Ocean Home magazine is for people who love the luxury oceanfront lifestyle, from home design and decor to world-class beach resorts, villas, hotels, and destinations.
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SHELTER | ARCHITECTURE The Green House Effect This Cape Cod home doesn’t just save energy—it sells it back to the grid. By Regina Cole The contemporary house high up on a bluff has it all: the ocean directly below, window walls aimed at heart-stopping sunset views, a flexible floor plan that can sleep a crowd or just a couple, a stylish interior, and, best of all, a green design. But it wasn’t easy; the site’s 115-foot elevation in Truro, Massachusetts is one of the highest points on Cape Cod. “Energy-wise, this was a real challenge,” says architect Stephanie Horowitz, AIA, of Bos- ton’s Zero Energy Design, which specializes in environmentally sensitive construction. “The elevation makes for unbelievable wind speeds,” she explains. “The orientation towards the sunset meant west-facing glazing. We com- pensated with a super-insulated envelope and solar panels on the roof. The house produces more electricity than it needs and sells the surplus back to the grid.” Heating and cooling comes from heat-exchanging wells; the radiant floor provides comfort and efficiency in high- ceilinged rooms without affecting air quality. The homeowners, who have a number of children and grandchildren, wanted a vaca- tion home that would contract and expand as needed. Horowitz responded with a building composed of two modules; one, containing multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, is closed off when the house functions as a couples’ retreat. Interior designer Michael Ferzoco of Eleven Interiors created rooms that are, according to the homeowners, “modern without that cold, austere look.” Ferzoco chose renewable and environmentally sensitive materials: bamboo flooring, natural and organic upholstery fill, local stone, LED lights, and several pieces of vintage furniture, including a Saarinen Tulip table. With a shape influenced by the dramatic to- let there be light: Perched 115 feet above the Atlantic Ocean, this Truro, MA home has green features like solar panels and radiant floor heating in the kitchen and dining rooms. 24 oceanhomemag.com july + august 2010 pography, the 6,200-square-foot house presents a modest façade to the street. Only on the ocean side does it reveal its explosive angles and expanses of glass. zeroenergy.com. Photographs by eric roth