Winners of the Bushfire Building Council of Australia's best design concept award.
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Earth Sheltering is the most ecologically sustainable approach to domestic or small scale architecture.
Baldwin O'Bryan Architects have specialised in earth-sheltered design for many years, but we have recently broadened our focus to cover bushfire-resistant and storm-resistant architecture generally. (Continued below.)
Baldwin O'Bryan Architects have specialised in earth-sheltered design for many years, but we have recently broadened our focus to cover bushfire-resistant and storm-resistant architecture generally. (Continued below.)
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Earth sheltered house rear view
Earth-sheltered buildings offer numerous advantages. They are significantly more ecologically sustainable due to minimal heating, cooling, and maintenance requirements. They can be more easily designed to provide protection against natural elements such as hail, cyclones, and bushfires. They also maintain more vegetation as a carbon sink and a habitat for native flora and fauna, providing more efficient land use in urban settings and better acoustic privacy.
Unfortunately, the technique of earth sheltering has been overlooked for some time. This is mainly because, until now, it has been generally more expensive than traditional building techniques and has not always produced good aesthetic outcomes.
We have developed several innovative construction systems that are cost-competitive with conventional building systems and generate visually exciting forms that integrate well into any site's contours. Many of our recent designs are based around arches, which are the most economical and sustainable way to build earth-sheltered structures.
It is essential to understand that earth-sheltered houses, sometimes called underground houses, can receive as much light and air as conventional houses if they are planned correctly. They can be constructed on almost any terrain, including steep slopes or flat ground.
Earth sheltering is an exceptionally cost effective solution for building in bushfire prone areas. In November 2015, Baldwin O'Bryan Architects won the Bushfire Building Council of Australia's Innovation Award for the best design concept.
We are passionate about conservation issues and sound design. We pride ourselves on innovative solutions that are responsive to aesthetic, environmental, and fiscal constraints and on creating exciting buildings that enrich the human experience.
Unfortunately, the technique of earth sheltering has been overlooked for some time. This is mainly because, until now, it has been generally more expensive than traditional building techniques and has not always produced good aesthetic outcomes.
We have developed several innovative construction systems that are cost-competitive with conventional building systems and generate visually exciting forms that integrate well into any site's contours. Many of our recent designs are based around arches, which are the most economical and sustainable way to build earth-sheltered structures.
It is essential to understand that earth-sheltered houses, sometimes called underground houses, can receive as much light and air as conventional houses if they are planned correctly. They can be constructed on almost any terrain, including steep slopes or flat ground.
Earth sheltering is an exceptionally cost effective solution for building in bushfire prone areas. In November 2015, Baldwin O'Bryan Architects won the Bushfire Building Council of Australia's Innovation Award for the best design concept.
We are passionate about conservation issues and sound design. We pride ourselves on innovative solutions that are responsive to aesthetic, environmental, and fiscal constraints and on creating exciting buildings that enrich the human experience.
Earth sheltered house
Sydney, Melbourne based sustainable Designs specialising in Earth Sheltered Houses, Beach House Design, Sustainable House Design, storm Resistant buildings, Bush Fire Resistant Buildings, Eco Friendly House Design, , Underground Houses.
THE PRINCIPLE OF EATH-SHELTERING
The Earth's mass absorbs and retains heat. Over time, this heat is released into the enclosing walls of an earth shelter. The main advantage of locating a building within an earthen rather than an atmospheric environment is due to the substantial thermal inertia of the surrounding earth. There are two distinct temperature-dampening actions associated with this phenomenon. One results in a dampening of temperature fluctuations, which applies to both diurnal (from day to night) and seasonal temperature fluctuations. The other results in a time phase shift between earthen and environmental air temperatures.
Diurnal temperature fluctuations don't penetrate very deeply into the ground, keeping the temperature within an earth-sheltered building relatively stable from day to day. However, seasonal temperature fluctuations reach a depth of several meters. The time lag between air and ground temperature waves makes it theoretically possible for the major areas of an earth-sheltered building to be warmed in the winter by heat that first penetrated the earth in summer. Conversely, heat loss during the winter would render the earth a much cooler environment during the summer than the above-ground environment.
There are numerous other benefits to be gained from earth sheltering. Earth sheltered buildings can be more easily designed to provide protection against natural elements such as hail, severe storms and bushfires. Earth sheltering can provide a more efficient use of land in urban settings (many buildings can sit below grade without spoiling the habitat above ground), better acoustic privacy, lower maintenance and perhaps most importantly, they have a dramatically lower carbon footprint than conventional buildings.
The Earth's mass absorbs and retains heat. Over time, this heat is released into the enclosing walls of an earth shelter. The main advantage of locating a building within an earthen rather than an atmospheric environment is due to the substantial thermal inertia of the surrounding earth. There are two distinct temperature-dampening actions associated with this phenomenon. One results in a dampening of temperature fluctuations, which applies to both diurnal (from day to night) and seasonal temperature fluctuations. The other results in a time phase shift between earthen and environmental air temperatures.
Diurnal temperature fluctuations don't penetrate very deeply into the ground, keeping the temperature within an earth-sheltered building relatively stable from day to day. However, seasonal temperature fluctuations reach a depth of several meters. The time lag between air and ground temperature waves makes it theoretically possible for the major areas of an earth-sheltered building to be warmed in the winter by heat that first penetrated the earth in summer. Conversely, heat loss during the winter would render the earth a much cooler environment during the summer than the above-ground environment.
There are numerous other benefits to be gained from earth sheltering. Earth sheltered buildings can be more easily designed to provide protection against natural elements such as hail, severe storms and bushfires. Earth sheltering can provide a more efficient use of land in urban settings (many buildings can sit below grade without spoiling the habitat above ground), better acoustic privacy, lower maintenance and perhaps most importantly, they have a dramatically lower carbon footprint than conventional buildings.