La Casa de Alejo – Ida Mondselewsky Pilar Silva

This house autoencargo of the architect and her husband biologist arises from the need to find a place in Santiago where live work and raise children. Ecological community, its proximity to the city and its surrounding country emerged as the enabling environment, with the intention of blending urban life with ideals of environmental and energy conservation, namely: consumption of spring water, recovery of 100% water consumption for irrigation, conservation of native tree species and existing fruit, mud thatch construction, etc.

The house is organized along the direction perpendicular to the ground, in the most clear of trees and north-facing courtyard, distinguishing two zones: bedroom in a closed volume to the south along with a huge wall of mud and thatch cabinet as insulation, and a wooden tower volume between the trees with enclosures kitchen / dining room on first floor and shop-office-library on second floor with separate entrance and terrace overlooking the city.

It stressed that the date of the earthquake (27/02/1910), the house was on stage completed the structural work with clay since, and suffered no damage, demonstrating that “mud is not equal to adobe” that techniques that work better than others, and seeing results in the ecological community, it is conceivable that the houses built with mud thoroughly can be a viable, sustainable and economically.