Timmons Design Engineers provided mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and energy engineering design services for the schematic design phase of Hicks Mountain Ranch in Nicasio, California.   Hicks Mountain Ranch is comprised of a Main House, Pool House, Pool, Ranch Manager’s House, and an Animal Barn totaling approximately 12,550 sq. ft. an is located on an isolated site in West Marin on land designated for agricultural uses.  The project utilizes natural resources and site layout to reduce site impact.  Sustainable building practices focused on passive building systems, such as solar heating, photovoltaics, natural daylighting, and natural ventilation. 

The mechanical systems utilize ground-coupled heat pumps to supply heating and cooling to all the buildings.  Radiant floors are the primary form of space conditioning and some air systems are used to boost the radiant floor systems on peak design days.  The electrical power and distribution system ties directly into a photovoltaic power system to generate on-site renewable energy.  The daylighting controls, occupancy sensors and Lutron lighting system effectively control the lighting system within each building to conserve energy.  The plumbing systems receive potable and non-potable water from site sources, since municipal water and sewer service are not available at the site.  Solar hot water systems will be coupled with electric hot water storage tanks capturing renewable solar energy to heat water. Architect: BAR