by John Solso
Thinking of "double plays" reminded me of the yurt, which is a multiple-play dwelling, where one space serves as living room, bedroom and kitchen. Recently, I joined an Earth Watch expedition whose mission was to document traditional houses in Turkey. In ancient times when the Turks roamed about Central Asia living in yurts, their nomadic life limited the number of possessions each family could carry.
Later, from the 11th Century, as the Turks settled in Anatolia, those clutter-free habits carried over to the permanent settlements. For example, the traditional Turkish room is multifunctional. Like a yurt, each room may be used for working, sleeping and cooking, without having a single dedicated function.
The courtyard, together with an associated veranda, is the primary space for daytime activities. As I measured and photographed dozens of these houses, I noted that 90% of the verandas were located in the south or southeast part of the house for solar access. The wide overhang shelters the wall while making the space comfortable for working, relaxing or cooking.
A purely Turkish innovation, the cumba [pronounced "jumba"] is an irregular part of a room which floats over the street (similar to a bay window). Since the cumba is free from geometric constraints of the street and house, it can (1) channel breezes, (2) capture sunlight and (3) focus on interesting vistas.
Skipping ahead by two or three centuries we have the Softub®, an ingeniously engineered hot tub. The rigid foam insulation doubles as the structure supporting the tub wall. And unlike other hot tubs, which have electric heating elements, there is no need for a heater, since a heat exchanger wrapped around the pump motor captures heat that would otherwise be wasted.
Houses also can have walls built of insulation, such as straw bales. Two years ago, Carolyn Roberts, with the help of her two young sons, designed and built this load-bearing straw bale house in Tucson. The wide overhang on four sides protects the walls while offering useful living space. And, in the winter, the sun space serves as a living room while collecting solar energy. This house virtually heats and cools itself and cost less than a power-hungry conventional house.
The batch water heater is also insulated by straw bales and uses a secondhand tank. The night lid doubles as a reflector during the day. Carolyn's house is proof that, by changing our approach to architectural design, we can make our buildings simple, natural and comfortable.
Like Carolyn Roberts, others in Tucson looking for a better way to house themselves banded together to develop their own neighborhood of 28 dwellings, and called it Milagro. Its members aspire to practice "deep ecology" in which all aspects of building, living and working are integrated with the environment, much as the ground squirrel is at home in his burrow. An ambitious goal, to be sure, but one which has, at least partially, been achieved.
Rainwater from the metal roofs is collected in cisterns and also in 18" deep permaculture basins located in the front and rear of the house. Permaculture dictates that berms, swales, washes, basins, etc. have more than one function. So, not only do these basins collect water, but they provide a habitat for fauna and flora, food for local fauna (javelina), food for residents (fruit trees), and landscaping. In addition to harvesting water, the roofs are used to support solar water heaters and photovoltaic panels at the optimum angle.
During the summer of 2001, with Steve Baer's encouragement, I filled a styrofoam box with water and tried to create a thermosyphon by connecting hoses attached to a copper heat exchanger exposed to the night sky. Later, I assembled 4" diameter PVC pipes to create a thermal storage (16 gal H₂O) inside our house. This was connected to a copper heat exchanger (5 square feet) on the roof with 3/4" heater hose. The temperature of the water storage was observed to be reduced by about 7 or 8 degrees F overnight. Problems were (1) fitting the PVC together, (2) bubbles in the hoses, and (3) leaks. Finally, I made an eleven foot tall mockup.
A full scale system will be built in a triplex in Milagro. The shape of the roof, romantic as it might be, is less than ideal for our experiment, principally because it lacks large, unobstructed, south-facing surfaces. Aluminum BigFins™, for night radiation, will be mounted on the west-facing roof above the thermal water storage on the first floor, just inside the door.
This study model of the experimental triplex is shown at 9 AM January 21 for winter heating. Unglazed black panels may be placed on the limited south facing roof with water circulated by a PV-powered pump. Alternatively, the above mentioned BigFins™ on the northwest side of the house could be used in winter for a "double-play."
For information about Milagro visit milagrocohousing.org or contact John Solso, 3047 N Gaia Place, Tucson AZ 85745, 520-293-8667, [email protected].
The preservation and restoration of the environment is advantageous not only for plants and wildlife, but also for people. Because of wise water use at Milagro, the entire 43-acre site will be lusher with the Milagro development than without it. A healthy and alive desert ecosystem provides beauty and tranquility to people. At Milagro, every individual design aspect is intended to be a solution to more than one problem. For example, using rainwater and recycled wastewater for all landscaping needs saves precious groundwater and creates abundant plant and animal life. In turn, the increased abundance of trees and vegetation provides cooling and shade to buildings and people and reduces the need for energy-consuming coolers and heaters.
Creating a Nature Preserve — 35 of Milagro's 43 acres will be preserved and restored as natural desert. Permeable dams (gabions) in the site's washes reduce erosion and flooding and increase plant and wildlife diversity. Rainwater harvesting and wastewater recycling increase desert vegetation. Young ironwoods, mesquites, and other native vegetation will be planted to help abundant landscapes flourish.
Desert-Friendly Landscapes — Trees and shrubs within the 8 acres of the Milagro community enhance the native habitat. Orchards of citrus, plum and other food-producing trees will yield about 100 lbs. of fruit per person per year. Plants will be pesticide and pest free using permaculture landscaping strategies.
Energy Conservation — Passive solar orientation: major window openings face south; buildings shaded in summer, warmed in winter. Trees provide shade to east and west while reflecting light into north-facing windows in winter. Shade from trees along the pedestrian pathway helps cool the community. Photovoltaics: all homes wired to accept PV panels. Thermal mass: adobe stores heat and cold, moderating interior temperature swings.
Water Conservation — Rainwater harvesting (roofs collect rainwater for gardens and landscaping). Beneficial use of wastewater (household wastewater recycled through subsurface "wetlands," then recirculated to community gardens and orchard by sub-surface irrigation). Water-saving appliances and front-loading washing machines (40% less water). Wise garden and desert landscaping (basins and swales retain water close to plants).
520-622-6918 / www.milagrocohousing.org
Source: Double Plays — Old and New, November 2002. Text from PDF.
PDF: 2002-11-01-double-play-old-and-new.pdf