Sustainable lumber and natural finishes were used throughout the house; triple pane, specially glazed windows and natural insulation keep the house very warm in winter, always comfortable in summer with no need for air conditioning. The house is utterly quiet with virtually no traffic sounds intruding. The house uses a custom-designed water filter. Passive solar siting w/ min. trees cleared. Sustainable lumber; plywood is formaldehyde-free Advantech. Insulated w/Icynene low-voc foam. Triple-glazed vinyl Thermotech windows and doors. Six kw solar photovoltaic grid-tied system serviced by Energyworks of Maine. Healthy home hardwood finish natural oil; no polyurethane used on wood. LED bulbs, EnergyStar appliances.

This is a rural setting in a tiny town (Alna, ME) with only one house viewable from indoors, where our wonderful neighbors live in their own handsome, custom-built house. Our house is perfectly quiet inside and out, wonderfully free of traffic sounds, and sometimes visited by deer and wild turkeys from the woods that border the house. The house is sited on a circular driveway and private road off of W. Alna Rd., a rolling country road dotted with horses and small houses; it is 5 miles from the quaint town of Wiscasset, billed as "the prettiest town in Maine" and home to antique stores.

The closest town to rural Alna is Wiscasset (see above)on Rt. 1; our house is about a 40 min. drive to Bath, the closest town of any size. There is also an alpaca farm on nearby Rt. 218.