Trifecta House Energy Efficient Laneway House

Custom Smallworks kitchen large oak dining table and woman walking to the stove

Every Smallworks home has a story, and Trifecta House tells three.

Sustainable. Streamlined. Storied. A grant-winning pilot project that’s meaningful not only for the young family who calls it home, but for the footprint it lightens and the precedent it sets for the future of housing construction.

Exterior shot of a black two-story Vancouver laneway house

Recipient of a CMHC construction innovation grant, this project piloted 3PsPiles, Panels, and Pods

crane lifting a large, pre-fabricated wooden roof section onto the partially framed structure of a custom house under construction.

Built on helical piles and assembled with off-site wall panels and prefabricated bathroom pods, this home produces 58% less embodied carbon than a typical build. Together, these methods reduce concrete use, minimize waste, and dramatically speed up the on-site construction timeline (this home was framed in just 3 days!)

Interior of a open-concept custom laneway home with open sliding doors, a large oak dining table and green abstract paintings.
Laneway home kitchen with custom oak cabinetry and a large oak table

Planning of the space is proportionate to the young couple’s priorities. An open-concept living area that spills onto a spacious deck turns a humble laneway into a gathering space for community.

Floorplan

Download Floorplan PDF
Floorplan

Specifications

Build Year2025
Home Size911
Floors2
Bedrooms2
Bathrooms2
Lot Size33 x 122
Custom oak and beige cabinetry in a laneway home kitchen filled with natural light
Neutral bathroom with an acrylic tub, off-white square tiles and beige countertop.
Den used as an exercise studio in a Smallworks laneway house with the door open showing the washing machine and bathroom in the hallway
Queen sized bed in a laneway house bedroom with a spacious closet and two skylights
woman stands at the bottom of a Scandinavian-style wooden staircase in a laneway house with a slatted wooden balustrade

Open-Concept Living

Interiors achieve what every compact home aspires to: a sense of abundance through restraint.

Vaulted Ceilings

A vaulted section of the first-floor ceiling creates a sense of openness, volume, and light, bringing an airiness that far exceeds its modest square footage.

Dog sleeping on the floor in a light filled laneway home.
light-wood shelve in a laneway house with a woven bowl, a smooth grey stone, a rectangular orange box, a multi-colored sphere, a book, and several small rocks or shells.

Hidden Functionality

The composed living area is achieved through hidden functionality—understair storage, a spacious pantry, a bathroom and an entry nook, all tucked away.

Creative Design

Upstairs, utilization of under-height ceiling allowances creates extra square footage, artfully opening the rooms with lofty architectural angles.

bedroom interior in a laneway house with a large, angled skylight, likely fitted with a VELUX blind system

See what you can build.

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