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While a relatively new concept in the US, the German company Weberhaus ^[4] has long been developing prefab house construction technology for 50 years. Designed by Studio H:T Architects ^[5] the 2002 Alpine House ^[6] in Boulder CO, is the first to use the state-of-the-art German system in the US. This new LEED Platinum home shows how high-scale design, sustainable principles and prefab can come together to create an attractive home. Additionally, some of the home’s most impressive features include a super-low energy requirement, a 9kW solar array ^[7] and a host of other low impact features able to assuage the environmentally aware, wealthy owners who were looking for the perfect $3.5 million pad built to last a hundred years.

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The upscale residence is two stories of modular walls and ceilings, complete with windows doors, and electrical and plumbing set on an ICF base. Overall construction reported only 5% in waste materials, compared to the national average of 17%. The shell of the home has reduced the energy demand to 1/5th of the average home, but air quality is improved by low toxic material and fresh air exchange.

The 4,340 square feet interior has been equipped with a number of drool worthy gadgets, supreme finishes and a killer view ^[9]of Boulder’s iconic Flatiron Mountains. The space is heated with a high efficiency boiler ^[10], lit with LED lighting, and finished in Earth Clay plaster. Water is heated through a solar thermal system and reclaimed as grey water. Outdoor and indoor spaces blend together beautifully, and the overall effect is a clean, highly refined modernist feel with a naturalist bent.

You can also check out a short video ^[11] showing how the home was constructed here ^[11].

+ 2002 Alpine house ^[12]

+ Studio H:T Architects ^[5]

+ Weberhaus ^[13]