An Analysis of the Modern House Design

Modern Architecture Model Project – Paper

It is well-known that many aspects of the common lifestyle in the U.S., and other developed countries, are unsustainable. From burning fossil fuels and causing climate change to depleting groundwater that cannot be renewed, our activities threaten the planet and its inhabitants in multiple ways. Many people are aware of this and unhappy about it – they naturally don’t want to endanger the world their children and grandchildren will live in, but they don’t seem to have access to any alternative way to live.

Mirroring these material issues are emotional ones; many people in today’s society feel disconnected from nature, and as nature is important to us as humans, this creates a feeling of dissatisfaction. Many people cannot easily find fulfillment in their homes, either. Dull and unattractive houses and buildings are common; many seem to be constructed without regard for the happiness of the people who will live in them. They are more like mere shells, structures in which to sleep, eat, and keep one’s belongings, than meaningful homes.

We want to change all of that. Environmental sustainability, harmony with nature, and beauty are all important to us, and we believe a home can reflect these principles. Although complete sustainability is a difficult goal to achieve, we can get close by working off of previous innovations about building methods that minimize or eliminate various environmental impacts. Additionally, we believe a home should be aesthetically appealing, comfortable, and welcoming, as it is easier to find meaning in a home with these qualities, and a person’s home should be a sacred place to them.

Get quality help now

WriterBelle

Verified

Proficient in: Modern Architecture

4.7 (657)

“ Really polite, and a great writer! Task done as described and better, responded to all my questions promptly too! ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

A home should also seem like a fitting part of the landscape around it, and not make the inhabitant feel separated from the outdoors. Our values of sustainability and beauty have a common root: put simply, we are motivated by human happiness and well-being. We want our work to have a profoundly positive effect on its inhabitants in the present without hhurtingall of Earth’s people in the future.

The building we designed is a house for a family and has two floors. We imagine it would be best for a family of three. There are three bedrooms: one “master bedroom” where two adults could sleep, one for their child, and one on the ground floor that would best be reserved for guests. The house will be located somewhere in New England. It should be built in a grassy area, ideally with some trees around to contribute to the natural beauty.

The house has a roughly rectangular shape, although it has a roof that slopes downward from north to south. The main materials used in the exterior of the house are compressed earth blocks, glass, and wood. Most of the walls are made of compressed earth blocks. These are made from soil, an abundant natural material, and the soil can come from near the site of the house, minimizing the energy needed for transportation. Creating earth blocks requires much less energy than manufacturing cement, a much more common building material. Earth blocks also have the advantage of being soundproof, fireproof, and non-toxic, contributing to the inhabitants’ privacy and safety. The glass is used to make some of the walls, as well as the windows. This will be glass with a low-emissivityLow-E-e) coating, which makes it a good insulator. Aesthetically, these two materials create an appealing contrast, as earth blocks look more traditional and natural while glass looks more clean and modern. The wood is used in timber frames for the glass walls and will come from local, sustainably managed timber stands.

The first floor has a living room, a dining room, a kitchen, a study room, a bedroom, and a bathroom. The study room is also a sunroom; it is set in a corner of the house and has glass walls on the two outward-facing sides. The bedroom and living room also each have a glass wall on one side.

More specifically, these walls are made of glass panels set in thin timber frames. On the first floor, there are two places where vertical segments of the wall alternate with empty spaces; between two parts of the living room, and between the dining room and kitchen. This structure contributes to a sense of openness in the house; the one between the dining room and kitchen is a way to mark the separation between these areas, without completely walling them off from each other. The kitchen is in a corner of the house and has two windows that can be opened for ventilation. The bedroom on the first floor can be used as a guest room, as it is not on the second floor with the house’s other bedrooms. It has a series of long curtains that can be closed to cover the glass part of the wall, giving the inhabitant privacy. The second floor has two bedrooms, each with an adjoining bathroom, and a closet.

The sloped roof is actually above the main roof and is attached to it on the north side by three columns. It adds some visual uniqueness to the building, but it also serves more important purposes.

First, the roof of the house is covered with photovoltaic solar panels, which generate energy from sunlight. The diagonal angle allows the solar panels to collect more of the sun’s rays. The energy is supplied to the house. Although we do not have the engineering background to determine exactly how much energy this would produce, an area of solar panels this wide could account for at least a large part of the electricity used by the house, especially if we are successful in making the house energy efficient. This means that the house will use a relatively small amount of energy from fossil fuels, if any, which will greatly reduce its carbon footprint. Additionally, the lower edge of this roof has a half-tube that collects water when it rains and deposits it into a cistern next to the house. The water is filtered and goes into the house’s plumbing to be used, reducing the house’s need for water from the community’s water supply.

There are two doors to the house, one on its south side and one on its north side. Having two entrances contributes to the house’s connection with the outdoors. There are also two stone paths through the grass that lead up to each of the doors; these are nice to look at and make the house seem more like a part of its landscape. An area on the south side of the house, to the right of the door, is set aside for a garden. If so inclined, the inhabitants of the house could grow some vegetables here, which would make the house a site of local food production and help the inhabitants have a connection to what they eat. A small sitting area with a table and chairs could also be set up outside the house; this would give the inhabitants a place to relax, read, talk, or work when they would prefer to be outside.

Several aspects of the building are examples of passive solar design, which refers to heating and cooling a building with natural solar processes instead of electrical energy. For one, earth blocks have a large amount of thermal mass, which means that they can take in and hold heat. Therefore, the walls will store heat from the sun during the day and release it back at night, averaging out the temperatures over the cycle of the day into a more moderate, comfortable one. Also, the roof with the solar panels overhangs the south side of the building, where the sections with the glass walls are. Since the sun is in different parts of the sky in summer and winter, this overhang creates a difference in what happens to the building depending on the season. In summer, when the sun is more directly overhead, the overhang will block out the sun’s rays; in the winter, when the heat of the sun is more needed, the sun is at a lower angle and its rays will be able to get through the glass. These glass walls are also on the south side of the house, and in the Northern Hemisphere, most sunlight comes from the south. Therefore, the location of these walls maximizes the solar heating that the house will receive in the winter. Good insulation is also important for passive solar design, as it prevents the outdoor temperature from leaking into the house, so the house is well insulated. In addition to the Low-E coating on the glass, the earth block walls are insulated with cellulose, a plant material that insulates well and can be made from recycled newspaper.

Other touches contribute to the house’s sustainability as well. “Gray water” – used water from sinks, showers, and washing machines – is used to flush the toilets, reducing the amount of clean water needed. In addition to heating the house in winter, the glass walls also let natural light into it, an example of “daylighting”. This reduces the need to use energy for lighting. If the windows and doors to the rooms are opened, the house can be naturally ventilated to some extent. This is because there are windows on both stories. Since warm air rises, it will go out the windows on the second floor, and cool fresh air will come in through the first-floor windows to replace them.

The inside of the house should be painted with a combination of earth tones and brighter, pleasant colors. The furniture should be attractively designed and comfortable.