A Virginia couple have managed to build a sustainable home for themselves in Thaxton, with smart building site construction and economically minded plumbing repair and well work.

Jason and Stephanie Specht’s vision was to create an affordable, sustainable home for themselves in Thaxton, Virginia on a reasonable budget. After consulting with a local design company they opted for a Passivhaus layout, and the custom design allowed them a traditional feel whilst maintaining a sustainable cost.

The construction is based on a raft foundation, with foam boards under the entirety of the slab insulation. Thickened edges allowed sufficient insulation to be achieved with standard foam boards, which are more affordable, and a standard thickness was all that was required for the slabs, leading to reduced costs for concrete. This led to better overall insulation as well as cost reduction.

To ensure that the new home was airtight, standard blower door tests were conducted at several stages, such as before the cutting of window and door fixtures into the building. This allowed them to assess other air barrier factors such as fixtures and utility perforations, and also to isolate potential leakage paths. Heating for the home is provided by a ductless minisplit heat pump located in the stairwell to supply both floors of the property, and most impressively, water is heated by an envrionmentally friendly solar panel system.

The couple moved away from a typical Passivhaus design for the wall structure of the home, using engineered trusses for the roof, and open web floor trusses for the second floor. This was completed with 6-inch thick insulation over the entirety of the wall space, and a deep cellulose insulation for the second floor ceiling.

Once completed, the overall building cost for the Passivhaus home was $150 per square foot, with a living space of 1808 square feet, including all construction costs, labour costs, plumbing repair and electrical costs.

About HMS Plumbing:

HMS Plumbing are based in Northern Virginia, USA, and provide plumbing services to a number of surrounding counties. Learn more at www.hmsplumbing.com .

Contact Details:
10319 Piper Lane
Manassas, VA 20110
+1 703-583-8205
[email protected]