Project: Trail House
Architects: Zen Architects
Location: Ashburton, Melbourne, Australia
Area: 3,659 sq ft
Photographs by: Emma Cross
Trail House by Zen Architects
The Trail House is an eco-friendly home that doesn’t go over the top in terms of design and green technology. It was designed by Zen Architects and is located in Ashburton, a posh Melbourne suburb in Australia.
This beautiful, modern, open-style home relies mostly on passive solar design to cut back on its energy consumption and pollution. This way it is kept warm during the winter and cool during the summer. After all, an eco-friendly design is as much about smart planning and responding to the surroundings as it is about the usage of green technology.
From the architects: “Built on gently sloping land in suburban Melbourne, this contemporary and environmentally friendly home is designed to integrate seamlessly with the inherent natural beauty of the existing site.
Our approach favored the use of natural materials, both inside and out, in order to create a relationship between the house and its surrounding environment. A series of inter-connecting rooms allow clear lines of vision throughout the house while also maximizing the available light.
The application of passive solar design principles provides an abundance of warmth in winter and captures cooling breezes during summer. This light filled, split level home features the intelligent and sensitive application of sustainable design principles, conveying a feeling of openness, expansiveness and calm.”
