Building green brings energy efficiency and occupant well-being to homes. The building envelope is arguably the most important component to ensure a project meets green building requirements—and windows and doors are key components of the building envelope. Not only do they contribute to energy efficiency, but they also contribute to occupant comfort and well-being by minimizing uncomfortable drafts, providing natural light and reducing noise transfer. Windows and doors are also crucial to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by lowering energy consumption in all seasons.

High-quality windows and doors reduce energy use with low-emissivity (Low-E) coatings, multiple glazing layers and insulated frames that help maintain consistent indoor air temperatures. Progressive design professionals also ensure the design of the home—and orientation of the windows and doors—leverage solar heat gain to bring in sunlight to warm the interior in winter while using shading solutions, such as mature trees, integrated overhangs or exterior shades, to minimize sunlight in summer. These are design strategies that can significantly reduce heating and cooling loads.

Windows and doors also contribute to occupant well-being. Natural light reduces stress, improves mood and enhances cognitive function. High-performance fenestration allows homes to have abundant natural light while still achieving green building standards. Another benefit of high-quality windows and doors is their superior acoustical performance; reducing noise transfer from the outside to the inside contributes to occupant health.

In British Columbia, custom homes are consistently built to higher green building standards. Here are three examples of how intentional window and door choices can contribute to highly sustainable residences.

Boat-access custom retreat

Nestled into the trees on a southwest facing lot on Gambier Island sits an incredibly efficient CHBA Net Zero certified home. This low-maintenance summer cottage, fall hideaway, winter cozy nook or spring nature observatory is built with resilient materials to be comfortable and enjoyed all year.

The builder, Blue Water Concepts, made strong choices in windows and doors, and this helped create the perfect example of an energy-efficient, comfortable and healthy home. The one-story, 1,800-square-foot space has a somewhat challenging sloped lot and no need for a lower floor, so the mechanical room was designed to “anchor” the building to the slope and have the rest of it suspended above.

The home’s sustainability features are all in the way the home was designed and built. The wall assembly comprised ½” drywall, a smart membrane (vapour control layer), ½” plywood sheathing, an air barrier, exterior insulation and triple glazed windows and doors by Innotech Windows + Doors. Standing seam metal siding finished the exterior.

It is a compact home that requires very little energy to operate. An HRV along with electric baseboards and in-floor heat in the bathrooms keeps the space cozy, supplemented by an STUV woodstove in the winter and on colder days. The home’s energy-efficiency targets were also met with integrated rooftop solar panels, which make it a net zero home (the home generates as much electricity as it requires).

The system’s simplicity is what makes it a winner. Passive design principles were applied, including the home’s location on the lot and the position of the windows and doors.

“In order to achieve superior performance targets, the windows and doors in a home must be engineered to provide superior airtightness, thermal performance and overall durability,” says Jessica Owen, brand champion with Innotech Windows + Doors.  “With an average U-factor of 0.17 and airtightness of 0.014 CFM/FT2, the windows and doors ensure the home is comfortable throughout the year.”

The home exceeds the requirements for Step 5 of the BC Energy Step Code and was a finalist for the CHBA BC Georgie Awards (Best Custom Home $1.5-$2m) and the CHBA National Awards (Best Custom Home Under 2500sf, Best Custom Net Zero Home⁠).

Scandinavian modern lake view home

Located in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley, this Scandinavian-inspired modern home is nestled into its landscape with uninterrupted views of Okanagan Lake. Designed with intention by NIDO Design and carefully built by Red Stag Contracting, the energy-efficient ranch-style home features many high-performance building materials and technologies.

The homeowners desired a sustainable and minimalist home. To achieve these goals, Passive House principles were applied to the design and build of the 2,250-square-foot home. The highly insulated and airtight building envelope includes an ICF foundation with an additional 2-5/8″ EPS on either side and 2″ concrete faced EPS insulation panel on the exterior, 2×12 framed walls with densepack cellulose insulation for an effective insulating value of R34, weather resistant barrier with rainscreen, and triple glazed Innotech windows and doors. The home also features a 116% efficient Minotair CERV and is powered solely by electricity with a 6.7 kw/h solar system that accounts for up to 75% of the home’s yearly usage.

“Many of the homes we build are designed with large window to wall ratios,” says Andrew Spear, founder of Red Stag Contracting. “It’s important we select the right windows and doors for our projects, otherwise we risk compromising other goals, such as energy-efficiency, for beautiful views.”

The result is a highly energy-efficient home with stunning 180-degree lake views from every space in the home.

Treehouse abode on the Sunshine Coast

Located on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast, the Treehouse sits between the mountains and the ocean on a small, steep and heavily forested property. The vision was to build a high-performance home with minimal impact to its environment.

Designed by GNAR Inc. and built by Lincoln Construction, the three-storey home is strategically tucked within the forest. The placement and overall footprint of the home was designed to avoid removing or damaging mature trees.  To further reduce impact on the trees, the foundation system features carefully placed screw piles instead of extensive excavation typically required for concrete footings and walls. The screw pile system also used 75% less concrete than a conventional pour and offers greater resilience in the event on earthquakes.

The 1,800-square-foot home also features a durable, airtight and insulated building envelope. The wall assembly is 2×6 construction combined with HUBER Zip system, high-performance tapes and flashings, Passive House Institute certified windows and doors manufactured by Innotech Windows + Doors, fiberglass interior insulation and 3-inch EPS exterior insulation. The result was a final blower door test of 0.28 ACH50—a testament to quality of the design, material choice and installation of the wall assembly.

Learn more about how Innotech Windows + Doors can help your project meet and exceed its green building objectives. Visit innotech-windows.com

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