A combined workplace-residence in Hanoi, Vietnam, has been designed with enough passive-cooling features – like plants and trees – to make air conditioning unnecessary in a sub-tropical part of the Southeast Asian country.
The building, called the Bat Trang House, was described in a recent article on the newatlas.com website. Its owner is a ceramics specialist who sells pottery on the bottom floors of the house, located in a traditional pottery village.
Designed by Ho Chi Minh City-based VTN Architects, the Bat Trang House takes up five floors and 720m2 (7,750ft2) for a family of seven. VTN, whose mission is to add greenery-infused architecture to urban areas, merges nature, local flavor, and – through modern materials and methods – contemporary design, the company says.
The Bat Trang House is filled with gaps that help circulate air throughout the interior. The living and working space is surrounded by trees, plants for shading, a green roof, and a ceramic façade that give the building enough “breathing space” to render an AC system redundant, the article said.
“The three-layer ventilation system, exterior ceramic façade, alternating green spaces, and door guarantee that the house is absolutely cool,” VTN architects explained.
In Hanoi, the hot season lasts for 4.8 months, from May 5 to September 29, with an average daily high temperature above 87°F (31°C).
VTN sought a minimalistic approach to the overall design of the building. “Large glass panels were integrated without the fear of getting the house overheated, as direct sunlight was filtered by the two layers of ceramic façade and greenery façade,” said VTN architects. “The gaps of the ceramic walls function particularly well in terms of effectively getting the right amount of solar gain for the interior, especially in the summer.”
The article added that an “unspecified” number of solar panels reduce building’s power draw on the grid, while a rainwater collection system provides irrigation for the extensive greenery.
The three-layer ventilation system, exterior ceramic façade, alternating green spaces, and door guarantee that the house is absolutely cool.
VTN
