Building Constructions

Polycarb House

Closed Loop BCL

Hypar Canopy

Shared Beds


Material Museum

4815 Graustark St

Draped Stone

Flat Stand

Tip Tap




Polycarb House

Type Residential Retrofit & Material Research 

Date 2022

Location Ithaca, NY

Competition  Winner


The Polycarb House is an experimental project focused on high-performance, low-carbon retrofit strategies for existing housing stock. With buildings being responsible for 40% of energy consumption in the United States, improving building performance and limiting carbon is paramount if we are to reduce the environmental impacts of Architecture.

Navigating the transition from low-performance buildings and energy-intensive equipment to high-performance, solar-powered electrified equipment is difficult and unclear. Coupling this with the variety of building techniques that may facilitate a high-performance building further obscures the process for those considering the economic investment. With a wide range of possible assemblies and strategies consistently debated by building scientists, it is difficult for an architect to understand how to incorporate improvements toward high-performance buildings. Thus, this research aims to construct guides informed through field-tested mock-ups to demonstrate proven techniques and unpack the nuances and complexities of constructing better buildings. 





Interior Demolition and Deconstruction


The roof was temporarily supported while replacing portions of the existing wall. The rafter tails were cut to eliminate direct thermal bridging.
 

New 2x6 wall construction along the front facade. Advanced framing techniques were deployed to limit the wood and maximize the insulation.



The first-floor plan reorganizes the interior into three bars. The front bar contains all the 'wet' spaces, bathrooms, laundry, and kitchen. The second bar contains all of the circulation, and the remaining bar is divided into bedrooms and living spaces.
The ground floor plan mimics the plan above while creating a large mechanical space along the front retaining wall and introducing a carport.

Prefabricated 2x6 Wall 
The south elevation reveals the excavated carport located below the existing building volume. The carport emerged from a need to repair and replace the existing retaining wall built in 1950. The section shows the remediation and retrofit strategies deployed. The rafters, ridge beam, and center beam required structural reinforcement. The removal of the rafter tails allows for continuous control layers that wrap the cross-section.
 
Chainsaw Retrofit. Cutting Off The Direct Thermal Bridge Of The Extended Rafter To Produce Control Layers



The wall section shows the existing 2x6 rafters, which are cut back to be flush with the exterior wall. An air barrier is added above the existing 1/2" sheathing. 2x4s are sistered in-plane with structural screws to extend the structural depth of the rafters. Insulation is located between the rafters and the exterior is wrapped continuously with rigid mineral wool insulation.

Stamped Permit Set











DCS