CHAMBLEE, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Construction crews in Chamblee are building a home that could save homeowners money and help the environment.
The first passive house in Georgia will be complete next week, paving the way towards building green homes throughout the southeast.
Julie Crooks is an interior designer with Home and Made Custom Home Builders, whose team has been working on the house in Dekalb County over the last two years.
“This is a super energy-efficient green home,” she said. “Down to the way in which we design the architecture, to the elements that we implement into the design.”
The single-family passive home consists of four bedrooms, three-and-a-half baths with 3,600 square feet on two levels.
Andrew Goings is a customer homebuilder with Home and Made Custom Home Builders, who’s been leading his team on the project.
“We’re really focusing on those nitty gritty building details,” he said. “They don’t necessarily cost a lot more but definitely add value on the energy efficiency side.”
The house has already been certified by Passive House Institute US (PHIUS), which certifies structures meeting sustainability goals.
According to Goings, PHIUS passive-certified houses provide energy savings of 40-60% compared to other homes.
“Keeping that hot air in in the wintertime and keeping that cooler out in the summertime,” he said.
“Everything in this home should heat and cool itself,” Crooks said. “Keeping the energy bills down before we even put in solar power.
With only 11 PHIUS-certified houses in the entire southeast United States, Georgia is the newest state to adopt the future of green, zero-carbon building.
This style of building is practiced all over the world, with most in Germany, Austria and the United Kingdom.
“By really focusing on the durability aspect, we’re able to build homes that last a long time,” Goings said.
“Having the first passive home in Georgia will hopefully start a trend of building these type of homes down in the South,” Crooks said.
The brand-new passive home in Chamblee should be complete next week.
A couple has already secured the home, buying it for a total price of $1.3 million.
Home and Made Custom Home Builders has already put plans in place to build two more passive homes in the area.
Copyright 2024 WANF. All rights reserved.