Reclaiming the Future:

America’s First Certified EnerPHit Wooden Row House

Sawkill Lumber is a Brooklyn-based supplier of reclaimed and new wood products. The owner, Alan Solomon, found himself supplying products to a few Passive House projects, and it wasn’t long before his own home became one as well.

When Alan bought the c.1888 row house, located in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, he was originally drawn in by the wood frame. He didn’t know how much work it would need. His interest in Passive House helped him see an opportunity for a Passive House retrofit. Alan’s work with Castrucci Architect, energy consultant David White, and Blueline Construction ensured that the house would become the first wooden row house in the country to gain an EnerPHit Passive House certification.

Alan and his team walk us through the retrofit process, including installing larger windows in the south façade and utilizing reclaimed wood that’s been charred (treated with a Japanese process known as shou-sugi-ban) for the front exterior. We think you’ll agree that the final results are stunning.

You can learn more about the process here. For more on Passive House retrofits, check out our recent blog post highlighting Monte Paulsen’s presentation on retrofitting buildings in a climate emergency, and be sure to join us for the 2023 Passive House Network Conference online and in Denver, which will include panels on retrofits like OutPHit: The Strategy that’s Scaling Up Retrofits and Commercial Building Retrofits: Two Case Studies. Be sure to register now so you can be a part of the retrofit conversation.