JOHN LIN - Self Sufficient House For All Seasons
Chinese architect John Lin has creates a model for a self-sufficient house that could be implemented into villages in rural China. The idea behind this scheme is to create homes for villagers that help to reduce their dependency on outside goods and services.
The house is formed of a series of courtyards, hidden behind perforated brick walls, accommodating areas to grown produce, as well as a pig pen and underground biomass boiler. The boiler uses animal waste to generate energy for the house, and leftover slurry from the boiler can be used as fertiliser. During the rainy seasons, the 'V' shaped roofs collect water which is then filtered and stored in a large container.
Taking inspiration from the traditional vernacular, the house is constructed with insulating mud walls, but in an attempt to provide earthquake resistance, also incorporates a concrete frame. The perforated brick walls surrounding the building allow for both shade and natural ventilation of the spaces.
This is an interesting concept for sustainable living for one household. Due to the location of Sway and its density, this model would not be entirely feasible to be applied in the same way as is being proposed in this project. However, another option would be to use a similar model but rather than using the house as a model, it could be expanded to relate to a group of houses that become self sustainable with a communal resource.
References:
Dezeen (2012) House for All Seasons [online] Available from: http://www.dezeen.com/2012/07/04/house-for-all-seasons-by-john-lin/ [Accessed 19th November 2015]