River House

The River House is a high-performance, LEED Silver, gut rehab of an existing building. Constructed in 1994 of standard materials and methods, it's sited on an exceptional piece of property on the bank of the Connecticut River in Hanover, New Hampshire. Surrounded on nearly all sides with either river water or wetlands, it’s a natural oasis just a few miles from downtown Hanover.

The existing structure of the house was retained and wrapped with an air barrier and insulation. Together with new high-performance windows, this created an environment requiring low heat input and a final blower door test of .35 ACH50. The material palette for the house was kept simple and low maintenance. The exterior showcases a thin cement panel rainscreen, meticulously designed and installed around window openings with minimal need for trim and therefore paint. The interior uses white oak plank flooring throughout, and recycled content porcelain tile in the bathrooms.

This project received a Building of the Year award by the New Hampshire US Green Building Council.