House in Batroun

Notes

"The Casa Batroun project consists in the eco-friendly and sustainable renovation and extension of an existing, 1930s, sand stone house, in the Mediterranean sea-side town of Batroun, North of Lebanon. The objective was to double the existing surface area in an exemplary eco-friendly way.
The existing sand stone walls were preserved for their beauty, character and thermal mass qualities; however they proved to be inadequate to support another floor. To reach the required additional area, a new independent wooden structure, composed of 4 vertical boxes, was inserted vertically into the original house envelope, creating a play of levels from ground floor to mezzanine to first floor, while doubling the floor area. The design was further enhanced by carefully adopting bio-climatic features to facilitate cross-ventilation, reduce summer overheating, and limit the need for winter heating. One important aspect of the house is its compactness and extremely smart usage of space, especially in the 70m² one-bedroom upper level.

Sustainability:
Casa Batroun is renovated and extended by combining old sandstone and new timber, while adopting almost exclusively natural, low-toxicity, and breathable materials. Its main eco-features are: Bio-climatic design enhancing cross-ventilation eliminating the need for air-conditioning; energy-efficiency through carefully studied windows positioning, shading devices, natural insulation, LED & lighting zoning, Solar Water Heating and space heating via wood pellet stoves. Water savings are realized via rainwater harvesting used for irrigation, cleaning & WC-flushing, and low water consumption equipment. A vegetated green roof with native plants was implemented. Construction favored collaboration with local artisans and workers, using traditional techniques.
Casa Batroun house was renovated according to the British BREEAM International certification criteria. The sustainability consultants anticipate a BREEAM Excellent rating by February 2014. A thermal modeling analysis has concluded that the house will achieve reductions in its energy consumption and CO2 emissions of 55% and 41% respectively." (Maha Nasrallah)

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