Ferry Road Residence

DRPILLA embraced sustainability as a key element of this project long before LEED became the industry standard. The site design limits irrigation demands by reducing conventional turf, integrating indigenous and drought tolerant plantings, and utilizing a harvested rainwater system for irrigation. The building design offers shading on all sides by balcony overhangs and roof projections to limit heat gains. The design also utilizes FSC wood products, automated day lighting systems, and automated HVAC sensors.

Our modern design includes a flat roof, maximizing the area (2,000-sf) available for the placement of Photo Voltaic (PV) roof panels. The 10-KW rooftop system generates electric power by using solar cells to convert energy from the sun into electricity. The pool is also heated completely by the solar heating system. Water is pumped through a filter and then through the solar collectors, where it is heated before it is returned to the pool.

The residence has an open-loop heating and cooling system which uses well or surface body water as the heat exchange fluid that circulates directly through a geothermal heat pump system. By harvesting the geothermal energy, a ground source heat pump heats the water for radiant heat, while providing cool air to be distributed throughout the house. This allows the system to reach fairly high efficiencies (300%-600%) on the coldest of winter nights, compared to 175%-250% for air-source heat pumps on cool days.