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Brooklyn House Remodel

A Green Residential Building in Brooklyn, NY.

  • This project renovated the rear of an existing wood house, including replacing the non-functioning kitchen, adding a second bathroom, replacing the collapsing steps to the rear yard, increasing daylight in the kitchen and center of the house, and maximizing connection to the small rear yard. The green-ness of this project this represents an accumulation of relatively small choices across all the aspects of the work. All of the green materials we chose are readily available and did not require any special sources to obtain. Although much of the house, including the heating system, was beyond the project scope, we nonetheless took care to upgrade the portion within the work area to current best energy-conserving practices, including tight windows and doors, air sealing at the exterior walls, and making sure insulation was installed on the hot-water pipes. Photo: (c) Robert Lowell
  • Please contact to arrange a visit - project is at rear of house and is not visible from street.
  • Construction year
  • 2007
  • Size in sq. ft.
  • 1200
  • No. floors
  • 3
  • Certification
  • none sought
  • Energy Efficiency Features
  • installation of kitchen and shed skylights compact fluorescent lighting best-practices air sealing
  • Green Products
  • re-use of salvaged framing lumber repair of existing wood parquet flooring FSC-certified flooring and cabinet bodies recycled glass countertops low-voc paints and floor finish
  • Water Conservation Features
  • low-flow toilet
  • Transportation
  • close proximity to Brooklyn Busses and trains.
  • Window brand
  • Andersen 400 series
  • Amount and type of insulation
  • R-18 insulation added at modified rear wall, including cotton batts added at the stud cavity and rigid insulation applied over the sheathing.
  • Type of building (home, school, commercial, etc.)
  • single-family residential
  • Designer
  • Ryan Enschede Studio
  • Builder
  • J. Fitzsimmons Building, LLC