Prefabulous small houses

242 Pages·2016·30.56 MB·English

by  Koones

prefabulous
SMALL HOUSES
SHERI KOONES
FOREWORD BY ROBERT REDFORD

prefabulous
SMALL HOUSES
SHERI KOONES
FOREWORD BY ROBERT REDFORD
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Text © 2016 Sheri Koones
Illustrations © 2016 The Taunton Press, Inc.
All rights reserved.
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FOR CHERE AND MARK, STILL FRIENDS AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
The Taunton Press, Inc.,
63 South Main Street, PO Box 5506,
Newtown, CT 06470-5506
Email: [email protected]
Editors: Steve Culpepper, Peter Chapman
Copy Editor: Candace B. Levy
Illustrations: Charles Lockhart
Jacket/Cover, Interior design, and Layout: Rita Sowins / Sowins Design
Cover photo courtesy of Barta Pictures
Half title page photo courtesy of Trent Bell
Title page photo courtesy of Kevin Walsh Photography
Facing page photo courtesy of Joe Fletcher
The following names/manufacturers appearing in Prefabulous Small Houses are trademarks:
Advanced Energy®, AGEPAN®, Airbnb®, AIR-board®, Aire-Flo®, AirRenew®, Airstream®, American Clay®, American Forests® Americh®,
Amerisips®, Andersen®, Ann Sacks®, Arcadia®, Armstrong®, Artemide®, AutoCAD®, Azek®, Bamboo Hardwoods®, Bartels®, Bega®,
BendPak®, Benjamin Moore®, Bensonwood®, Big Ass Fans®, BioBricks®, B-K Lighting®, Blomberg®, Blown-In-Blanket®, Blu Homes®,
BMW i3®, Bombard Renewable Energy®, Bosch®, Bristolite®, Brizo®, Broan®, Broan-NuTone®, Buderus®, Built Green™, Bushman™, C.H.I.
Overhead Doors®, CALGreen®, Cali Bamboo®, Cambria®, Campbell®, Carlisle®, Ceasarstone®, Cem-Clad®, Centennial Woods™, CertainTeed®,
Clarvista™, Clopay®, Cor-Ten®, Cradle to Cradle Certified™, Craigslist®, Cree®, Daikin®, Daltile®, Danze®, DensGlass®, Design within
Reach®, Dornbracht®, Dow®, DuChâteau®, Dumpster®, Duravit®, Dwell®, Eagle®, eBay®, EchoPanel®, EcoBatt®, ECOLOGO®, EcoSmart™,
EcoTimber®, EcoTop™, Elan®, Electrolux®, eMonitor™, ENERGY STAR®, Enphase Energy®, Essentia®, Excel Homes®, FabCab®, Faber®,
Fagor®, Feeney®, Fireplace Xtrordinair®, Fischer & Paykel®, FLOR®, Florida Tile®, Folding Sliding Door Company®, Forest Stewardship
Council®, Forms+Surfaces®, Frazee®, Frigidaire®, FSB®, Fujitsu®, Gaggenau®, Galvalume®, GE®, Geberit®, GeoSpring™, Gerkin™, Global
ReLeaf®, Graham & Brown®, Green Depot®, GreenFab®, GREENGUARD™, Green Seal®, Grohe®, Grundfos®, Gurit®, Haas Cabinet®, Haiku®,
Hansgrohn®, HDP High Definition Porcelain®, Heat & Glo®, Heatilator®, Herman Miller®, HERS®, HighVelocityHelper.com™, HI-MACS®,
Hinkley®, Home Depot®, Houzer®, Hubbardton Forge®, IceStone®, Icynene®, Ignis®, IKEA®, Insteon®, Insulspan®, Integrity®, Irontown
Homes®, Jacuzzi®, James Hardie®, Jeld-Wen®, Jenn-Air®, Juno®, Kallista®, Keiser®, Kentwood Floors™, Kim Lighting®, Kirei™, Knoll®, Kohler®,
KWC®, Kynar®, LaHabra®, Lamboo®, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design™, LEED Platinum®, LEED®, Lego®, LG Hausys®, LG
TurboWash™, Liebherr®, LifeBreath®, LifeSource Water Systems®, Lightolier®, Ligne Roset®, Lindal®, Live Edge Design®, Loewen®, Logix®,
Loll®, Louis Poulsen®, Luceplan®, Lumisplash®, Lutron®, Lyptus®, Ma(i)sonry®, Maax®, Majestic®, Marvin®, Merillat®, Metal Roofing
Alliance®, Metal Sales™, Method Homes®, Metropolitan Appliance™, Microsoft® Surface™, Minka-Aire®, Miele®, Milgard®, Mitsubishi Electric®,
Moen®, Morsø®, Moxie®, NAHB®, National Trust for Historic Preservation®, Navien®, Nest Learning Thermostat®, Nexia™, Noritz®, Novalis®,
Oceanside Glasstile®, Open-Built®, OPTIMA®, Owens Corning®, Palm Harbor®, Panasonic®, PaverSearch™, PentelQuartz®, PGT®, Plastpro®,
Plyboo®, Poggenpohl®, Premier SIPs®, Prescolite®, Pro Clima®, PureFlow®, RedBuilt™, Renusol®, Residential Energy Services Network®
(RESNET®), Restoration Hardware®, Resysta®, Rheem®, Rich Brilliant Willing®, Richlite®, Rinnai®, Roche Bobois®, Roxul®, Ruud®, Sarnafil®,
Schrock®, Schüco®, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories®, SenseME™, Sharp®, Sheetrock®, Sherwin-Williams®, Sierra Pacific Window®,
Siga®, Sika®, Silestone®, SiteSage®, Sliding Door Company®, SLV®, SMA®, Sto®, Styrofoam®, Sub-Zero®, Summit Appliance®, Sunbrella®,
SunPower®, Teragren®, Thermador®, Therma-Tru®, Thermolec®, Thermomass®, Timberline®, TJI®, Toto®, Trane®, Trex®, TruGrain™, Trulite®,
U. S. Steel®, U.S. Green Building Council®, UL®, Ultra-Aire™, Unico System®, Unilock®, USAI®, USFloors®, VaproShield®, Velux®, Venmar®,
Vent-A-Hood®, Vermont Custom Cabinetry™, Viega®, Viessmann®, WAC Lighting®, Wagner™, Walker Zanger®, Watercycles™, WaterSense®,
weeHouse®, West Elm®, Westech®, Wetstyle®, Whirlpool®, WhisperComfort™, WhisperGreen Select™, Wolf®, Wyndham Collection®
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Koones, Sheri, 1949- author.
Title: Prefabulous small houses / Sheri Koones ; foreword by Robert Redford.
Description: Newtown, CT : The Taunton Press, Inc., [2016]
Identifiers: LCCN 2016021033| ISBN 9781631864049 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781631864414 (paperback)
| ISBN 9781631867408 (eBook) | ISBN 9781631867415 (ePub) | ISBN 9781631867422 (mobi)
| ISBN 9781631867439 (fixed)
Subjects: LCSH: Prefabricated houses. | Ecological houses. | Small houses. |
Dwellings--Energy conservation. | Modular construction. | Architecture,
Domestic--United States--Designs and plans.
Classification: LCC TH4819.P7 K659 2016 | DDC 728--dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016021033
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
FOR CHERE AND MARK, STILL FRIENDS AFTER ALL THESE YEARS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I AM INDEBTED TO ALL OF THE PHOTOGRAPHERS, ARCHITECTS, BUILDERS,
and manufacturers who shared their time, information, and photos. Thank you to the homeowners who
graciously allowed me to profile their houses in this book.
Thank you to Steve Culpepper for an excellent editing job, to Chuck Lockhart for his beautiful
graphics, and to Peter Chapman for his support in getting this book published.
A special thank you to Robert Redford for his enduring support for my books. He continues to inspire me
with his important environmental work; he sets the bar high in his work protecting this planet and the future
generations who will inhabit it. My love and gratitude to Alex, Jesse, and Rob for their ongoing support and
encouragement of my work and to my extended family.

CONTENTS
Foreword by Robert Redford 3
Introduction 4
THE HOUSES
Casita de Invierno 10
eHab Cabin 16
Cocoon Studio 24
Sandpoint Cabin 30
Lakeside Container Cottage 38
DesertSol House 44
Urban Eden 52
Lakeview House 58
Little House on the Ferry 64
SU+RE House 70
Bayview Cottage 78
Solar Laneway House 84
M2 Cabin 90
Whidbey Island House 96
Ford House 102
Sonoma Residence 108
Cousins River Residence 116
weeZero House 124
Cloverdale House 130
Silicon Valley Balance House 136
Vashon Island House 142
Lake Union Floating Home 148
Olde Seawatch 156
Hilltop House 162
Johns Island Home 168
er
h Halcyon Hill 174
c
et
Fl Bonsall House 180
e
o
of J Westport Beach House 188
y
es Alpine Passive House 194
urt
co Emerald House 200
o
ot Three Palms Project 206
h
p
ce; Dawnsknoll House 214
n
e
d
esi
R
a Glossary 222
m
o
n Resources 226
o
S

FOREWORD
BY ROBERT REDFORD
OVER THE LAST 30 YEARS, I’ve been engaged in trying to raise awareness on the
issue of climate change. I never imagined decades later, I would be fighting the same battle.
After years of talk and political paralysis, we have reached a tipping point. Climate
change is no longer a problem of the future—we are experiencing the results of a warming
planet all around us in rising seas, widening deserts, and deadly wildfires. We are losing
control of our future. Our civilization is threatened today by changes that have been taking
place over decades.
Climate change affects everyone, in every country. Climate change is in everybody’s
backyard. Only by acting now and standing together can we tip the scales and achieve the
results necessary to make the planet a healthy and safe place to live—for now and for the
future. At one time energy conversation was about only oil, coal, and gas. Now people are
talking about renewable energy—how it can result in cheaper and plentiful energy and the
positive role this can play on the environment.
Climate change presents us with a huge challenge—how to move a society that has
been dependent on fossil fuels to a future that is cleaner and more sustainable.
While it is easy to become discouraged, there is reason for optimism. There is a ground-
swell occurring and it’s rising from the ground up. Leadership is coming from people them-
selves. We have the opportunity to rethink how we live in this world now and for future
generations.
I have great faith in the power of innovation and the ingenuity of people from all walks
of life to solve this problem. Technological advances are well under way—renewable energy,
increased efficiency, and innovation in building practices are gaining momentum.
One way to reduce the need and desire for fossil fuel is to design houses that require
less fuel to build, operate, and heat and cool. When houses are thoughtfully built this way,
the energy requirement is vastly reduced. Renewable energy that uses solar thermal pan-
els, photovoltaic panels, wind turbines, and geothermal systems—combined with good
al design—creates houses that require no fossil fuel.
w
o
e K We know that 38% to 40% of the energy in this country is used to heat and cool our
m
ai buildings—residential and commercial. This old way is expensive, dirty, and a proven danger
J
y of to life. Yet it’s a problem with a solution. But we must decide to apply that solution now.
es
urt This book advocates for smaller houses, which is a strong trend in this country. Smaller
o
o c houses reduce wasted space that most people don’t need or use. Smaller, better-built
ot
h houses teach us to curb our appetite for energy and lessen our need to build, heat, cool,
p
use; and maintain that extra space we don’t need or even want. Building smaller, along with
o
e H building houses prefabricated—in the process using less time, fewer materials, and using
al
d both more efficiently—is the sanest and wisest recipe for home construction, for now and
er
v
Clo for the future.
3