Green Mountain Ranch: A Lifestyle for Health, Longevity, and Sustainability

These are the top 100 items which are being installed at Green Mountain Ranch (without advertising age or disability).

Lighting

1. High lighting levels without glare including 100 fc on kitchen counters
2. Rheostats on ambient lighting and task lighting (older people need 3-5 times the quantity of light than younger people)
3. Skylights to add extra light
4. Clearstory lighting to add extra light
5. Transom to increase lighting (removable to accommodate tall people)
6. Glass garage doors for extra light
7. Solar lighting on sidewalks
8. Zenon lighting under the cabinets
9. Pressure switches on lamps
10. Touch controls on lamps
11. Rope lights on the stairs for safety

HVAC

12. High ambient temperatures without increased cost (older people often need 78° ambient temperatures)
13. Solar panels
14. Preheated hot water from solar (older people hate to waste)
15. Zoned heating with solar radiators on individual thermostats
16. Wood burning stove with hot water coils
17. Spa heated with solar
18. Backup batteries charged by solar voltaic (older people value independence)
19. Four passive solar greenhouses
20. Gas fireplace as an additional heat source
21. Low “E” glass to prevent heat loss
22. Insulation with high “R” values to prevent heat loss
23. Hot water floor heating to keep heat low in the room wheelchair users
24. Duct fan in the ceiling to cool in the summer
25. Swamp cooler to save the energy used by air conditioners (we don’t have many hot days since we are at 7500’)

Kitchen

26. A zero clearance entry to the kitchen from the garage
27. 36” accessible route from the kitchen entry to the living room, bedroom, and gurney accessible bath. Adaptable route to all spaces.
28. Cork floor in the kitchen (to prevent slipping wet and dry).
29. Touch controls on kitchen cabinets
30. White interiors on cabinets for visual acuity
31. Drawer extensions
32. Kitchen storage planned to save trips
33. Heavy items stored low
34. Light weight and seldom used items stored high
35. Wire shelves for viewing from below
36. Appliance caddies at counter level to prevent lifting
37. Adaptable space for an accessible washer and drier
38. Computer monitors in the kitchen, DR, and Den (for increased text size and for training)
39. Light colored ceilings, floors, and counters to increase ambient light levels
40. Built-in appliances for healthy cooking including steam oven, pasta cooker, and wok
41. Fold-down seat in entry (for changing shoes)
42. Recycling bins and composter (seniors hate to waste)
43. Greenhouses to grow your own food (and encourage healthy eating)
44. Pot filler (so heavy pans of water don’t have to be carried across the kitchen)
45. 42” clear floor space required for a 90° turn through a 32” doorway
46. Mortise system on the entry door to eliminate the threshold
47. Recessed door mat
48. Automatic door
49. Handrails on both sides of the stairs
50. Extensions on the handrails
51. Adaptable kitchen with 42” aff wall-mounted counters (we are both over 6’ tall) which can be lowered to 33” aff for wheelchair users
52. Handrail on the front of the counters
53. Reveal on the counters to prevent spills (and wet, slippery floors)
54. Wall-mounted removable lower cabinets (to clear the space for wheelchair users)
55. 9” removable drawer in the kick space recessed for wheelchair users
56. Controls usable with one hand
57. Reachable controls between 18” aff and 42” aff (outlets, switches, thermostat, kitchen fan controls, etc)
58. Counter-mounted drain controls
59. Magnetic induction cook top (for sliding heavy pans and to prevent burns)
60. Side-hinged oven door/breadboard below (to prevent burning wheelchair users)
61. Counters all on one level for sliding heavy pans
62. Elevated washer and dryer
63. Accessible ironing board in a drawer
64. Shelves which can be lowered for use by shorter people, children, and wheelchair users

Bathroom

65. Ceiling lift into a chromatherapy bathtub
66. Gurney accessible bathroom with movable wall
67. Base cabinet doors open to reveal a clear floor space for wheelchair users
68. Hand-held shower on a vertical grab bar to prevent accidents
69. 8’ handheld shower hose
70. Stop valve in the handset
71. Grab bars around the entire bathroom (visually integrated as trim)
72. Toilet in the shower for clean up after bowel/bladder program
73. Aromatherapy shower with built-in seat
74. Recessed “P” trap for the sink (to clear the knee space) with extra insulation and a removable panel for access to pipes
75. ¾” plywood reinforcement on all bathroom walls
76. Ceramic mosaic slip-resistant tile in the bathroom
77. Pressure reducing mix valves
78. Fold-down seat in one shower
79. Grab bars around the tub and shower
80. Covered toilet paper rolls (to protect them from the hand-held shower)

Dining Room

81. Special purpose outlets for platform lifts in the DR, spa, and one guest room
82. Recessed bright LCD monitor for training
83. Recessed area rugs
84. Wall texture (to offer friction when leaning on the wall)

Office

85. Levers and door stops on all doors
86. Casement windows with crank extension
87. Textured wood floor
88. Furniture with arms forward for easy exit and entry
89. Telephone which amplifies high frequencies
90. Rising pin-butt hinges to eliminate the thresholds

Spa

91. Moveable stairs for transfer into the spa from a wheelchair
92. Plants throughout to remove contaminants and increase oxygen levels
93. Weights, treadmill, and exercycle for health
94. Dead bolts on all doors or fold-down blockers on all sliding doors for increased security. (Security is the number one priority for older people)

Bedroom

95. Low pile random sheer anti-microbial carpeting. (With a reduced olfactory sense, older people cannot detect microbial odor from carpet.)
96. Wall mounted drapery controls
97. Radon mitigation for health
98. Elevated Bed

Additional Exterior Features

99. Textured sidewalk to covered entry
100. Small lake stocked with 100 German Browns for healthy eating. Most are over 20”, and we offer fly fishing lessons. Come visit us!