First, Tailored.
Rather than asking the client to accept a pre-existing "stock" blueprint, Bellevue prefers to tailor the home design to the client's particular needs (including the fine points, e.g., "where should we put the big china cabinet?") and the site itself--in this case, a prime location overlooking the "Park" in Oak Park. The result, by Kelly Ludwig of Ludwig Design Development, is a Shingle Style cottage, complete with a dramatic porch greeting the neighborhood and a private backyard for enjoying the pool.
Pictures will do a better job of conveying the second part of our mission--Beauty--so check back here (or, even better, drive by Oak Park) as the home comes together. It will be beautiful.
So that leaves Smart.
A Smart home is more energy efficient, healthier, and more durable than a standard house. The bedrock of a Smart Home is a large number of small steps that collectively add up to better performance--sealing air gaps, using 21st century insulation, carefully designing the HVAC system, and so on. These represent the basic "blocking and tackling" of a Smart Home.
In the case of this home, we are working with clients who are fully committed to both the "blocking and tackling" above and want to enjoy the advantages of more advanced Smart technology including a ground source heat pump, often referred to as a "geothermal" heat pump. The picture below shows the 425-foot geothermal well being drilled on site by Marshall Mechanical, our very capable HVAC contractor.
Once the well is installed, the technology aspect of the system is relatively simple. Many of us have *air-source* heat pumps in our homes already, and the principles are largely the same. The key difference is that, unlike the air, the earth remains at an essentially constant temperature at just a short distance under the surface, and this results in dramatically more efficient heat pump operation.
To be Smart, however, "cool" technology is not enough (though it is pretty cool). The real test is the economics, and they pencil out very well when the system's energy savings and today's tax credits and very low interest rates are considered. Add to this the fact that heat pumps are more reliable than standard air conditioner/furnace set-ups, have no unsightly and loud "outside" unit, and are a great financial hedge against rising energy costs, and the geothermal heat pump starts to look both Smart and a No-Brainer.
