A special home for a special place
When Glen and Deb Bruels fell in love with San Juan Island and decided to make it their home, they felt strongly that such a spectacular location called for a residence that honored and respected its surroundings. The result, after years of planning and design, is The Natural Balance House – expected to be the first LEED®-certified home in San Juan County. With the support of the project team, generous sponsors, and the local community, the Bruels intend to offer their home as a ‘classroom’ for sustainable building and living in a fragile marine environment.
One of the main environmental concerns on islands like the San Juans is water. The area is challenged by heavy rains in the winter, threatening erosion and polluted runoff, and by dry conditions in the summer, leading to water shortages. In the neighborhood where this home is being built, most drinking water comes from a community reverse-osmosis desalination plant. To address these issues, the Natural Balance House is being built over an underground cistern capable of holding 19,500 gallons of captured rainwater—enough to meet the home’s entire water needs year-round. (view Rainwater Harvesting Model here)
The Natural Balance House will also features dozens of other sustainable products and systems, including geothermal heating, solar hot water, a pervious driveway, extensive green roof areas, and the latest in LED lighting.
In addition to pursuing LEED for Homes certification, the home is also expected to be certified as a Northwest ENERGY STAR® home and as a five-star Built Green® home through the Skagit and Island Counties Builders Association.
Shared vision
The Bruels chose their architect for this project, Michael McNamara of Blue Sky Design, after seeing one of his designs in the book Timberframe by Todd Benson. Based on Hornby Island, B.C., Michael believes in integrating nature, form, and culture to create a design truly that fits its surroundings.
Glen and Deb found the perfect general contractor right on San Juan Island: Pete Kilpatrick of Ravenhill Construction. Pete and his team have been building high quality homes since 1978, with many of their projects winning awards and being featured in the media. Ravenhill has been incorporating ‘green’ techniques for many years, and the firm is excited to be learning even more through their work on this project.
Follow our progress!
Site preparation began in December of 2008, and the house is expected to be completed in late summer, 2010, when it will be open for tours. We hope you’ll follow the progress of this special project with us, both on this site and on our Facebook page.
