Chapter 2: Building Enclosure
Location is everything for a building, having good placement with aspects such as sunlight and wind. Using the natural elements to your advantage can help create a more sustainable and green building. Taking advantage of "natural ventilation, passive solar and daylighting strategies, as well as preventing air infiltration using proper insulation, and appropriate material selection, building energy use can be reduced by 50 to 80%". (Tucker page 20). The overall site in design is sectioned into three categories; regulatory, aesthetic, and environmental. Each of these components plays a vital role in the building as a whole.
The regulatory aspect of the design refers to items such as codes, zoning, and site accessibility. These can decide the size of the building on a given plot of land. The set back lines are controlled to keep the building a set distance from the street or sidewalks. It can also dictate how close your building is to the neighboring buildings. These can also have guidelines for what specific type of use the building can be used for. This is to ensure safety of those around the building that the use is appropriate to the area.
The aesthetics of the building is another crucial aspect for the building. The aesthetics encompasses the view from within the building, what types of features the site offers, and the physical look of the building. Having a desirable view from the building, and making the most of it, can make it a space that people will be drawn to.
The animal, plant, and insect life outside of your building is also a large consideration for picking your site. Every living thing on your site becomes your responsibility for example, if there are species that need to be protected or be brought back to the area. The environmental consideration also includes the weather of the site; how the sun shines on the site, the wind directions, and if any water is near the site. LEED considerations for the land of the site and the effect your building has on that site and the environment. Man-made aspects are included within the environment of your site, such as how the site is accessed, what types of landscaping was previously there and your choice of landscaping etc. Since humans interact and effect the environment, our own use of he environment needs to be evaluated and make sure it is appropriate for the land.
Sunlight greatly effects structures, when there is adequate sunlight entering a building it can help warm the space and help those inside feel happier. Having daylight entering into your building can help cut back on electrical lighting and lowers the maintenance cost of the property. The sun has different positions depending on whether it is summer or winter, taking advantage of both positions would be ideal. In the summers you won't want a large amount of direct sunlight as that will drive the cooling costs up. Having the building be situated where the sunlight in the winter is directly shining into the building will lower heating costs and will lower cooling costs in the summer when the sunlight is not directly shining into the space.
Harm A. Weber Academic Center on our campus has made very good use of the natural environment surrounding the building. The exterior of the building has plenty of greenery to brighten the outside and incorporate the theme of nature into the building. When walking into the interior there are windows located in the stairwells, studios, and classrooms that showcase the nature just outside the building. Sunlight is a huge component of this building, the center atrium extends through all four floors of the building brightening each level. This is a unique feature especially since it gives daylight a way to extend down to the basement level. This helps to cut back on the cooling costs in the winter months and also helps to make the inhabitants of the building feel connected to nature and happier. The interior floors are made on concrete and so are a good portion of the walls, this helps with natural ventilation in the space. The concrete helps to keep the lower levels of the building cooler and draws the air back up through the building's exhausts. The window sills in the building were chosen to help bring sunlight indoors by bouncing off of the white trim paint.
In this image the white trim on the windows can be seen which draws the sunlight indoors. The large exhausts can also be seen on the roof.
Meaghan, I think you had a great post regarding the building enclosure. I loved the diagram you included showing the suns different positions depending on whether it is summer or winter.
ReplyDeleteIt clearly illustrates the different ways passive solar design takes advantage of a building's site, climate, and materials to minimize energy use. This is an important aspect of building design because people and businesses are looking to save money on energy costs and be environmentally responsible. Overall, great job!
Meaghan,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your response because it touched on the importance of aesthetic and landscape. Landscape is something I talked about a lot because it impacts the systems for the structure and its environment. I like the approach you went with it when you said that since humans interact and effect the environment needs to be elevated and make sure it is appropriate for the land.
Meaghan, this Blog entry is excellent. You thoroughly discuss the importance of various building site considerations. You also go into detail concerning the issues relating to sunlight, passive solar and daylighting. There is so much to consider. I spoke with a home owner today who installed Solar Panels on a residential home at a cost of $30,000. (The government will pay half of the cost). This purchase will provide him with energy to run his home- but it is quite costly initially. He is hoping it will pay for itself in 5 years.
ReplyDeleteYour summary of HAWAC and it's natural surroundings was excellent. Including aspects that effect the building year round. Your images were well chosen- especially the one showcasing the white windows and exhaust system.