35 Acres in Canon City, CO - $639,950

Delilah Ranch

You’ll love this custom-built, environmentally friendly home sitting at 8300’ altitude in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado!

The lofty goal of this home was to create a truly sustainable home - not only characterized by its ability to give back to the environment but to look good and be comfortable. This was not a house built with sponsorship or unlimited funds but by someone with a view to helping the environment in a small way and with a tight limited budget. Compromises had to be made mainly due to local regulations and available funds but the finished home is sustainable, efficient, and in my eyes at least, looks good and will be comfortable to live in plus you have 35 acres to roam in!

A lot of research was done up front on the types of systems that could be used, the materials and what potential there was to recycle.

The final design-an interpretation of a Swiss cha...

The final design-an interpretation of a Swiss chalet was a collaboration between the owner (floor plans and Eco-systems) and Stan Powers of Linwood Homes who provided the structural work and the timber for the build.

The Land

The house is located on a 35-acre hillside about 45 miles directly west from Colorado Springs set at 8,300 feet and 38.45°N on a building plot ideally situated to benefit from year-round solar gain.The house was orientated such that the longest facade is slight to the east of south so that it would receive maximum

solar gain throughout the year but with construction features to limit overheating during the long hot summers this area receives.

The House

Designed to maximize space, the house uses a post and beam construction style where all of the materials in the structural build are wood; Douglas fir beams, Western Red Cedar for the frame and siding, SPF (Spruce/Pine/Fir) walls and 2”x 15” solid SPF rafters.

Internally the walls and ceilings are either ½” or 5 / 8 ” gypsum depending on location with a plaster covering, all cavities are filled as follows; vaulted ceiling R45 (U=0.043), walls R21 (U=0.068), frame floors R30 (U=0.042), foundation wall R13 and the foundation slab has a U=0.079.

Exterior doors are made from R7.14 fiberglass with a U=0.124, the windows, of which there is almost 1,000 sq. ft. are double glazed Low E .33/.28 units with a U=0.330 whilst all the internal doors are solid pine.

With so much glass positioned for maximum solar gain in winter the risk to overheating in summer was very high so in order to reduce this effect the roof overhang has been designed to provide shade for the living and sleeping areas whilst the first-floor deck provides shade for the lower floor office and study areas. This shading reduces and, in some instances, removes the effects of solar burning.

The energy study conducted on the finished home has given it a Five Star Plus Home Energy Rating Certificate with a HERS Index of 49

The Systems

Grid-tied Solar PV tiles

Choosing PV tiles instead of panels was an easy decision due to the aesthetic look and how they blend in with the concrete tiles and although more expensive than panels, technology has raised the efficiency of the tile and they compete very favorably with PV panels. The set-up allows for feeding unused

green electricity back into the grid and to receive settlement payments at the end of each year and as Colorado boasts 300 sunny days a year there is a likelihood of being in credit at year end.

In addition, the system has been designed to have the capability for a wind turbine to be added at a later date if required.

Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP)

Due to the nature of the topsoil on the site, it was decided to have a vertical system installed, the pump chosen was a Synergy 3D SDV049 that would provide both heating and cooling. This system uses the environmentally friendly R410A refrigerant and has dual scroll compressor providing a heating Co-efficient of Performance (COP) of 4.2 and cooling Energy Efficiency Ratio (EER) of 21.7, with summer daytime temperatures regularly around 30°C (85°F) cooling is a necessity.

The system uses four boreholes each drilled to an approximate depth of 200ft with the inserted pipes stabilized using grout and linked externally before being brought into the house. At this depth, the temperature is more constant and should not vary throughout the year making the system more efficient. During the hot summer months, the system which is linked to a whole house ventilation ductwork removed the warm air from the house and passes it across the heat exchanger providing heat to the hot water tank for free hot water and then returning the cooled air to the house for air conditioning. The GSHP is designed such that it not only provides heating but also hot water regardless of the time of year.

Radiant floor heating

Radiant floor heating is an ideal partner to a GSHP as it does not require as much heat to heat a room assay a radiator and is more efficient and provides a more constant temperature as it does not rely on moving air around to heat the room. The house has been designed for maximum control, it has been split into 12 zones covering living, sleeping as well as working and garage areas with individual control of both heating and cooling for each zone. If the radiant floor heating requires a little extra help in winter then the air can be pulled from the rooms and added as a top-up to the heating system or alternatively the installed log stove can be fired up using wood harvested from the 35-acre property.

Conclusion

This house is built from 75% renewable resources; it provides an estimated 60% of its electricity needs and can be extended to 100% if required, it is heated from a natural resource and is extremely well-insulated to reduce natural losses.

If you would like to view this exquisite home contact Twila Geroux, Hayden Outdoors, at 719-371-4344 for your private showing.