House

The opening of a suburban house doesn’t usually warrant a ribbon-cutting ceremony, but a new house constructed in Gaithersburg, Maryland, is special. Built for the U.S. Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the typical-looking suburban home is designed to provide researchers with a place to test various high-efficiency and alternative energy systems, materials and designs. As a result, the Net-Zero Energy Residential Test Facility (NZERTF), as it is known, is expected, over the course of a year, to generate as much energy as a family of four living in it would consume in that period.  Read More

If a storm rolls in while you’re at work, and you’re wondering if you left your bedroom window open, you can tell via an internet connection – if that window is equipped with a contact sensor. Ordinarily, such sensors require electrical wiring, and a battery or mains power. A new window system developed by Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits, however, works without wires, and draws its power from the environment around it.  Read More

Mini House is a functional prefabricated modular home that comes delivered flat-packed and can be constructed on-site in just two days. The first prototypes, which were designed and built by Swedish architect Jonas Wagell in 2010, are currently being used as summer houses in different parts of Sweden and an upgraded Mini House 2.0 is on the way.  Read More

"People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones," is a proverb not usually taken literally, but anyone brave enough to live in architect Carlo Santambrogio's glass house (designed by Ennio Arosio) may want to do so. They'll also need to not be the shy and retiring type, have a fair amount of money in the bank, and own a plot of land with no close neighbors or easy points of access. Not for the faint-hearted then, but a property we can all aspire to one day live in ... if we ignore the obvious practical concerns.  Read More

Czech architect Marek Štěpán and his studio Atelier Štěpán has come up with a stylish take on the prefabricated home designed for affordable off-grid living. Though compact, the "Freedomky" nevertheless comes complete with laundry and cooking facilities as well as security and heating systems.  Read More

Maybe its their height. Maybe it's because they're round. But clearly there's something about abandoned water towers that makes people want to transform them into residential accommodation. Tower House in West London's desirable North Kensington neighborhood (though admittedly, not the plushest part) appears to be the latest addition to an ever-growing set; a set that includes the converted World War II tower, Chateau D'eau.  Read More

While an upstairs balcony is a nice feature for any home, adding one to an existing house can be pretty involved, and thus pricey. Now, there’s a simpler solution – a window that converts into a balcony ... of sorts.  Read More

Fighting coastal erosion is a little like fighting aging. One can can make endless expensive artificial enhancements, but one day those enhancements will fail, and when they do, things will get ugly. In the case of erosion, for many that can only mean packing up and heading off for pastures new (or at least inland), for the owners of the Hut on Sleds, it's as simple as remembering where you parked your tractor. The Hut on Sleds, you see, is designed to be moved in the more literal sense.  Read More

As home extensions go, this eye-catching extruded cloud is certainly something different. Completed earlier this year, the "Cloud House," as it is now known, is the result of both the renovation and extension of what was once a traditional double-fronted Edwardian house in the Fitzroy North suburb of Melbourne Australia. It's now anything but.  Read More