Architecture

Energy efficient Treehaus spins elegantly down a forested hillside

Energy efficient Treehaus spins elegantly down a forested hillside
The Treehaus has been placed on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million
The Treehaus has been placed on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million
View 37 Images
Inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
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Inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
Kitchen area inside the Treehaus
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Kitchen area inside the Treehaus
Open kitchen and living inside the Treehaus
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Open kitchen and living inside the Treehaus
The Treehaus by Park City Design+Build was designed to Passivhaus standards
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The Treehaus by Park City Design+Build was designed to Passivhaus standards
The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
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The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
Living area inside the Treehaus
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Living area inside the Treehaus
Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
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Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
A look at the kitchen area inside the Treehaus
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A look at the kitchen area inside the Treehaus
Bathroom inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
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Bathroom inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
The newly completed Treehaus has a big focus on energy efficiency
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The newly completed Treehaus has a big focus on energy efficiency
Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
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Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
A bedroom inside the newly completed Treehaus
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A bedroom inside the newly completed Treehaus
Bathroom inside the newly completed Treehaus
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Bathroom inside the newly completed Treehaus
The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
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The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
Inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
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Inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
A bathroom inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
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A bathroom inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
A bathroom inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
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A bathroom inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
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Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
Unfurnished but looking fine
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Unfurnished but looking fine
Bathroom inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
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Bathroom inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
Inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
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Inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
Laundry area inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
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Laundry area inside the 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus
Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
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Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
Unfurnished interior of the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
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Unfurnished interior of the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
Dining and living area inside the Treehaus
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Dining and living area inside the Treehaus
Unfurnished but looking fine
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Unfurnished but looking fine
The Treehaus has been placed on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million
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The Treehaus has been placed on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million
Living space inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
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Living space inside the Treehaus, by Park City Design+Build
The Treehaus is built to Passivhaus standards, meaning it makes careful use of insulation, high-performance glazing and an extremely tight building envelope to keep its internal temperatures stable without artificial cooling or heating
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The Treehaus is built to Passivhaus standards, meaning it makes careful use of insulation, high-performance glazing and an extremely tight building envelope to keep its internal temperatures stable without artificial cooling or heating
The Treehaus is built into a wooded hillside in Utah
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The Treehaus is built into a wooded hillside in Utah
The Treehaus was completed last month and promptly put on the market
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The Treehaus was completed last month and promptly put on the market
Entrance to the Treehaus
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Entrance to the Treehaus
Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
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Custom-built staircases connect the three upper levels of the Treehaus
The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
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The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
The Treehaus isn’t a treehouse in the traditional sense, but does provide plenty of opportunity to take in the fresh forest air with the deck spaces created by its revolving form
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The Treehaus isn’t a treehouse in the traditional sense, but does provide plenty of opportunity to take in the fresh forest air with the deck spaces created by its revolving form
Utah's Summit Park is home to an eye-catching new hillside abode consisting of stacked cubes that gently rotate as they head up toward the canopy
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Utah's Summit Park is home to an eye-catching new hillside abode consisting of stacked cubes that gently rotate as they head up toward the canopy
The Treehaus has been placed on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million
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The Treehaus has been placed on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million
View gallery - 37 images

Utah's Summit Park is home to an eye-catching new hillside abode consisting of stacked cubes that gently rotate as they head up toward the canopy. The recently completed Treehaus has a big focus on energy efficiency to soften the blow of the area's harsh winter climate, with a low-profile dark cedar facade that helps it blend into its pine forest surroundings.

Designed by local architecture firm Park City Design+Build, the Treehaus isn't a treehouse in the traditional sense, but does provide plenty of opportunity to take in the fresh forest air with the deck spaces opened up by its revolving form. This also allows for different perspectives on the environment and certainly gives the home a distinctive look, as lead architect Chris Price explains.

"The rotated cubes allow for a number of architectural opportunities," the Park City Design+Build co-founder tells New Atlas. "Firstly, by stepping back each level they allow deck space on each level, by rotating them they provide differing view and vantage points up the wooded canyon, and by articulating them in this manner it steps the house up the hillside providing some aesthetics."

The Treehaus was completed last month and promptly put on the market
The Treehaus was completed last month and promptly put on the market

The home is built to Passivhaus standards, meaning it makes careful use of insulation, high-performance glazing and an extremely tight building envelope to keep its internal temperatures stable without artificial cooling or heating. Embedding the cubes into the hillside within stepped retaining walls was key to this, as were the materials used.

"This house is about using less energy in a very efficient shell," Price continues. "The walls are 12-inch R-48 (high insulation rating), with triple pane windows all placed to utilize passive solar and the views up the wooded canyon. The systems in the house are all high efficiency, and due to the low heat/cooling loads, the house uses a fraction of the heating/cooling energy a comparable house would."

The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors
The 2,500-sq ft (232-sq m) Treehaus spreads its floorspace over four floors

The 3,600-sq ft (334-sq m) home spreads its floorspace over four floors, with the patios adjoining the living areas intended to create some fluidity between the indoor and outdoor leisure spaces. Meanwhile, the private spaces, such as the bathrooms and bathrooms, are located on the lower and upper levels.

These are connected by custom-built staircases, with lightly colored oak floors contrasting with darker fixtures and exposed steel beams throughout. The abode boasts four bedrooms in all, with the master suite complete with an office and steam shower found on the upper level.

Price and his team completed the Treehaus last month and have since placed it on the market with an asking price of US$1.1 million. Have more of a look around in our gallery.

Source: Park City Design+Build

View gallery - 37 images
2 comments
2 comments
Mik-Fielding
This, like a number of recent projects, could actually look rather nice if it were not for the depressing choice of the black facade.
What is wrong with a natural wood or any other enhancing color that fits with the environment?
ljaques
At $1,100,000, this will likely be the only one ever built. Meh.