MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Winter 2019

96 ML BLUE WINTER 2019 The in-floor heating system features a three-inch overpour with lightweight gypsum concrete to promote thermal mass heating. Not to mention, there’s a ton of insulation. But it’s the view from the main room that really captures one’s imagination; this huge space with a 14-foot ceiling serves as a dining and living room, and kitchen. Supported both above and below with massive steel beams to eliminate the need for any in-room pillars, the highly efficient wood stove, clad in industrial concrete, is a centre- piece. But it’s the glorious view that steals your attention. Any time of year. “It looks like Tuscany or something in my opinion,” says Gabriel. “We’ve sat in here and chilled; we’ve seen deer, coyote, foxes, bald eagles, everything.” And with a 2500-foot driveway coming in from the nearest road, privacy is at a premium. The client, who builds solar fields around the world, will build a 5-7 kilowatt, roof-mounted system in the spring that will be tied into the grid. “It would be a net metering system,” says Gabriel. “It wouldn’t have any storage capacity and when it’s producing excess power, it either spins the meter backwards, or you receive a credit in terms of your billing.” With LED lighting throughout, energy-efficient appliances, eco-friendly foam insulation, sustainably-farmed Fijian mahogany, this is a model of what a green home can be. The downspouts are tied into a rainwater cistern, which is used to fill the pool, the hot tub and to water the gardens. And even the paints were meticulously sourced to ensure they were formaldehyde-free. “We have a pretty rigid policy and guidelines on what we’ll do in our buildings,” says Gabriel. “We make that pretty clear to the client upfront. We exercise control, in construction and quality and everything in between. Those standards they know at the start and there’s a premium paid for them, but we feel it’s important.” One walkthrough of this beautiful home in Grey County will have you convinced that being green has never been so luxurious.