A greener house in the Magnolia neighborhood is fit for man and beast

FOR MAGNOLIA resident Andy Luk, it's always been about his dog, Spiff. The massive mutt is as much a fixture in Luk's home as his collection of Asian- and nature-inspired artwork and delicate antique furniture.

The reason Luk found his hillside home in the first place? Spiff. Almost a decade ago, Luk was taking Spiff out to walk in Discovery Park, but made a wrong turn and ended up passing the house with its for-sale sign out front.

And the reason Luk chose to remodel? Again, Spiff. Luk, a rheumatologist, originally decided he just wanted to enlarge his bathroom shower so he could easily bathe Spiff, who weighs in at 80 pounds.

But with remodels, things don't always go as planned.

After starting with the shower, Luk soon concluded he really wanted to make his 1940s home more livable and energy-efficient, and to do all that without adding any square footage. Aware that previous owners had built awkward additions, he was also hoping to give his home a better sense of continuity and style. But above all, he wanted to make the house overlooking Puget Sound more environmentally friendly.

"My environmental consciousness had been slowly evolving over the last 10 years or so, so energy efficiency was something I wanted to address," Luk says.

He went ahead with a number of improvements, including making the bottom floor cozy with cork floors and a gas fireplace, carving out space for a library, and integrating a deep bathtub and larger shower into his master bath.

To conserve energy, Luk chose more insulation, solar ceiling tubes that let in natural light, dual-flush toilets and an outside cistern to capture and reuse rainwater. He added 12 solar panels, high-efficiency windows and a better heating system.

He also went to great lengths to use locally made materials as well as salvage from other buildings.

Luk's passion for playing piano moved him to design a new deck resembling the shape of his favorite instrument. The house sits on a steep slope covering three buildable lots, but Luk chose to keep the home smaller so he could preserve open space overlooking Puget Sound. He is replacing invasive plants with native ferns and shrubs to help stabilize the slope.

Michelle Ma is a Seattle writer. John Lok is a Seattle Times staff photographer.