By Philip Ferrato / 12/04/13 at 12:30 pm 

Where: 4564 19th Street
What: New construction in Eureka Valley, this 4-bed, 5.5-bath house replaced a dilapidated house from 1912 and went to contract before it was finished, and “Pending” at $3.8M.

A collaboration between Hood + Thomas Architects and Ewen Utting of ENU Construction– dubbed Equilibrium House, this luxury spec project is designed to the European Passivhausstandard. Decreasing the need for heating while managing interior air quality and comfort levels, Passivhaus construction standards are increasingly common in Europe but rarely seen in the US. And is controlled from wall-mounted iPads:

 
No Furnace: Basically, the house is so tightly-sealed that it’s heated by the appliances, lighting and occupants– temperature and air quality are managed throughout by the heart and lungs of the house, a Heat Recovery Ventilator.

 
Mounted away from the wall, the skylit staircase is illuminated with fiber optic LEDs and set against a four-story wall of molded panels. Below, the open kitchen looks out into Eureka Valley and downtown San Francisco through triple-glazed windows:

 
Below, the media/family room on the lowest level, which opens to a patio built over the garage– unusual for San Francisco, garage access is through an alley behind the house:

 
Exceptionally simple but luxurious bathrooms:

 
What We Love: Aside from the impeccable detailing, the absolute quiet you get from triple-glazed windows and solid doors.
More: Check out the realtor’s dedicated site for more images, more technical data fromPassivehaus, plus there are two more Equilibrium Houses in the pipeline from ENU Construction.

Source: California Home + Design