Houses Designed to Be Flood-Resistant
Nearly 200 million people worldwide live in high-risk flood zones, and in the United States, over 36 million people currently face the threat of flooding. Events like Hurricane Katrina, sudden ocean surges, can become major disasters. Innovative and floatable houses seem to offer a solution to this problem. Recently, Vietnamese architectural firm H&P completed the Blooming Bamboo Home, which is built on stilts to withstand bad weather and flooding of up to five feet.
Studio Peek Ancona Flood-Proof House
Source : Studio Peek Ancona
Location : Stinson Beach, California
The residence was created by a San Francisco-based design company called Studio Peek Ancona and is located in Marin County, California. It can withstand storm surges or sea level rise of up to 12 feet.
The house is built with prefabricated metal units installed on a pair of concrete and steel columns, each of which sits on a strong foundation. Panels along its exterior act as rain barriers during bad weather.
In the event of a major flood, the ground-floor garage will detach from its foundation and float. This serves to prevent the garage from potentially compromising the structural integrity of the columns and the living room above. The stairs are oriented perpendicular to the ocean.
Blooming Bamboo Home
Source : Doan Thanh Ha
Location : Hanoi, Vietnam
H&P, a Vietnamese architectural company, has completed the Blooming Bamboo Home, designed to withstand bad weather and flooding in the region. Built on stilts, the first-generation model was constructed to withstand floods with water levels up to five feet. H&P is working to ensure that the next-generation models will be able to withstand floods of nearly 10 feet in height.
The exterior is made of bamboo, fiberboard, and coconut leaves. These versatile materials, abundant in Vietnam, make it easy to adapt the Blooming Bamboo Home to various climates, both seasonal and regional. One wall can even be folded into an open deck, and the exterior is designed as a vertical garden, showcasing the structure's functionality. Likewise, a filtration system is placed under the house to collect rainwater from the roof and store it for management and use in the home.
Flood House
Source : Morphosis
Location : New Orleans
Float House is an affordable housing project located in New Orleans. The city is still not fully recovered from Hurricane Katrina, and pre-fabricated, flood-resistant homes designed by Morphosis Architects aim to ensure the area can withstand the next Hurricane Katrina.
During floods, the house's foundation acts as a raft, rising with the water. The FLOAT house has the ability to rise up to 12 feet, secured by two concrete piers that extend 45 feet into the ground for added stability.
The house is also designed for self-sufficiency and flood resilience. It has a container to store rainwater collected from the roof, and the water is filtered and stored until needed. Solar panels on the roof generate electricity. The electrical system is tailored to the needs of the home/store.
Dutch Floating Homes
Source :Dura Vermeer
Location : Maasbommel, Belanda
More than half of the Netherlands is below sea level, which means the nation's safety depends entirely on a complex system of dykes, flood gates, and canals. Since the devastating North Sea Flood of 1953, the Netherlands has tightened flood prevention standards. Small Dutch towns like Maasbommel are still outside this preventative infrastructure.
In 2005, the Dutch Government commissioned construction firm Dura Vermeer to create "adaptive building technology" for flood prevention. This resulted in a series of amphibious floating homes along the Meuse River. Like some other designs, these Dutch houses use the concept of a floating foundation. The floating hull allows the homes to rise from their foundations to a height of 13 feet. Even when floating, they remain connected to electrical utilities and drainage through a flexible piping system. The price of these homes is not cheap; a model home with a width of 1,290 square feet costs between $322,000 and $386,000.
Site-Specific Floating Home
Source : digitaltrends.com
Location :Ban Sang District, Thailand
Thailand has been one of the countries most affected by flooding in recent years. In 2011 alone, 66 out of Thailand's total 70 provinces experienced a major flood, resulting in hundreds of deaths. With stronger storms and rising sea levels, these deadly floods will increase in the decades to come.
Working in collaboration with the National Housing Association of Thailand, the company Site-Specific Co. Ltd worked to create affordable flood-resistant homes for the areas most in need. The amphibious design employs a dry dock model, even in a video showing testing where the house rises nearly three feet as the space below the house floods. Equipped with electricity and flexible piping, the designers plan to anchor the homes on the lake's edge.
Amphibious House
Source : Baca Homes
Location : London, England
Designed by Baca Architects, the Amphibious House is the first of its kind in the UK. The upper part of the house is made of lightweight wood while the bottom is made of floating concrete and is described by the architects as a "freely floating pontoon."
The house's foundation sits on a dock that is essentially wet. When the water fills the dock, the house will rise with it. The Amphibious House is guided on a series of steel stilts, allowing it to rise to a height of eight feet. A series of flexible pipes also ensure that utilities are not interrupted when the house rises. Just a few miles away, the company is currently working on a second flood-resistant house.
article source : digitaltrends.com
