Summary

Form follows function. When designing an exceptional home such as this, anticipating how one lives in a home translates directly into how the home is designed and built, the choice of luxurious finish materials used, and the type of appliances, electronics, and mechanical systems to be installed

Livability

• Circulation

  On the main and lower levels, the wide halls and circular floorplan invite a pleasant transition among public spaces while maintaining an open floor plan for entertaining. The wide, gracious stairway, lit from above by the large skylight, promotes easy access between the main and lower levels. Indoor-outdoor living is easily attained and enhanced by the 12 foot wide Nanawall doors found on both levels with easy exterior access between the spacious lower level terrace and main level deck. The linear design of the garage / storage / kitchen affords easy loading and unloading of people. The office on the main level is situated to take advantage of a quiet part of the home and heighten the presence and elegance of the entry foyer.

• Windows, Doors

  Commercial windows and Nanawall doors, both elegant and functional, have been used throughout the home. They last longer than wood or clad windows, require little to no maintenance, have an exceptional wind and water seal, and are designed to withstand the awe inspiring winter storms that come off the bay.

  The divided light windows have double thermal breaks to keep heat loss to a minimum.

• Special Considerations

  Two laundry chutes, one in the master bath and the other in the northeast bath, conveniently drop to a ventilated hamper closet just above the washer and dryer.

  All closets have hall-effect automatic door switches for closet lights. Room lighting uses low reflection fixtures to avoid mirroring in the view windows.

  Several of the bathrooms have separate commode rooms so that that other people can use the washroom area at the same time.

  All water pipes are sound isolated and wrapped with insulation, keeping the plumbing very quiet. All drain pipes over or adjacent to living spaces are cast iron, further blocking sound.

  For connection to possible future solar panels or other rooftop appliances, we have installed a conduit running from the attic to the mechanical room, just above the electrical panels.

  All interior walls are packed with dense insulation and covered with 5/8" drywall (not the usual 1/2") to minimize sound transmission. In addition, the master bedroom perimeter consists of “sound walls”, walls with separate studs for each surface.

• Kitchen

  The kitchen is the hub of the home from which all activities revolve. We have designed the gourmet kitchen to maximize functionality while cloaking this necessity in a stunning appearance featuring the best in materials and appliances. Abundant custom walnut cabinetry in the kitchen and adjoining storage provide essential space and organization that every busy chef needs. Let us point out a few features that we feel will benefit you.

  The sink loacated near the peninsula is the focal point of food preparation. Just to its left is the top-of-the-line six burner + griddle Wolf range. The peninsula can serve guests on the raised bar and provide more counter space for your prep and presentations. Just behind is the kitchen island; to save steps, we have added an under counter refrigerator to keep supplies handy for food preparation.

  A second sink, at the far end of the kitchen, keeps cleanup after a well done meal out of sight and out of mind. Two no-scrape dishwashers allow quickly clearing the counter. A wide bank of cabinets above the dishwashers minimize walking about to put items away.

  On the opposite side of the island we provided floor to ceiling cabinets to house every imaginable item. We placed a centrally located built-in work space to conveniently house and organize your cook books and recipes.

  Under the commercial microwave we added a pull-out tray to facilitate handling heavy items.

Home Automation

• Capabilities

  The Omnipro II, by HAI Systems, provides a plethora of services including security monitoring, smoke detector monitoring, video surveillance, central control of thermostats and room settings, irrigation (garden watering) control, music control, and optionally, lighting control.

  We have provided one color touch screen control by the front door and another in the master suite. Additionally, a keypad control is in the mechanical room. Two video cameras, with infrared night lighting, one at the front door and one overlooking the south terrace can show images on the touch screen displays.

  The security aspect of the Omnipro II is currently setup to call a phone number if security is breached or a smoke alarm triggers. This call would alert your security monitoring company. In addition, the system has the capability to alert you by cell phone, email, or text message.

  The Omnipro II also provides simple home monitoring. For example, you can control the current room temperatures and thermostat settings or view the security camera images via an ethernet connection to your computer or via the Internet. It can also be setup to display reminder messages, such as "garbage day".

• Music

  In addition, we have installed the Hi-Fi audio system, also by HAI Systems. This is integrated with the Omnipro “brain” and allows music sourced from various rooms to be played through selected ceiling speakers installed in several of the rooms. Wiring to additional rooms is preinstalled and identified on drawings for future speaker installations. The system is capable of sourcing music from eight separate devices (CD player, stereo system, iPod...) and each room can concurrently play any one of those sources.

  The music source connections include an infrared port, where you can connect a remote control cable to your player and then use the remote control in the room where the music is playing. Each room with speakers includes a volume control and a music source channel selector.

• Future

  One final note: since technology and needs are ever-changing, we have installed conduit to virtually every room so that phone, ethernet, fiber optics, etc. can be installed in the future. These conduits run to a central wiring panel in the mechanical room. In addition, all the music wiring runs to a panel under the stairs, back-to-back with the room with home theatre wiring. If one desires, the music system could be integrated with the home theatre system or with some other music server technology.

Heating and Ventilation

• In-Floor Radiant Heat

  Radiant in-floor is the most efficient, economical, and environmentally friendly way to warm your home. It gives wonderful warmth to your feet and keeps you feeling comfortable without making the air temperature too warm. Hot water tubing is installed under all floors in the main and upper levels and under the lower level bathroom floor. Since the rest of the lower level has insulating carpeting on the floor, we installed radiant heat in the walls.

  As some rooms face south (towards the sun) and some face north, heating needs can vary greatly throughout the home. We countered this by designating 10 zones for the home, each with its own thermostat. This also allows you to customize the heat settings to indivdual preferences, like keeping the master bath slightly warmer than the master bedroom.

• Continuous Ventilation

  The heat recovery ventilators and air filters run full time, continually bringing fresh air to the bedrooms and other spaces. Concurrently, stale air is pulled from other spaces such as the bathrooms and laundry; no air is recirculated. Because the system is push-pull, it will function properly even if windows are left open. The heat recovery unit reclaims almost all of the heat from the exiting air.

Exterior

• Weather Protection

  One of the most important exterior features is one that you will never see. Behind every exterior surface is an air space, sometimes known as rain-screen technology. While every effort has been made to prevent water from penetrating the exterior surfaces, strong winds and wear-and-tear may allow some water to get through. By providing an interior air space, any water that gets in will simply drain down and out weep holes around the base of the house.

  The commercial grade windows provide additional weather protection. These elegant but sturdy aluminum windows won't rust and may never need repainting. They are designed to withstand heavy wind loads and rain, and have better weather seals than other types of windows.

• Other

  Near the south deck, we have run a gas line and power to a convenient spot for an outdoor barbeque.

  The garden area by the front door has sprinklers, while the other garden areas are watered by drip irrigation. These are controlled by the home automation system.

  The custom designed chimney caps are built of copper and slightly "preaged". They should continue to weather to a beautiful mottled green.