Project Description
Located in a natural clearing within a wooded hillside of northwestern Connecticut, this retreat serves as a place for relaxation away from the hectic urban lifestyle. The 16 ft. x 52 ft. module contains a sleeping zone at one end and a kitchen/dining/living zone at the other. In between sits a black steel core volume containing the bathroom, laundry, storage, and a heat-generating fireplace. This core ‘floats’ in the space creating separation between the private bedroom space and the public entertaining space. The core is filled with natural light from a skylight above and frosted glass pocket doors. The single bar module is heated and cooled passively via the expansive wall of sliding glass doors on one side and the continuous slot of operable windows on the other. The roof is designed for solar hot water panels used to heat the pool and the module via radiant heat tubing beneath the bamboo flooring, supplementing the heat-generating fireplace. Exceeding energy standards, the perimeter envelope contains a special hybrid spray foam & fiberglass batt insulation system, thus retaining heat longer and minimizing energy use, as well as keeping the house cool in the summer. In the warmer months, cooling is passive and achieved via natural ventilation and evaporative cooling. As breezes blow over the pool, water evaporates and cools the air as it blows through the expansive sliding glass doors, through the 16 ft wide domestic space, and out the continuous linear clerestory windows along the back of the house.