Know House

Features

• Net-zero design
  
• Use of Pattern Language principles
  
• Custom metalwork

Collaborators

• The Steel Yard
• Sixteen on Center

Design for this renovation and rehab of an early 1900’s worker’s cottage retains the home’s historic quality and prioritizes responsible energy and resource use. New covered porches connect the interior spaces to the landscape, which is being cultivated into gardens and permaculture habitat. The home’s shell is highly insulated and sealed for controlled air exchange and is heated using a high-efficiency, heat pump system.

Insulation materials, such as fiber-board and cellulose, were specifically selected for their carbon-neutral production cost. Lumber was salvaged from the house’s deconstruction process and from a local demolished factory to create built-in furniture and flooring. We also hand-built decorative and structural steel elements at The Steel Yard, a Providence-based community art space.

Plunkie Point

This lake house kitchen and bathroom modernization included numerous age-in-place improvements to make it more accessible for the clients’ long-term use. Echo provided full architectural and construction services, which included custom cabinetry throughout. The design harmonizes the relationship between the old cottage and the newer addition. Fabrication followed sustainable design principles with a focus on material efficiency.