An energy-efficient home in the wine village of Kasel in Germany’s Ruwer valley echoes the architecture of neighboring houses, with two floors and a gabled roof. The building is currently used as an office, but it can be converted into a residence. The positive-energy house by architects Hemmes Wirtz has an elongated form and was built with solid timber construction on a concrete slab. All walls and structural partitions are made of solid wood panels and are left untreated, revealing the beauty of the natural surface.
An Energy-Efficient Home in Kasel, Germany
The roof, walls and floor are insulated with a 30 to 40 cm layer of insulation. Good insulation is one of the basic principles of a passive house. The building also has a ventilation system with heat recovery, while fresh air is supplied through buried collectors. Local materials were used for construction, including oak for the facade and slate. Resource-saving and CO2-neutral materials such as wood and slate were sourced from the Ruwer valley, allowing the building to blend naturally into the landscape and rural setting.
An Energy-Efficient Home Clad with Wood and Slate
The roof surfaces are treated according to orientation: the north facade is finished with copper elements, while the entire south-facing surface incorporates photovoltaic modules. The building volume is visually divided not only by different materials, wood and slate, but also by the open space between the two floors near the entrance. Interior and exterior spaces are closely connected. Triple-glazed wooden windows on the upper floor and floor-to-ceiling glass on the ground floor allow plenty of natural light to enter the house.
Wood siding and a gabled roof
Harmonious integration into the surroundings
Interior
The contrast between stone and wood
Currently used as an office, but convertible into a residence
miranda_shida
Peter Dark
Anna Lohan
