This 2800 square foot barn serves multiple purposes: storage, apple processing, and as a party space.
The family has added party lights, picnic tables, farming equipment, and even a basketball net inside the barn. It is easy to transition from work mode to party mode quickly by moving the equipment, hoop, and tables out of the barn.
An upper loft overlooks the main room below.
A full kitchen doubles as a space to process apples, and to prepare food when there are parties.
Barn bathroom
Windows are insulated.
The entire property has become a kind of outdoor environmental classroom for the family. There are chickens and goats, as well as an apple orchard and vegetable crops, which the children help tend.
Barn doors are draft free and weather-stripped on all sides
The barn’s conventional photovoltaic paneled roof converts sunlight into electricity, while hydronic panels heat water. The panels generate more energy than the building uses, making it "net-zero".
The homeowner’s commitment to a low energy lifestyle includes raising animals and growing most of their own food sources on the farm property.

[Show slideshow]

  • Howell Custom Building Group supports sustainability by encouraging our clients to donate reusable materials to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. All proceeds help fund the local Habitat affiliate. Click here for a list of acceptable items to donate and additional information.