Marta Serrats - 150 Best Eco House Ideas

An increasing scarcity of resources; global warming, partly caused by emissions from the construction industry; and the rising price of raw materials are leading architects to consider a series of good building practices to achieve a sustainable environment. The road to responsible architecture depends on the efficiency of buildings and their carbon footprints. There are two main building systems in ecological architecture; they are known as passive and active systems. The former refers to strategies that make maximum use of the conditions of a location (its climate and orientation), insulation, and the thermal inertia of materials to make heating and cooling buildings as natural as possible. The latter turns to technology for optimal thermal comfort. Currently, the best-known active energy-supply systems are: photovoltaic and thermal solar, geothermal, and wind energy, although there are others, such as hydraulic and tidal power.

Another major sector in the field of sustainable architecture is prefabricated homes. Formerly associated with a uniform aesthetic, they have improved their individual design features in recent years. Among their benefits over traditionally-built homes are: a greater control of building processes and the lowering of costs and the environmental impacts of construction. Today, reducing the ecological impact of construction is primarily in the hands of those directly involved (architects, designers, and homeowners), as well as government officials who deal with legislation concerning environmental preservation measures. A home designed logically for healthy living and energy self-sufficiency not only achieves the best habitat conditions for its occupants, but the construction of such homes can be a critical tool for halting the environmental crisis. Marie-Franoise Plissart

Jim Bartsch, Tim Bies, Nikolas Koenig Architect: UdA Location: Revigliasco, Italy Year of construction: 2008 Photography: Carola Ripamonti This two-story house faces south and uses a ventilated facade method. Marie-Franoise Plissart

Jim Bartsch, Tim Bies, Nikolas Koenig Architect: UdA Location: Revigliasco, Italy Year of construction: 2008 Photography: Carola Ripamonti This two-story house faces south and uses a ventilated facade method.

Its structure is composed of brick and glass surfaces incorporating a patterned adhesive film. The external surface is clad with thermoset phenolic resin wood panels and a synthetic grass layer covering the exposed parts. A buildings orientation should be influenced by its source of energy. Glazed openings and long facades should face south. A walkway was built to give access to the
interior of the house from its roof. Architect: Einar Jarmund, Hkon Vigsns, Alessandra Kosberg/Jarmund/Vigsns AS Arkitekter MNAL Location: Toten, Norway Year of construction: 2008 Photography: Nils Petter Dale This house was built next to a vacant farm. Architect: Einar Jarmund, Hkon Vigsns, Alessandra Kosberg/Jarmund/Vigsns AS Arkitekter MNAL Location: Toten, Norway Year of construction: 2008 Photography: Nils Petter Dale This house was built next to a vacant farm.

The planks, part of the structure of the old farm, were reused for the new house. The main section faces south to allow light to enter in winter. A small roof garden regulates the temperature inside, acting as a heat source in winter and a temperate zone in summer. East elevation South elevation Glazed openings in walls are thermally weak. Low-E insulating glass helps compensate for this. Plan Natural energies used in bioclimatic designs are cyclic.

They produce high peaks at certain times and are totally absent at others.