A popular post the other day described how an Ann Arbor, MI couple transformed a one hundred year old classic house into a 21st century net energy zero home. The big question that came up in comments, was, ok, but how much does it cost?
I haven’t talked to the homeowners to find out about financing yet, but I thought I would present the example of yet another net zero home, this one brand new construction, and 100 miles further north of Ann Arbor, (43 degrees North) that was built for a very mainstream $250,000. The current structure is a demo, mainly for conducting tours and showing off new technology – but the lessons learned are being applied across the country and the world right now.
The 1,556-square-foot home at 5018 Butterfield Drive in Midland is priced at $250,000 and achieves a net-zero monthly utility bill, according to Mark Wahl, owner of Cobblestone Homes. The home has three bedrooms and two bathrooms.
To help achieve its estimated annual energy savings of $2,441, the home uses Dow’s Powerhouse Solar Shingle on its roof, a Dow-made Styrofoam insulation and Great Stuff Pro for filling gaps and cracks in the walls, floors, doors and windows, along with many other energy saving products.
“This is something that people might see like a concept car, but it’s here and it’s real — this house can be built here,” said Wahl.
“We can get unlimited miles out of this house. This is something we want to tell people, that when buying a home, you need to know how many miles per gallon you’re getting on it. As a homeowner, you should know that.”
Thanks for this!
>>”We can get unlimited miles out of this house. This is something we want to tell people, that when buying a home, you need to know how many miles per gallon you’re getting on it. As a homeowner, you should know that.”
Hmmm, a metric to indicate a home’s efficiency… interesting idea.