National Award Winning High-Performance Whole House Remodel in Raleigh, NC

Finding Paradise on Picardy

We were delighted to have the opportunity to take this quaint 1960's brick ranch and transform it into a Whole House Remodeled Green Certified Home with an open floor plan. We had no idea that this project would go on to win the  2013 National Green Certified Project of the Year !

The spectacular granite countertops featured in the kitchen and bathrooms served as the design palette used to create a wonderfully harmonious balance of muted tones throughout the home in this whole house renovation project.

Beautiful natural hardwoods with a No Volatile Organic Compond (VOC) clear coat finish, next generation porcelain tile, and No VOC carpet and paints combine to create a healthy and light-filled living environment.

The home has been equipped with the latest in energy efficient amenities including updated EPA EnergyStar Qualified electrical fixtures and appliances, EPA WaterSense rated toilets and plumbing fixtures, LED lighting, upgraded insulation and air sealing measures, and rain water harvesting.

The carefully orchestrated design elements and focus on eco-conscious features make this home a fresh and smartly appointed Home Paradise. Daylight. Quiet. Energy Efficient. Healthy. Low Maintenance. Aesthetics. It’s a complete transformation.

SEE MORE PHOTOS AND READ THE FULL STORY HERE

About Paradise Found Construction

At Paradise Found Construction, we're grateful and honored  to be trusted with the homes of our clients in Cary, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Holly Springs, Apex and beyond. We are dedicated to providing affordable custom remodels and new custom homes that fit your unique vision, while partnering with you to scale features to align with your budget. We promise to be transparent and reliable to help you along each step of the way.

Choosing custom construction allows you the flexibility to get everything you want — and nothing you don’t.

Our passion is to help you create your personal Paradise in your home. We work closely with you to understand your vision and bring it to life in a 3D visual design, and then turn it into your finished masterpiece.

WE SPECIALIZE IN:

Preserving the Environmental Heritage of Heritage Hills in Chapel Hill

 Performance (Green) building has come a long way. While a decade ago many may have perceived green building to be a fad, today it’s about more than just reducing a carbon footprint.  Financially, it makes good sense with eco-friendly designs that deliver appealing functionality and healthy indoor air quality.  For the second year in a row, Jeff Wiblitzhouser with Paradise Found Construction has received the National Association of Home Builder’s (NAHB) 2014 NAHB Green Certified Remodel of the Year Award, this time for a home in Orange County. 

Located in southern Chapel Hill, the 40+ year old, two-story Gambrel Roof home remodel demonstrates how easy it is to preserve the charm and security of an older neighborhood and the many benefits it offers, making the home healthier for its occupants while reducing its ongoing cost of ownership.  This amazing whole hose remodel demonstrates how to preserve the heritage and charm in older neighborhoods with modest investments that create a healthier living environment and yearly savings that compound over time. 

“While any home can be built or remodeled with green features, a home that meets the National Green Building Standard’s certification criteria offers financial gains when the cost of ownership is reduced and a home’s value is increased,” says Jeff Wiblitzhouser President of Paradise Found Construction.  “Plus, growing market evidence shows new and remodeled homes that are green certified are increasing in value and holding it better than those traditionally built or remodeled.”

The Heritage Hills home was structurally sound but needed improvements in energy usage, water efficiency, and indoor environmental quality.  By replacing the original single-pane windows with more energy efficient double-pane ones, right-sizing the HVAC system, adding a dual zone controller, replacing and sealing all duct-work and a variety of other energy-efficient upgrades, the HERS (Home Energy Rating System) rating was reduced from 98 to 59.  In total, energy was reduced by 40% and projected savings are projected to be $900 yearly.

Water efficiency was also addressed by incorporating EPA Water Sense-rated toilets and plumbing fixtures as well as upgrading appliances like the washing machine, which reduced the overall water usage by over 40%.   Furthermore, natural hardwoods with no volatile organic compound (VOC) finishes, formaldehyde-free materials and no-VOC paints were used to improve the indoor air quality.  The original wood burning fireplace was replaced with a direct-vent natural gas one and exhaust fans were installed in bathrooms to help create a healthier indoor environment.

In addition, Wiblizthouser helped the owners incorporate the latest design trends that would harmonize with the rest of the home.  He increased the usefulness and aesthetics of their screened porch by creating an appealing room that could be enjoyed year round.  He also brightened living areas with lighter colors to increase sunlight reflectivity.

The homes in Heritage Hills represent the explosive growth of home ownership that occurred during the economic expansion that followed the end of WWII, and they were designed to foster a sense of community, where families could come together.  They were also built with denser wood that offers superior structural support compared to the same homes built using lumber from today’s faster-growing trees.  Rather than demolish structurally sound homes to make way for larger ones with larger carbon footprints, a green certified remodel is increasingly attractive. 

“We can preserve older neighborhoods with established traffic patterns and charm by changing the inefficiencies,” said Wiblitzhouser.  “With a relatively modest investment, a green certified remodeling provides a short investment payback and continued yearly savings over time as energy and water costs outstrip the cost of inflation.  Plus, when it comes to resale value, green certified homes sell at the upper end of the range and more quickly.”

Just last year, Wiblitzhouser completed a green certified remodel that enabled a Raleigh home owner to sell the home within three days of completion.  Compared to equivalent traditional construction, green certifications offer a significant value and advantage in the marketplace. Paradise Found Construction also won the National Home Builders Association (NAHB) 2013 Project of the Year for Green Certified Remodeling.   

About Paradise Found Construction

Since 2009, our mission and passion has been to help our clients throughout the Triangle NC create their personal Paradise in their homes. We work closely with them to understand Their Vision, and leverage our vast experience in residential design to bring it to life in a 3D Color Visual Design before helping them Rediscover the Paradise in Their Home.

WE SPECIALIZE IN:

After 20 years of living in their home, a Cary couple came to us with the hopes of remodeling their kitchen and making it “theirs” for their next 20 years.

Their old kitchen was like so many kitchens we’ve seen—old in look, feel and design. The small kitchen was designed with those very familiar color and features: brown wood cabinets and vinyl countertops. The kitchen had only one small window and was otherwise lit by large fluorescent tubes. It sat adjacent to a small dinette lit with the also familiar brass chandelier. The cabinetry consisted of one large U-shaped unit, positioned in such a way that one of the long arms of the U served as a separator between the kitchen and dinette. The refrigerator stood closely to the “legs” of the U shape. The combination of a large amount of brown, almost no natural lighting and the cabinet acting as a half wall made the kitchen/dinette areas feel dark and cramped.

Our goal was to give our clients a kitchen that was brighter, less cramped, more usable and more up to date, compatible with their changing lifestyle. In order to do this, we added more natural light by replacing the small window with a much larger one. We removed the one large fluorescent unit and installed high hat lighting and a more modern chandelier in the dinette. Other renovations included new cabinets, which came in a white wood and granite countertops that nicely complemented the new stainless steel appliances. The reconfigured layout of the cabinets to be set along the edges of the kitchen made for more of a streamlined effect, opening up more space, and creating a longer unified space.

To add to the usability of the kitchen, a granite-topped island was put in place. It was adjoined to a dining table set on the dinette’s floor, again adding to the streamlined look and feel. The redesigned kitchen and dinette was finished with the replacement of the linoleum floors with hardwood flooring, adding to a smooth, modern feel. The new features give this kitchen more personality, more functionality and more space for the homeowners themselves or for entertaining.

See BEFORE and AFTER photos in our Project Showcase.

Chapel Hill Green Builder Showcases the 2014 National Green Certified Project of the Year Remodel on the Triangle Green Home Tour

Posted on April 26, 2014 7:51 pm

Preserving the Environmental Heritage of Heritage Hills in Chapel Hill

Cary, NC (April 15, 2014) – Green building has come a long way. While a decade ago many may have perceived green building to be a fad, today it’s about more than just reducing a carbon footprint.  Financially, it makes good sense with eco-friendly designs that deliver appealing functionality and healthy indoor air quality.  For the second year in a row, Jeff Wiblitzhouser with Paradise Found Construction has received the National Association of Home Builder’s (NAHB) Green Certified Remodel of the Year Award, this time for a home in Orange County. 

Located in southern Chapel Hill, the 40+ year old, two-story Gambrel Roof home remodel demonstrates how easy it is to preserve the charm and security of an older neighborhood and the many benefits it offers, making the home healthier for its occupants while reducing its ongoing cost of ownership.  During the upcoming 9thAnnual Green Home Tour, Wiblitzhouser will present the Heritage Hills home and demonstrate how he preserves the heritage and charm in older neighborhoods with modest investments that create a healthier living environment and yearly savings that compound over time. 

“While any home can be built or remodeled with green features, a home that meets the National Green Building Standard’s certification criteria offers financial gains when the cost of ownership is reduced and a home’s value is increased,” says Jeff Wiblitzhouser President of Paradise Found Construction.  “Plus, growing market evidence shows new and remodeled homes that are green certified are increasing in value and holding it better than those traditionally built or remodeled.”

The public is invited totour the 2014 NAHB award-winning home located at 415 Brandywine Road in Chapel Hill.  It will be open on Saturday, May 3rd – Sunday, May 4th from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.  For more information about the tour, please go to:www.TriangleGreenHomeTour.com.

The Heritage Hills home was structurally sound but needed improvements in energy usage, water efficiency, and indoor environmental quality.  By replacing the original single-pane windows with more energy efficient double-pane ones, right-sizing the HVAC system, adding a dual zone controller, replacing and sealing all duct-work and a variety of other energy-efficient upgrades, the HERS (Home Energy Rating System) rating was reduced from 98 to 59.  In total, energy was reduced by 40% and projected savings are projected to be $900 yearly.

Water efficiency was also addressed by incorporating EPA Water Sense-rated toilets and plumbing fixtures as well as upgrading appliances like the washing machine, which reduced the overall water usage by over 40%.   Furthermore, natural hardwoods with no volatile organic compound (VOC) finishes, formaldehyde-free materials and no-VOC paints were used to improve the indoor air quality.  The original wood burning fireplace was replaced with a direct-vent natural gas one and exhaust fans were installed in bathrooms to help create a healthier indoor environment.

In addition, Wiblizthouser helped the owners incorporate the latest design trends that would harmonize with the rest of the home.  He increased the usefulness and aesthetics of their screened porch by creating an appealing room that could be enjoyed year round.  He also brightened living areas with lighter colors to increase sunlight reflectivity.

The homes in Heritage Hills represent the explosive growth of home ownership that occurred during the economic expansion that followed the end of WWII, and they were designed to foster a sense of community, where families could come together.  They were also built with denser wood that offers superior structural support compared to the same homes built using lumber from today’s faster-growing trees.  Rather than demolish structurally sound homes to make way for larger ones with larger carbon footprints, a green certified remodel is increasingly attractive. 

“We can preserve older neighborhoods with established traffic patterns and charm by changing the inefficiencies,” said Wiblitzhouser.  “With a relatively modest investment, a green certified remodeling provides a short investment payback and continued yearly savings over time as energy and water costs outstrip the cost of inflation.  Plus, when it comes to resale value, green certified homes sell at the upper end of the range and more quickly.”

Just last year, Wiblitzhouser completed a green certified remodel that enabled a Raleigh home owner to sell the home within three days of completion.  Compared to equivalent traditional construction, green certifications offer a significant value and advantage in the marketplace. Paradise Found Construction also won the National Home Builders Association (NAHB) 2013 Project of the Year for Green Certified Remodeling.   

About Paradise Found Construction:

Paradise Found Construction is a Cary, North Carolina-based-construction company, serving Western Wake County and the Triangle.  It’s also a conventional and green certified remodeler and builder of high-performance Energy Star Qualified and Green Certified homes.  The company specializes in integrating cost-effective energy efficient, healthy, environmentally and socially responsible building materials and products, and the latest in building science techniques in residential and commercial construction. 

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