're:focus house' by the university of florida in madrid, spain
image courtesy of the university of florida


the team from the university of florida has completed the build of the 're: focus house' as
their official entry into europe's first solar decathlon. inspired by 'the cracker house',
a style of small nineteenth-century dwelling native to north florida, the house focuses on
simple forms and natural ventilation. a key component of the team's design is the reintroduction
of the 'dog trot', a centrally located breezeway that acts as the main entry of the house leading
out to the patio area. in addition to extending the living space outdoors, the 'dog trot' helps
aerate the house through cross ventilation.

to facilitate the assembly of the house, the design is modular in structure and space.
much like building with lego, the team assembles the house using a main building block module,
which is 2.5 by 5 meters in size. the breezeway divides the house into two separate areas:
the west side consists of three modules devoted to living space and social activities, which the
east side utilizes two modules for a bedroom and office area.

on top of generating enough energy for the inhabitants of the house, the photovoltaic panels
act as a canopy and shade the exterior space. cylindrical solar collectors are integrated into
the building's skin rather than installed on the roof to aid in providing shade and visual privacy.
much of the material gathered for the house were recycled to help reduce the design's carbon footprint.



exterior
image courtesy of the university of florida



image courtesy of the university of florida



dog trot breezeway
image courtesy of the university of florida



vertical screen closed
image courtesy of the university of florida



vertical screen open
image courtesy of the university of florida



vertical screen detail
image courtesy of the university of florida



cylindrical solar collectors on the south facade
image courtesy of the university of florida



image courtesy of the design training



night view
image courtesy of the university of florida


pre-build phase
image courtesy of the university of florida



image courtesy of the university of florida



floor plan
image courtesy of the university of florida



community proposal
image courtesy of the university of florida