With today’s building standards the indoor air quality can be worse than the outdoor air quality. And although here at Berkeley Little House we use low VOC products, solid wood and plywood cabinets and no particle or composite woods throughout, we are still concerned about indoor air quality. Because of this, every ADU that we build has a whole house air exchange unit. Constantly bringing fresh air in and exhausting stale air out. To do this we utilize the latest ERV (energy recovery ventilation) units which not only the exchanges indoor temperature with the fresh air coming in, but the humidity as well – reducing heating a cooling costs throughout the year. This allows the system to be very efficient and controlled. We also include an inline MERV 13 air filter so you can rest at ease knowing the air coming in is fresh and clean.
BEST PRACTICE
From the ground up we look at industry “best practices” in our design and construction methodology. By taking advantage of modern materials, waterproofing systems, metal or cementitious exterior trim and fascia we ensure a water tight, fire rated, low maintenance house the looks beautiful. The houses we build are well insulated, air tight and efficient. We use radiant heat in the insulated concrete slab which insures a controlled, consistent, reliable and very comfortable environment. This system also allows for either gas or electric energy source. We recommend to go with electricity if solar power is an option, otherwise gas is more cost effective.
Zero Maintenance
We strive to build our ADUs to have minimum if any maintenance over the next 20 years. By taking advantage of best practices in construction, and using modern materials, waterproofing systems, metal or cementitious exterior trim and fascia boards we ensure a water tight, fire rated, low maintenance house the looks beautiful. The only exterior wood used on our stucco houses are the porches and decks, and on the shingle houses are the shingles themselves which are fire rated and should easily last 20 years.
AGE IN PLACE
Berkeley Little House caters to the elderly, or anyone who is feeling overwhelmed in their current large house but either cannot afford or just do not want to leave their neighborhood. Let us build a brand new low maintenance house in your backyard for you to move into. Then, if desired, we can update your main house and arrange local property management so you can have additional cash flow from renting out the larger house.