Homes for the Apocalypse

Where do you want to live when the apocalypse comes? Ok I know I sound crazy but I’m only partially kidding. Climate change is no joke and I believe that a large-scale infrastructure disintegration, or something similar, is likely. What does infrastructure disintegration look like? Here’s a solid case study from McKinsey Global. (The 2-minute video is worth watching.)

So of course I started thinking about what I can do to help prepare my little corner of the world for a major shift in people’s needs. The answer I keep arriving at is

High Performance, Durable Buildings

Buildings that can last 100+ years. That don’t require much energy and are capable of operating off grid. That are comfortable and durable for the inhabitants. A place for people to feel safe and protected. A haven.

Sounds like a tall order, how the heck do we do that? There are, of course, lots of facets of high performance design but some key factors:

◾️ Insulation (I call it “hyper-insulated”)

◾️ Air Sealing (make it tight, buildings do not need to breathe through their skin, that’s gross)

◾️ Mechanical Ventilation (I love an ERV*)

◾️ All Electric (you can make electricity right on your property, perfect for the apocalypse)

◾️ Building has a close relationship to Sun, Wind, and Water (potential band name?)

◾️ Great Windows (ideally triple pane, European-style)

I encourage my clients to adopt as many of these design factors as possible. It’s more expensive up front but more affordable and secure in the long run.

But what is it actually like to live in a high performance house? A friend of a friend, Christiana, recently wrote me this email:

“We love living in our high performance home in Falmouth, Maine. Our house is 100% electric. We have 27 solar panels on our roof, and it gets us pretty close to net zero. We do pay a relatively small electric bill for a few months per year. But even those bills are half the cost of our neighbors’ who also use electric heat.

The majority of our windows face South. Some have exterior window shading devices to maximize solar gain in the winter. The triple pane European-style windows are excellent. We don't feel drafts anymore, and the interior of the windows are warm to the touch during the winter!

Three years of winters in our house (with no wood stove), and it's the warmest we've been in all our years living in New England. (Our heat pumps are set to 72 degrees in the winter.) 

Although I've highlighted winter months, our double stud dense packed cellulose-insulated walls keep us comfortable throughout every season.”

And high performance homes are not just for cold climates. They also make sense in tropical, dry, and temperate climates.**

There are many other factors to consider in a 100+ year home, especially one with off-grid capability. Energy is a good place to start. One of these days I’ll write another newsletter about water and waste.

So if you’re thinking of building, think about the apocalypse. 

*An ERV takes out stale air and brings in fresh air. When the two paths cross, they exchange heat and moisture. So you’re not wasting energy to heat or cool air AND you have a building with perfect humidity levels. AND it filters the air so your indoor air quality is primo.

**I admit that it’s hard to justify some of the up-front cost if you live in a place like coastal California where it’s a dry 65-75 degrees almost year-round. For example, all electric makes sense but hyper-insulation and ERV’s less so.

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