House in Massís del Garraf in Yearbook Passive Houses

The Czech magazine PASIVNÍ domy publishes its 2023 annual Passive Houses special in collaboration with the organization Centrum Pasivního Domu (Passive House Center) and for the FOR PASIV fair, featuring Slow Studio’s project House in Massís del Garraf.

PASSIVE Houses 2023 is an annual publication on the implementation of passive houses and how to live in them. It reflects current trends and experience in passive house construction in the Czech Republic and abroad. The yearbook is intended for anyone who wants to build their own passive house or seeks relevant information about this type of housing and inspiration for its implementation.

 

 

The initial conditions for passive houses in this area of Spain are incomparably simpler compared to the climatic conditions of the Czech Republic: the Mediterranean climate particularly affects winter temperatures, where the thermometer rarely drops below 5°C. There are no extremes even in summer; thanks to the higher altitude, the most common temperatures here range between 22 and 24°C. To optimize the climatic properties of the limited space, the designers proposed a compact square floor plan, which minimizes heat loss through the exterior walls but, on the other hand, does not allow sunlight to penetrate the rear rooms. For this reason, the idea arose to create a bioclimatic atrium in the center of the floor plan, a central double-height space that will accumulate heat from the south-facing windows in its upper part and allow the rooms in the northern part of the house to be tempered.

 

 

The mezzanine at the top of the atrium, which rises above the roof, creates a kind of second facade for solar gains and stores warm air, which is then used to ventilate the house.

 

 

The main living room with the dining area and kitchen faces south. The sliding window leading to the terrace and the entrance to the atrium allow for rapid cross-ventilation and night cooling in summer, as well as an interesting spatial and visual connection between all the spaces that make up the home.

 

 

The ceiling of the ground floor rooms, including the bedroom, is formed by a vaulted ceramic envelope, a typical construction solution in the country’s tradition.

 

 

To view the complete publication.

To view the project House in Massís del Garraf.