723 Spring Street is Ann Arbor's First LEED Platinum Home. 723SpringStreet.com

1. 723 Spring Street
Ann Arbor’s First
LEED Platinum Certified Home
“Living in a Green Home”
Series

2. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
This home became the City of Ann Arbor's
first LEED Platinum house. This home
was designed to weave into the
surrounding neighborhood in style and
function, while showcasing many different
types of green building methods that
make this home ultra-efficient.
In addition to ICF Construction and Geo-
thermal Heating, the home also has an
8.6kW solar array and is near net-zero.
Advanced building techniques abound in
this house, which also features
Meadowlark Builder's outstanding design
and cabinetry.
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 2

3. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Green Features Home Design Features
• Photo-Voltaic Solar Panels • 4,000 Finished Square Feet
• Geothermal Heating & Cooling • 5 Bedrooms
• Energy Recovery Ventilator • 4.5 Baths
• ICF Walls - Insulated Concrete Forms • 2 Car Garage
• SIP Roof - Structural Insulated Panels • Custom Kitchen
• Recirculating Hot Water System • Energy Star Appliances
• Low Flow Water Fixtures • Low VOC carpets and finishes
• Solar Powered Window Blinds • Hardwood Floors
• Fireplace
• Built-in Media Center
• Custom Built-in Cabinets
• Finished Attic
• Partially Finished Basement
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 3

4. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
1. Learning the Benefits and Changing Habits
2. Builder and Designer Comments
3. Day-lighting Design and Health Benefits
4. Water Conservation
5. Geothermal Explanation
6. Homeowner Wrap-up
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 4

5. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Learning the benefits and changing habits
This video is a description of the benefits of living in a green
home by the homeowners of 723 Spring Street, Scott & Linda
Phillips.
They discuss the positive life-style changes as well as the
advantages of "living local" near down-town Ann Arbor.
Scott and Linda talk about needing fewer cars, water
conservation, indoor air quality and their aspiration to be a net-
zero energy home soon.
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 5

6. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Builder and Design Comments
Doug Selby (owner) and Larry Maciag (designer) discuss the design,
construction methods, materials, features and benefits of the 723
Spring Street LEED Certified Home. The primary design goal was
resource efficiency, to have a highly energy and water efficient home
built from recycleable materials that blended into the neighborhood.
Location was also very important as the home is in close proximity to
downtown Ann Arbor as well as the University of Michigan Campus
and Hospital. An additional goal was the efficient use of footprint
space using Structured Insulated Panels (SIPs) to enable living
space in the attic and over the garage.
A special aspect of this video is the use of Google Sketchup
Model Simulations to demonstrate the construction
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 6

7. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Daylighting – Design and health benefits
723 Spring Street was designed to take advantage of skylights in the
3rd level which would otherwise be an attic in a traditionally built
home. Because Structured Insulated Panels (SIPs) were used for the
roof, the 3rd level became total living space.
The benefits of daylighting interior living spaces, especially in
northern climates, has been well documented and is key design tool
for many architects and builders.
Doug Selby provides an explanation of the use of skylights during the
design and construction of 723 Spring Street. Through the use of
skylights and enhanced daylighting, we have added about 1,000
square feet of usable space to the home.
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 7

8. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Water Conservation
Even in Michigan, where we are surrounded by water, we are still
overtaxing our aquifers. 723 Spring Street was built to reduce
needless water consumption with water efficiency in mind including
recirculating hot water, cross-linked polyethylene supply lines that
come from a central manifold.
The end use point fixtures include dual flush toilets, faucet aerators
and low-flow shower heads. Together, the advanced plumbing
systems with water conserving point of use result in a 60% reduction
in water usage.
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 8

9. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Geothermal Explanation
Doug Selby explains how the ground source heat pump accesses the
52 degree temperature. The geothermal system is connected to four
vertical ground loops.
In the summertime, the system acts similar to a traditional air
conditioner except that instead of the air source being outdoors at 90
degrees, it is the ground at 52 degrees.
Homeowner Linda explains how the summers are cooler and the
winters warmer with the combination of the geothermal system and
Integrated Concrete Form (ICF) wall construction.
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 9

10. 723 Spring Street - “Living in a Green Home” Series
Homeowner Wrap-up
Linda and Scott Phillips talk about their experience since moving into
the house including how surprised family and friends are when they
first visit the home and find it very traditional looking.
Architect Mark Johnson talks about how the house is used by other
architects and designers utilizing Google Sketch-up.
Ann Arbor’s First LEED Platinum Certified Home
http://723springstreet.com/ 10