BC’s ambitious Energy Step Code requires that all municipalities in the province transition their energy efficiency targets to “net zero ready” by 2032. To jump start this process, the City of Quesnel asked TOAD to design a pre-approved ADU that could achieve “net zero ready” performance and to make the design available to any property owner in the city.

Through careful design, this energy efficiency goal is quite achievable, provided the orientation of the sun is known. In this case, however, the design needed to be universally applicable to sites with any solar orientation. To solve this puzzle, TOAD designed a perfectly square plan with carefully located windows on all sides that could be rotated or mirrored in any direction. This allows each owner to decide which orientation best suits their site.