Wainscott Waterfront

Project Details

Construction Type : Major Renovation

Services : Mechanical Engineering

Project Summary

Nestled between Georgica Pond and the Atlantic Ocean, this massive 12k SF, historic residence boasts a separate guest tower (an additional 1700 SF with custom painted obelisk), private beach access to Georgica Beach, and sprawling water views on three sides. The residence hosts a number of amenities including its tea room, its expansive staff quarters, its geothermal equipment housed beneath the tennis court, and its caretaker's cottage, that it's no wonder the residence has had previous owners of substantial caliber. DiLandro Andrews Engineering was tasked with a full Mechanical scope from design through construction, as well as an extensive HERS Rating in compliance with the East Hampton Town energy code.

Engineering Challenges

The main challenge with this HERS rating was the segregation of the guest tower from the rest of the residence. In compliance with energy code, all conditioned space in the primary residence is required to be tested.

Additionally, based on the size of the residence (and its 16 AHU's - inclusive of geothermal air handlers) the testing of the units would be extensive.

Core Design Concepts

AHU Condition

The residence was mechanically designed with geothermal heat pumps for space cooling and heating. To execute the blower door testing- to test the tightness of the house, each air handler (of the 16 in residence) had to be located and turned off, all dampers had to be closed, and all windows and door needed to be shut within the building. This was challenging based on the ongoing construction and finish work being completed at the time of testing.

Air Sealing

In testing of the AHU supplying the staff quarters, all grilles supplying the area had to be taped off and the air handler had to be shut down. The test depressurized the ducts to test for any leakage from the AHU to the associated rooms.

Blower Door Tests

Based on the segregation of the guest tower from the "main" part of the house, two blower door tests were conducted to confirm the tightness of each structure. While this added significant time to the testing, it was the most accurate way of performing the test and analyzing the data.