Photographer: Liz Glasgow
The story of architect Wayne Turett‘s home on the North Fork of Long Island, N.Y., is about personal and planetary wellness. Designed and built to performance benchmarks known as Passive House standards, the project consumes minimal energy to operate while providing a healthy kitchen design and place to live. The kitchen plays a major part in achieving these ambitious goals.
The recyclable modular cabinet system by Valcucine is designed for adaptability and longevity and can be easily reconfigured to suit changing needs. Components use physical connectors – clips – instead of glue, reducing off-gassing of carcinogenic formaldehyde and improving air quality in the kitchen.
Photographer: Liz Glasgow
To maximize energy efficiency, the two-story home is virtually air tight. To ensure indoor air is fresh, clean and healthy, an energy recovery ventilation system (ERV) regulates incoming outdoor air and exhausts stale air while conserving the embodied energy of the process.
Photographer: Liz Glasgow
The healthy kitchen design features energy-efficient, clean-operating electric ovens and induction cooktops. In addition to quick heating and boiling properties, the cooktop is easy to maintain and provides additional counter space when not in use. The range hood has a motorized damper to help control air leakage. The flooring is heart pine finished with Danish WOCA wood oil, an eco-friendly alternative to polyurethane.
Photographer: Liz Glasgow
Skylights, glass doors and windows are triple glazed, fortifying their insulating properties. Their wooden frames guard against thermal bridging – the unwanted transfer of cold through the building envelope.
Photographer: Liz Glasgow
The house’s site orientation, along with strategically placed roof overhangs, keeps the deck and interiors from getting too much sun and overheating during the summer. The contemporary barn-like architecture was designed to complement the aesthetic of the historic town of Greenport on Long Island in New York.