Green Builder Media and Thrive Homes Announces Launch of VISION House Sonders Project
Green Builder Media and Thrive Home Builders have announced the launch of The Sonders Project, a 220-home community in Fort Collins Colorado that the duo says will push the limits of net zero homes. Featuring a blend of single-families, duplexes and townhomes, the residences have been designed with smaller footprints to emphasize quality and sustainability over expansive spacing for its 55+ targeted demographic.
These homes will be constructed using the newly adopted Thrive Carbon-Wise building process, which focuses on reducing both the operational and embodied carbon in the homes. This includes optimizing regular building processes such as heating, cooling and lighting while also vastly improving the manufacturing processes of these homes. It’s estimated that the use of this approach with save a total of 1,023 tons of carbon emissions when compared with a 2021 IECC home.
Once constructed, the Thrive-built homes will be DOE Zero Energy Ready, EPA Indoor Air Plus, and LEED v4 certified.
A Sustainable Home is a Healthy Home
From the building envelope down to the design details and appliances, the homes of the Sonders project are designed to be efficient, healthy and resilient. As part of the exterior envelope, the homes will feature high-performance windows, insulation and advanced weatherization systems. Inside, the homes will be all-electric, utilizing air-source heat pumps for heating and cooling, hybrid heat pumps for water heaters, induction cooktops, battery storage backup and advanced energy management systems to monitor and optimize their energy usage.
Each home will also be equipped with its own solar array to cover a portion of the power needs. However, homeowners will also be able to take advantage of a unique option in Fort Collins to purchase 100% renewable energy from the town’s power grid. The homes will also come equipped with advanced plumbing manifold systems, low-flow fixtures and leak detection and water monitoring devices to address the growing scarcity of water in the Western United States.
Radon detection systems, whole-home filtration and humidification technologies will be used to address air quality needs at the post-build level, while features such as non-toxic flooring, countertops and other building materials will be used to minimize VOCs in the home. Each product has also been selected based on sustainability and carbon reduction qualities, with Environmental Product Declarations and sustainability certifications being pursued where possible.
The homes will also incorporate wider hallways, single-story layouts and accessory dwelling units (ADU) that will be able to house family members and caregivers to facilitate aging-in-place needs while also acknowledging the more active lifestyles aging adults have nowadays. The community will offer shared electric vehicles, bike lanes, walking trails, communal areas, parks and mixed-use open spaces.
Production of the homes will begin this fall.
