Key step in constructing foundation at Karuna is demonstrated by lead carpenter Scott Gunter, Aaron Quint & Aaron Bergeson.
Excavation was the topic of the day during our last post about the Karuna House. Today we’re on to the project’s super-insulated foundation.
(Note: the Karuna House is a national green building case study being constructed in Yamhill County, Oregon. Designed by Holst Architecture and built by Hammer & Hand, the house aims for Passive House, Minergie-P-ECO and LEED for Homes Platinum certification.)
A key principle of Passive House (as well as Minergie) design and construction is the concept of super-insulating the building envelope. And that includes not only the four walls and roof, but also the foundation. To that end, we’re using EPS geofoam at the Karuna House… we’re actually building the foundation on top of a thick layer of the stuff. Read here for more about why that’s a good idea.
Our own Skylar Swinford, Certified Passive House Consultant and a leading building scientist at Hammer & Hand, visited the Karuna site a few days ago with his video camera to interview lead carpenter Scott Gunter and document the process of installing the geofoam foundation. The clip also features Hammer & Hand’s Aaron Quint and Aaron Bergeson.
Grab some popcorn… the clip’s below.
– Zack
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