"Green" Houses Sprout Up on Campus

July 3, 2007

One of the two faculty 'green' houses on O'Neal Court currently under construction

What’s green on the inside and yellow on the outside? What has an environmentally-friendly air supply and good sources of natural light? Neither a large vegetable nor a colorful hut, but two faculty houses currently under construction with green house features. The move-in date is set for mid-August.

Design and construction goals for the new houses include:

• reducing utility consumption by 50%;
• eliminating the use of fossil fuels for heat supply;
• using environmentally friendly and local building materials and reducing waste;
• creating an energy mindset change while maintaining comfort, health and durability;
• using low maintenance systems and materials with longer life spans;
• incorporating the design principles as a real-world example for the environmental education curriculum

Mark Leighton, Exeter’s Associate Director for Design & Construction, says it was important that the houses be “normal and regular-looking. We wanted these houses to look like other houses. The majority of the green systems are inside the walls or in the basement and won't be noticed.” he says.

The houses’ heating system for example, is a geo-thermal  system, utilizing the Earth's natural thermal energy through drilled wells up to 220 feet deep The  system is completely combustion free, and relies only on electricity to run.. Six feet below the earth’s surface, the temperature is consistently between 50 – 55 degrees all year round. This is a great, natural source of energy,” Leighton says.

Other ‘green’ features: walls consisting of 10 1/4" thick Structurally Insulated Panels (SIPS); insulated floors and ceilings; foundation walls with 2-3/8” thick insulation; insulated garage and basement doors; triple-paned, fiberglass windows; fluorescent lighting; drain water and heat recovery ventilators to capture and return heat; solar panels (installed in one of the houses) to heat domestic hot water—a gift from this year’s graduating class; high efficiency, Energy Star rated appliances; convenient location of recycling bins inside the house; use of chemical-free- or -low materials to prevent “off-gassing,” such as hardwood floors (renewable and from Maine) instead of carpeting, use of low volatile organic compounds (VOC) paints and sealants;, use of plants native to the area; minimized use of the town's drainage system by installation of  a "rain garden" to promote storm water infiltration; and recycling of 75% or more of construction debris.

Sustainability Coordinator Jennifer Wilhelm who works with students on environmental projects throughout the year says, “This was an excellent learning opportunity for students to be a part of the process of ‘building’ a house – from inception to design, to construction. |

The design process included an initial workshop facilitated by a sustainability consultant and included representatives from facilities management, the design and construction team, faculty, and students. Nick Devonshire ’07 graduate, headed up a group of student “E” (environmental) proctors who submitted ideas of sustainable features for each house at this workshop.  

These presentations were instrumental in influencing the 2007 senior class to decide on a gift to the Academy of solar panels to heat hot water in one of the faculty houses. Members of the class wanted to give a gift that best reflected who they are and what’s important to them. In his speech at graduation, Principal Tingley described the graduates “as the greenest class Exeter had seen in ages…”

Devonshire sees the houses as an example for those at Exeter to be reminded of its environmental choices. “The green houses are a test plot. They let the school see what aesthetic improvements, health benefits, and fiscal savings can be achieved through green architecture. Once the school sees how beneficial ground source heat pumps (geothermal) and solar thermal arrays can be, hopefully they will become standard in all new building projects on campus,” he says. “The houses also reflect the growing interest and commitment of the school to sustainability and reducing its ecological footprint.”

Our hope is that these homes will demonstrate to the campus community how sustainable design can decrease energy use but also increase durability, comfort, and health without making sacrifices,” says Leighton.

The houses were designed by TMS Architects and are being built by the construction management firm, Bruss Construction, Inc.


To learn more about sustainability at Exeter, visit http://www.exeter.edu/comm/866.aspx and http://www.exeter.edu/comm/866_837.aspx. Exeter’s on-going sustainability projects can be found at http://www.exeter.edu/comm/866_834.aspx. To learn about the Academy’s facilities management, visit http://www.exeter.edu/fm/4283.aspx.