Avon’s Wolfworks wins 2018 CT Zero Energy Challenge

Every year since 2010 the nationally recognized Energize Connecticut Zero Energy Challenge has shown a spotlight on homes being built in Connecticut that produce as much energy as they use.

Winners of the 2018 Zero Energy Challenge were announced in June. The Grand Prize Award Winner was designed and built on a remote hilltop site in Higganum by Avon-based design/build company Wolfworks. This is the fourth time the firm has been recognized for designing and building homes that they describe as “future friendly.”

Jamie Wolf, the project designer, suggests that in the face of the environmental challenges the world is facing, “we need every home to be built this way."

“This project was an act of patient endurance as our clients faced and overcame many challenges on their journey to build a small, simple home powered by the sun -- some practical, some legal, some regulatory, and some topographic, including their climb up the slope of affordability," Wolf said.

The one-bedroom home with a compact 1,000-square-foot footprint includes a 250-square-foot loft space for a professional artist. The structure has a thick shell to maintain miserly control of the energy required to maintain comfort. It is oriented for the large south-facing, triple-glazed windows to harvest solar energy in the heating season, while deep overhangs avoid summer overheating. These windows also feature extraordinary views of the Connecticut River valley. Heating and cooling use about as much energy as a blow dryer. Constant fresh air is provided by heat recovery ventilation. All the energy the home requires is provided by rooftop solar and can be sustained by a Tesla Powerwall backup system.

"The story behind our house is one of persistence and vision,” said Sean Holmes, who co-owns the home with Carla Waclawski. “After falling in love and buying land where we wanted to build our house, we were met with some challenges that prohibited us from beginning construction for five years. Eversource and the Wolfworks team were instrumental in helping us overcome these obstacles – and now we have a place to call home."

Enoch Lenge of Eversource said that Wolfworks has a secret recipe that makes the firm successful.

“It’s made up of two parts -- attention to detail and having the right clients, those that have the same shared vision and goal of living the future, now,” he said.

To see a video about the challenge, go to https://www.energizect.com/zero-energy-challenge-home/ct-zero-energy-challenge-winners-2018