Corrales, New Mexico Residential project

General Contractor: Owner

This home, sited on a flat arid acre between Albuquerque and the Rio Grande with spectacular views of the Sandia Mountain Range, is influenced by the strong socio-climatic traditions prevalent in this region: Orientation to the sun and wind; Techniques for rain water collection and thick wall construction for relief from the dramatic dessert temperature swings; and Urban Form in a series of courtyards filtering from public to private spaces and fluidity between inside and outside. The adobe tradition transmuted into the use of ICF's for a wall with superior thermal resistance (R-50).

It is primarily passively heated and cooled with in-floor hydronic heating only as a booster and requires no air-conditioning. It is small (2500sf) and zoned so unused areas can be closed off to conserve energy. Every room receives natural light and ventilation from at least two sides. The stairwell wall pre-heats water for in floor heating. Rain water drops from the roof to the ground where it filters through the sand to a perforated pipe and to underground storage tanks where it is re-used for irrigation. Other sustainable features include: black water managed by an ATU septic system allowing the water to be re-used for irrigation; electrical setup for the future addition of PV panels; the "cool roof" is a white TPO membrane; all landscaping is indigenous, non-invasive with low water needs; and all interior finishes are low to no VOC.

Most importantly, however, the house "lives" very comfortably for the client and her extended family and it integrates into its context seamlessly, a fundamental criteria of the Owner.