Haus P | Marion Wicher

The property is situated in a green meadow and forms the north-west boundary of a loose
built settlement. The incline of the site results in a seemingly floating building with four
arms on different levels, which - protruding from a base - are formally closing a unit.

With House P the concept now finds its place continuation and is supplemented by a fourth function - working. So that the private zones are clearly separated of the
living spaces, the area cantilevers over the terrace as a fourth arm - starting from the entrance hall
and at the same time forms the shading.

A central intersection connects and distributes the spacious entrance foyer in individual zones. The garage and a guest unit are situated in the northern arm of the building. In the east you will find the sleeping area, dressing room and bathroom with connection to the terrace. In the west, cooking, eating and living are lined up in an open space sequence. Floor to ceiling windows form the transition to the terrace with a pool, which is also used as a boundary.

Zoning of the open spaces by arranging the residential functions in a row, the floor plan results in three separate zones with different privacy. It´s always very exciting when the architecture also includes the outdoor space forms, because you think about the interior anyway - that's where everything comes from.

In the north are the entrance and driveway to the garage; to the east the guest garden with raised beds, fruit trees and berry bushes, and in the south the private garden assigned to the terraces with a lounge and barbeque area.

The building is designed as a low-energy house to conserve resources. Concrete would be the most expedient building material that could be used to meet the requirements. Just like the implementation of the free form of the building, the open sequence of rooms, the cantilevered components and slender structures can be elegantly implemented with concrete.The entire huse was made of in-situ concrete with a thermal composite system and provided with beige-colored modeling plaster on the outside. Mineral plaster was used for the interiors. The residential building is heated via component-activated ceilings and component-activated walls in the bathrooms and underfloor heating. The energy is provided by means of a deep geothermal borehole
heat pump. Cooling in the summer also takes place via component activation.

A key issue in House P was the passive cooling of the living areas. That ideally happens via the ceiling - because who likes a cold floor in the interiors? To cool as many surfaces as possible in summer and heat them in the winter creating an all-year round comfortable room climate was the goal of the technician. That initially means an additional effort, which, however, due to the minimal energy consumption for the operation of the heat pump and the resulting low energy costs compensate for it relatively quickly.