons why it makes good sense to combine households. If you are in a position to join households with your in-laws, you will likely find that everyone benefits from the arrangement.

The holidays are upon us, and this week’s centers around food. And family! (But mostly food.) If you are living in a BrightBuilt Home chances are everyone thinks it is super beautiful and so began dropping very subtle hints months ago about how “It would be so lovely to have Thanksgiving in the extra warm and sunny house this year” and “I suppose if we do it at my house again, I’ll have to make everyone sit in the cellar since our dining room isn’t open concept…” Fast forward to Thanksgiving week and you’re starting to figure out how the heck to graciously host 15 people in your home. To help you out, we’ve compiled a list of BrightBuilt Home features that ensures last-minute horrors won't happen. (We all remember the disaster of ’04 when Aunt Helen’s cocker spaniels ate the turkey right out of the oven…)

When you walk down the baking aisle at your local grocer, it can feel like a “Choose Your Own Adventure.” Maybe you love having freshly baked scones, but the last time you tried to make them from scratch, you put in salt when it should have been sugar. Good news for you, there are plenty of pre-mixed recipes that can get you started, if baking from scratch turns out to not really be your forte. You can, after all, still make them yours. Want them to be hot pink? You can do that! Maybe you’d like to use sustainably harvested, organic sugar? That’s an option! Or perhaps your grandmother’s lemon glaze can’t be beat and you’d like to incorporate that into the recipe. You can always put your own spin on the base, and you can rest easy knowing that the pre-mixed ingredients are a perfect blend to get you started.

Every so often, we like to check in with homeowners with whom we’ve worked. Tim and Kathryn were wonderful collaborators, and we’re delighted to share some of their insights into the process of designing a BrightBuilt Home, and their thoughts about living in the custom spaces they worked with us to create. As veterans of the “building a new home” realm, they also offered some helpful perspectives on the process of new construction in general. Read on to see what they had to say!

The Great Diamond, with a 28x32’ footprint, is designed to fit on a small lot without sacrificing interior space. Reminiscent of Maine’s iconic barns, the Great Diamond blends comfortable spaces with an efficient form. Size: 1,800 – 2,400 square feet Bedrooms: 3 - 5 Bathrooms: 2.5 – 3.5 Number of finished floors: 2-4

Marian and Alex Starkey live in a BrightBuilt Great Diamond, finished in 2015. We checked in with them to see how life is going in their now-not-quite-so-new home! Read on to hear about their animals, paint colors, advice they have for the building process, and more.

This particular home is a custom cape, not too dissimilar from our Drisko or Frenchboro designs, and full of hand-crafted interior finishwork and historically accurate details (for the era that it evokes, that is!). Paired with BrightBuilt Home's high-performance systems, this home is the perfect marriage of past and future.

How to choose a site for your high-performance home: 101 Welcome to your first day at BrightBuilt Academy! We’re so glad you are here learning with us. Today’s lesson is going to be about how to choose a new site for your BrightBuilt home.

For the past three years, we’ve taken a day out of our regular work schedule to show up at the Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland build site in Scarborough, where eight of thirteen homes are part of the Habitat program. These homes are designated for people who have a need for safe, affordable housing and have applied to be a Habitat homeowner. Once approved, Habitat homeowners partner with the organization throughout the process by helping with the building process and enrolling in home ownership classes. For most people, it isn’t only about having a stable and secure structure to protect them, but also represents a step toward building generational wealth.

Imagine a world where you can heat (and cool) your home without a “furnace”. Seems too good to be true, right? It’s not! There is a huge list of systems to choose from when it comes to heating your home. When you start to consider the various factors such as heating requirements, cost, and energy efficiency, we understand why you may feel overwhelmed by these decisions. To make any educated decision about something as important as your home, it should be well researched. Getting it wrong can cost a lot of money and cause headaches. We are here to share our knowledge and help inform your decisions towards heating your home furnace- and fossil fuel-free with an air source heat pump.

A few weeks ago, we discussed indoor air quality in high performance homes in our blog post, Breathe In, Breathe Out. We identified many of the indoor air pollutants that are prevalent in our homes, and now we want to address one of the most common (but very preventable) pollutants of them all: Cooking!

Have you heard about the guy who comes to your house after you’ve purchased a car and builds it in your driveway? We haven’t either. Because it never happens. We know cars are built on assembly lines in factories, and that assures us of consistency, quality, and pricing that is known at the outset of our purchase. So why don’t we apply the same thought process to houses as well?

Foxbird gets it all on one floor with an open-plan living-dining-kitchen plus large walk-in pantry, mudroom entry, 3 large bedrooms including a master suite, plus a cozy office and same floor laundry. Indeed, empty-nesters and ranch-lovers gravitate toward this design that makes the best use of an efficient layout, and offers a substantial amount of added square footage for any family seeking to expand into a daylight or walkout basement, which is great ‘bang-for-your-buck” space that nearly doubles the size of the home.

It’s a mobile home! No, it’s manufactured! Wait, is it modular? Mobile, manufactured, and modular tend to be used interchangeably when talking about pre-fabricated houses (that is to say, homes that are built off-site in a factory and then transported and set on their location). And two of them actually can be used to describe the same sort of house, while the third term is different.

With expansive views out to the gorgeous surroundings, the first floor features an open concept living-dining-kitchen, mudroom and powder room, and a cozy away room for quiet movie nights. Upstairs, 4 bedrooms, 3 baths, and a laundry room make for both good living and good functionality. With the addition of a partially finished basement, there will be much to explore, and many ways to envision different options for a possible future version of your own BrightBuilt Home!

We rolled out our new Frenchboro design a few weeks ago, and we were thrilled to see a very enthusiastic response. Some follow-up questions are answered below!

Do you have one level houses? - Janis G.Thank you for this great question, Janis! We do indeed have 3 designs that are specifically one level, and another 4 that are primarily geared toward single-level living, with ground floor master suites. Some examples of these designs are shown in the images above, and to learn more about each of them, you may see more images and download plans via the links below.

The Frenchboro has arrived. We've had numerous inquiries for a smaller 3 BR, 2 bath home, and well...we hear ya! We've been working hard to maximize on efficiency and affordability, while keeping the design fresh and contemporary.

A frigid February day and the snow was creakingly cold, but it was not a challenge for the crew! Modules arrived, were set and connected by the end of the day. That crane, by the way, was about 2 inches from the top of a concrete footing, now that's skillful parking!

The number of building permits issued post-recession has grown steadily nationwide, according to a recent article in Maine Biz. It’s not often that retirees and Millennials necessarily find themselves on common ground, but these two groups are working together to drive this trend. What does this mean for you, a forward-thinking person wanting to build a net-zero home? Open your planner, your smart phone calendar, or just grab a sharpie and write “START PLANNING OUR NEW HOME NOW!”

Every year, we mark our calendars for a few key events that we make the most of with our in-house creative genius(es). This year, Adrienne (always up to something) and Ben (our new volunteer-in-chief) led the charge to pull together the annual Halloween ridiculousness. Everyone of course was willing to oblige.

The home featured above was designed for a couple who sought to build an energy-efficient "forever home" that was befitting their interests, their routines, and their desire to comfortably host family and friends visiting the area.

The cooler temperatures have arrived, so it seemed like the perfect time to have an entire house go up in a day. The photos above show a custom BrightBuilt Home that was just set this week in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

The ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) craze is gearing up to rightfully take over backyards, side yards, rural landscapes, and suburbia, with the aim to address housing needs in cities and for multi-generational households.

In 2005, Keith Collins, a visionary entrepreneur (that's him on the left, below) hired Kaplan Thompson Architects (and that's Phil Kaplan there on the right, below) to help assemble a team to design and build him a revolutionary, forward-thinking moonshot of a project disguised as a barn, on his property in Rockport, Maine. It was to have ambitious goals of environmental responsibility, adaptability over time, replicability, attainability, and education potential inside what had to be a beautiful, liveable, timeless structure that looked like it had always been there.

If you love our designs, but have found that, due to your site, your needs, or just your spatial preferences, the designs in our portfolio don't quite work: fret not. At BrightBuilt, we can develop a fully customized house plan for you - from scratch - to be built off site and delivered to your (potentially-particular) site, and perfect for you, your needs, and your bottom line.

The humble light bulb has come a long way since its invention. Modern bulbs are designed to consume considerably less energy while producing the same amount of light and lasting substantially longer. Recent improvements in light quality and the ability to dim have made non-incandescent bulbs a viable option in virtually any setting. Energy efficient alternatives to traditional incandescent bulbs include compact fluorescent (CFL) and light-emitting diode (LED) light bulbs. They might come with a slightly higher price tag in the immediate future, but they can last for years and will help you save significantly on utility costs.

Looking to find a replacement fridge, or outfitting an entirely new Kitchen? Make sure you take a closer look at the energy consumption of any appliances you're aiming to purchase. It will save you on your bottom line, and will keep those treasured plug loads low to keep your solar array cranking into net-positivity.

If you're currently suffering from the heat and humidity outside, like us, then you'll understand just how important the systems are in your home. We often focus on how warm our homes can be during a frigid New England winter, but did you know that they function just as well in summer? A BrightBuilt Home keeps you cool and free from the oppressive humidity!

Good design and construction will help you improve efficiency by limiting the amount of heat that can transfer through the exterior, but a good green home also takes usage into consideration. Your home has a long life span. Start it off right with sustainable systems and materials that enable you to keep your environmental footprint small while still living comfortably in the modern world.

Good design and construction will help you improve efficiency by limiting the amount of heat that can transfer through the exterior, but a good green home also takes usage into consideration. Your home has a long life span. Start it off right with sustainable systems and materials that enable you to keep your environmental footprint small while still living comfortably in the modern world.

A thermal break is a building element that limits the flow of heat between materials. Think about your morning cup of coffee. If the paper cup is too hot, you put a sleeve on it so you don’t burn your hand. That sleeve is a thermal break. However, the base of the cup and the open top are still allowing heat to escape.

The Cushing is our nod to the classic New England Farmhouse. With a generous open-concept first floor layout, a ground floor master suite, banks of sun-soaking windows, and room upstairs for 2 bedrooms, laundry, 1-2 baths, and a bonus room (which also could become another bedroom), this design packs a lot into its compact, classic form.

Increasingly, wall and roof thickness to accommodate additional insulation plays a major role in limiting heat transfer. A green home with a roof and walls that are thicker than a conventional home has better thermal comfort because less heat is allowed to escape in winter. You also get the bonus of having a much quieter home since thick, insulation-filled walls and roof filter out more sound from the outside.

You already know that one of the major challenges when building a green home in New England is heat loss in winter, but there is less concern about heat gain in summer. One of the reasons for this is the difference between standard comfort levels and the outside air temperature. When you consider that 65° to 72° is comfortable for most people, a hot summer day is only a 20° to 25° difference. On the other hand, a cold winter day might range from a 35° to 80°+ difference in temperature. That’s quite a leap to get from the outside air temperature to your indoor comfort level, and any lost heat will require more energy to maintain the desired temperature.

While paying close attention to the shape and volume of your new high-performance home, it's also important to pay attention to the holes you punch through its shell. The openings in a home are yet another chance for air to escape or enter. On a clear spring day you want your open windows to bring in fresh air, but on a cold winter day you want as little heat as possible to escape your cozy home. Even the best window is not as energy efficient as the minimum standard wall. Windows and doors are the primary source of both heat loss and gain in a home.

Last week we took a look at the how the number of surfaces (different planes, an abundance of corners, etc.) can impact a home's performance. In addition to the number of surfaces, the surface area-to-volume ratio is also an important consideration when building a green home. The more surface area a home has (the total area of the exterior walls, roof, and floors), the more opportunity there is for heat to escape or enter. Likewise, the higher the ratio, the greater the risk of loss.

If you are building a custom home, you have the freedom to implement the design features that suit your aesthetic and optimize the natural characteristics of the site in order to develop a structure that meets your needs while respecting the environment at the same time.

Building a green home requires considering more than just the structure itself. Even the greenest home couldn’t be reasonably considered sustainable if you had to cut down an entire forest to build it and then covered half the site in an impervious parking area. This is an extreme example, but how much you need to disturb the site is a factor that must be weighed if your goal is to minimize your environmental impact.

Ensuring proper rainwater drainage on the site is critical for the longterm durability of your home. If water is allowed to flow into the house, you might face problems like damage to surfaces, hidden moisture in your walls, and eventually, mold growth. Of course, quality construction also plays a role in durability, but good drainage is the first step in avoiding these problems. Some of the factors that will play a role in drainage on a building site include:

Most homes do not sit on top of a barren hill without any surrounding landscape features. In reality, most sites are surrounded by buildings, mountains, trees, or other features that create shade. Where your home is positioned on the site and how it is oriented will impact how much sun reaches the house at different times throughout the year.

You’re building a new home. You don’t want to just plop it down anywhere on your property. You want to put it in the place that provides the best scenic view, looks the most appealing as you approach, and hopefully has the smallest environmental impact. Deciding on the orientation of the building requires taking all of these factors, and more, into consideration.

Good design and construction will help you improve efficiency by limiting the amount of heat that can transfer through the exterior, but a good green home also takes usage into consideration. Your home has a long life span. Start it off right with sustainable systems and materials that enable you to keep your environmental footprint small while still living comfortably in the modern world.

Ever wonder how exactly our homes get built? Been curious to understand the crane-lift-set process? With the help of this home's technically savvy homeowner, we bring you a time-lapse perspective of the on-site assembly of our off-site built modules.

Ever since we came out with the In-Law Flat and Guesthouse, a number of our respective Mother-In-Laws have been dropping hints that they’d love to set one up in our (respective) backyards. It’s a compelling idea for a lot of reasons, and some of us do have some space on our lots for potential expansion, but questions abound. Do the lots suffice for an accessory structure? Does the town permit ADUs, and under what conditions? Are cookies and free childcare implied in the arrangement?

Homeowners looking to undertake home renovations [or built a new In-Law Flat and Guesthouse] can often use a home equity line of credit or HELOC to finance their projects. Here are six quick tips on how to shop for and manage a HELOC.

Have you been watching the latest developments on accessory dwelling units? You might be interested in an exciting new offering that we’re rolling out here at BrightBuilt Home. We are officially announcing our new In-Law Flat and Guesthouse, as a featured addition to our current zero energy homes portfolio. With this home, we aim to meet new demands for accessory housing, and help current homeowners expand their options for housing family members, creating rental income, and creating opportunities for aging in place.