District Home Magazine Fall II October 2014 | Page 72

Ask the
Builder

Building a dream home? Remodeling your “forever”
home? Interested in integrating high performance,
sustainable and energy efficient components into
your planned renovation? Read on.

ALEx DEAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO Of THE METRO DC bASED ALExANDER GROuP INC., HAS bEEN buILDING HIGH
PERfORMANCE, ENERGy EffICIENT, AWARD-WINNING HOMES fOR NEARLy fOuR DECADES. “THERE ARE A LOT Of
ITEMS fOR A HOMEOWNER TO CONSIDER bEfORE HIRING A CONTRACTOR OR DESIGN buILD fIRM,” SAyS DEAN.
THERE IS NO “ONE-SIzE fITS ALL” SOLuTION. EVERy HOMEOWNER HAS DIffERENT NEEDS AND VALuES, buT THE
SAME quESTIONS uSuALLy ARISE.”
Question: We have decided that our current home is our
“forever” home. What are the most significant considerations
for current and future remodeling projects?
Alex Dean: “The Alexander Group spends a significant amount
of time with our clients in the discovery process—it’s called the
planning and creative design phase. In my experience, this is the
most critical consideration in the entire design/build process.
We help define the homeowner’s values, develop a master plan
outlining all improvements, and decide whether the remodel will be
conducted in phases—this is important if the homeowner plans to
remain in the home during the construction process.The importance
of the time invested in this phase cannot be underestimated—
identifying all possible hidden problems minimizes engineering
and design changes—this in turn greatly reduces stress on the
homeowner and the project team, and assures the construction
process stays on schedule and budget.”
Question: I am considering a whole house remodel. My home is an
older dwelling and it’s not very energy efficient.What components
go into creating a high performance, energy efficient home?
AD: “There are several major categories addressed in creating
an energy efficient, high performance home. I look at energy
conservation—reducing the amount of energy wasted. Leaky
windows and doors, poorly insulated walls and attics fall into
this category. Improving these provide the earliest payback for
the homeowner’s investment. Next I look at systems—HVAC
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and appliance performance. And lastly, I address “renewables”—
this category uses the earth’s sources—sun, wind and the earth
itself. Items like solar panels fall into this category or geo thermal
systems—a geothermal heat pump or ground source heat pump
(GSHP) for example, is a central heating and/or cooling system that
transfers heat to or from the ground. It uses the earth as a heat
source (in the winter) or a heat sink (in the summer). These are
longer term investments for the homeowner, but tax credits can be
applied in some instances.”
Question: How do I find the best contractor or design build firm
for my remo