CASA OS Spanish Green House by Nolaster Architects
by Cate Trotter
Perched atop a Spanish cliff sits this gorgeous green home, a privately-owned holiday house that’s as lovely as it is sustainable. Located in Cantabria, Spain, and designed by Madrid-based Nolaster Architects, Casa OS integrates green building techniques to create high-end, low-impact accommodation. The irony is that the original design scheme wasn’t intended to be a green building, but the architects employed many green features for visual impact and practical benefits. We’d just love to live an eco life on that cliff.
The front of the home looks out over the sea with the back end supported by stilts over a cavern in a dug-out hill. Combining this wind protection with insulating grass roof means that temperature is much easier and less energy-intensive to control and the building’s visual impact is much less imposing. Other features include an inner yard to provide an open space protected from wind and rainwater collection for reuse fushing toilets and watering the roof and garden in summer.
The black panels are zinc; ideal for seaside houses as it lasts longer. If desired, the entire house can be dismantled and reconstructed elsewhere, as the panels have been screwed together rather than welded. If not, the zinc can be recycled at the end of its useful life.
Sleeping up to 24 people but with use for only four in mind, the house was built to cater for a range of different uses and events. Certain areas, such as the south hall and vestibules, have been designed for flexibility, perhaps to serve as a dormitory, games room or welcome hall as required. Efficient underfloor heating allows temperature to be controlled room by room, consuming only as much energy as is needed. We love the modern aesthetic, gorgeous Euro context, and green materials and systems!
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What a beautiful project. Reminds me both of Johnson’s Glass House in CT with that simple, sleek glass facade, but then that beautiful progression up through the house towards the recessed courtyard and then green roof observation deck seems to resemble Corb’s Villa Savoye.