"The more I learned about Passive House, the more it seemed the most thoughtful and thorough process for building with outcomes in energy efficiency and for comfort," Michler says. "It's also the only process I've found that's predictable and performance-based." In 2017, he completed the first certified International Passive House in Colorado just steps from his cabin, called MARTaK (an acronym of the couple's names).

The 1,300-square-foot Passive House functions as the couple's living room and an extra abode for visiting family and friends. During the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the couple earned extra income by leasing MARTaK as a vacation rental.

Michler is now also the designer and founder of Hyperlocal Workshop. The company has built two Passive Houses, has three currently in design, and is writing contracts for four more. Michler's "Colorado contemporary" style home has an open floorplan and a shed roof, "and takes its design inspiration from Japanese architecture in its use of materials and the space-making," he says.

The home's "big, strong triangular motif was inspired by Hogback mountains here on the Front Range." Being inside the structure feels like " being inside one of those hills," he adds. The interior has FSC-certified plywood for flooring, shelves, millwork, and cabinets. They crafted the ceilings with reclaimed pickets from a cedar fence and installed concrete and slate floors.

How Did MARTaK Use Alternative Building Systems?

A wall of rammed-earth tire construction, which Michler had built as part of an old workshop on the site, now anchors the stem walls of the MARTaK. He didn't want to use any foam in the construction and minimal plastics.

The "simple old-fashioned crawl space foundation" is filled with cellulose to reach R-50. "It's a massive insulated layer," Michler says. Inside the cavities of 2X4 wood framing and plywood skin with taped joints are Rockwool mineral wool batts. 

Larsen Trusses, non-load-bearing frames, attach to the exterior to create bays filled with dense-pack cellulose insulation. Mineral wool board (Rockwool drain boards) attach to the trusses' exterior, with the outside walls finished with board-and-batten Hardie board and cedar pickets. The walls vary from 16 to 24 inches thick to attain an R-70, on average. The thicker walls are on the north side of the house. High-performance, triple-pane windows and patio doors from Whythe Windows draw in daylight and solar heat gain in the winter.

The ceiling has an airtight membrane on the inside, with mineral-wool board on top of the roof deck and a metal roof. "A lot of these choices also had to do with fire resilience," he explains, "as we're in an area where fires are common." Last year, one fire reached the edge of the property. "These materials come together to create a Class A fire-resistance rating." A rain catchment system supplements water needs and serves as a reservoir for fire suppression.

The home uses LED lighting, has a multi-use staircase with cubbies for storage, and decks of reclaimed redwood. Windows frame views of the Rocky Mountains. 

A net "bed" hung in the loft space 10 feet off the ground is beloved by young visitors.