LITTLE COMPTON — They were, of course, impressed by the two foot thick granite walls and that Sakonnet Point location, but it was some less obvious details about Little Compton’s 154-year-old Stone House that particularly captivated the Renovation Nation film crews recently.

Emmy Award winning host Steve Thomas and his cameramen lingered over an all but invisible set of solar panels, several tables and bartops, and some holes being dug in the yard. Even the innovative septic system got a long look.

For while Renovation Nation appreciates a handsome building as much as the next TV home show, its focus is on the green, sustainable possibilities. And with two cameras rolling nearly non-stop for two straight days, the show found plenty to admire at the old hotel.

“Steve (Thomas) told us that this is a really amazing project,” said Zach Miller, owner of the Stone House with partner Craig Pishotti. “It was interesting to see the things that especially intrigued them.”

The Stone House owners, who go by the company name Goosewing Hotels & Resorts, bought the 2.7 acre property with historic house, barn and outbuildings from long-time owners Tod and Virginia Moore and soon set out on a multi-million dollarrestoration and conversion into a top-end seaside resort with a dozen suites and three more in a restored barn. They have replaced a cupola that was lost to a hurricane, rebuilt original porches, repaired those massive walls and upgraded virtually everything inside.

“Estate memberships” of suites at the resort are already being offered on a 99-year lease basis starting at $1.25 million.

As with other properties they have handled, green was a priority here, Mr. Miller said. But conversions of any sort to a property on the National Register of Historic Properties are a challenge. If they strayed from rigid standards enforced by the National Park Service Standards for Rehabilitation, they would risk losing critical tax credits that make the project possible.

“There can be a lot of conflicts” between historic preservation and green priorities, he said — for instance, their desire to incorporate solar power into the mix.

“It was a very tricky project ... You typically are not allowed to put any structure like that on a historic building, especially on a primary facade.”

The solution, one that intrigued Renovation Nation, was a new type of “peel and stick” solar panel with a profile of no more than 1/8 inch. Affixed to a fairly flat pitched porch roof, it can’t be seen from any public area.

The renovation required removing some “super old-growth yellow pine timbers” from the barn, “some of them 60 feet long and straight as an arrow.” Rather than dispose of or sell them, they brought in a sawyer who set up shop on the grounds and cut the lumber into planks which were then converted into furniture. Table and bar tops in the house are built with the hard, attractive wood.

Mr. Thomas applauded not only the look of the finished product but the creative re-use of a resource.

Stone House heating and cooling bills will be reduced by a geothermal system — deep pits down into the ground to take advantage of constant below-ground temperatures. Warmth will be pumped up into the house in winter, and cool air in the summer.

Timing on this was perfect because the holes were being drilled while the television cameras were present.. Also under construction was the innovative septic system required by the state.

The show host even offered an idea or two of his own.

When he saw a pile of granite castoffs, he said, “You could re-use this in your pathways.”

“We plan to do just that,” Mr. Miller said.

Neither Mr. Miller nor show representatives know yet when the segment will air or how long it will be.

Typically the one hour show features three projects although sometimes it spends longer with some.

Planet Green, a Discovery Channel network, describes the Renovation Nation show and lists upcoming segments at this website:

http://planetgreen.d...novation-nation.html

“Renovation Nation” can be seen on the Planet Green Channel (Cox Communications Channel 101, DirecTV Channel 286).