Historic home retrofit in Michigan achieves net-zero energy

The Mission Zero House, a 1901 historic preservation project in Ann Arbor, Michigan, restored a 1,500-sf home. The Certified Net Zero Energy Project under the Living Building Challenge was a historic rehabilitation achieved within the restraints of the Secretary of Interior Standards for Historic Preservation guidelines—not a gut rehab.

The family restored as much as possible using salvaged materials, supplementing antiques where reclaimed materials weren’t possible. For the few areas where buying new products was the only option, they carefully researched items made with recycled content.

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