Category: Palo Alto

At Clarum Homes, we get a lot of questions from clients about custom home building. And it makes sense – building a custom home is a nuanced process that not only requires a phenomenal team, but also a fair amount of planning to get just right. When clients engage us for a custom home building project, we try to impart as much information as we can from the outset. It’s important to our team that you have all the knowledge and resources you need to get your dream home completed on time, within budget, and exactly the way you envisioned it. That’s why we’re sharing some insight on custom...


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If you live in California, you're probably well-versed in the concept of water conservation, especially in the Valley. Everyone knows a big swath of lawn to water and mow isn't a great reflection of a sustainable ethos. In fact, drought resistant and water-efficient landscaping is even mandatory in some jurisdictions like Menlo Park. What you may not know, is that passive homes take a commitment to environmental conservation up a big notch. Passive and extremely high-performance homebuilding considers the entire impact of the home on the landscape, including the reverse – the effect of the landscape...


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Minimalism is a key contributor to the chic design of Clarum’s modern homes. As its core philosophy, the modern home brings simplicity to the forefront – this includes the simplicity of form, space, detail, materials, and color. Unlike the ornate, heavily-decorated approach of other types of historic architecture such as the Queen Anne, Craftsman, and Victorian, modern architecture and design shows restraint through a meticulous pairing down of space and form. Inspired by the work of great architects such as Frank Lloyd Wright, Mies van der Roche, and Joseph Eichler, today’s minimalism...


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Extend your living space outdoors One of the reasons we all love Palo Alto is for its gorgeous weather. We live in a city that gets – on average – 261 sunny days each year. This beautiful weather motivates us to get outside as much as we can. So, it’s important when planning the construction of your modern home to think about how to extend your living space outdoors. The right design will turn your outside areas into an oasis that’s so comfortable, inviting, and relaxing, you’ll never want to leave! At Clarum, we encourage our clients to think about their outdoor spaces throughout...


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Deciding to build a custom home in Silicon Valley is an involved process, and understanding the progression of a construction project is essential to both your mental well-being and the success of your project. You may be surprised at how much work has to happen before construction. Pre-construction components like budgeting, financing, property selection, topographical surveying, permitting, planning, and design will weigh into your budget and timeline for completion. In particular, the complexity and duration of the permitting process can surprise future home owners in Silicon Valley. Permitting...


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Harnessing the Sun Solar electric technology is fairly ingenious. With your rooftop tiled in solar panels, you can harness the sun’s radiation to power your home, charge a battery, and even earn a profit. Compared to the conventional alternative, a solar-powered home is not only more ecologically responsible; it’s also more financially savvy. Smart, Economical, Responsible Originally, solar electric was mainly used for spacecraft and satellites, and in the beginning, it was expensive. But that’s changed. With advanced technology, greater demand, and more efficient manufacturing techniques,...


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Come see the Palo Alto Passive Home! October is a busy month for Passive Homes! Please join us at one of our several upcoming events. All events include our newest Palo Alto Passive Home, 1510 Portola Avenue. Please note that parking is limited; please consider parking at Palo Alto High School on Churchill Avenue. All events are free and open to the community! We hope to see you there! 2012 Solar Homes Tour: The Road to Net-Zero Energy Hosted by Acterra: Action for a Healthy Planet October 13th from 1pm – 5pm You are invited to take a self-guided tour of five local homes including...


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Green energy expert Sean Miskelley from Clarum Homes explains the use of the Structurally Insulated Panel (SIP) Roofing System in the Palo Alto Passive home. These panels are 12? thick, giving the roof an insulation value of R44. The panels are delivered to the construction site, lifted in to place, and secured. This allows an airtight attic assembly and eliminates the need for hot, unconditioned attic spaces. In addition, it doesn’t require the venting of traditional attic vaults. The science behind energy efficiency in our building walls strips down simply into three areas: 1. Air Transfer/...


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And finally, we just finished transforming a modest 1,185 square foot 1920’s period home into a super energy-efficient passive home inspired contemporary three bedroom home with an open floor plan designed for today’s family. The renovation included adding super insulation, air tight envelope, heat recovery ventilation, solar power, passive solar hot water and a host of crisp and modern but subtle stone and wood finishes and custom built-ins. The home is now one of the nicest homes on the block. Check out the photos on our Renovations page.


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Clarum is currently designing our first passive home in Palo Alto, California. It will be located in the Southgate neighborhood adjacent to Stanford University and Palo Alto High School. We’ll be under construction in the fall. Check back with us for more info. If you are interested in owning this Palo Alto passive home or having a passive home designed or built for you, send us an email. sean@clarum.com   UPDATE: Our Palo Alto Passive Home is getting near to completion.


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