In this article we are featuring the ideas and the work of one of our hosts during our travels in Colombia. Her house is an example of a holistic, true-to-its-roots sustainable building. The construction incorporates locally available materials using enhanced versions of ancestral building techniques.
In terms of energy consumption, this tropical Passive-Solar building is completely Off-grid and Net-zero. We had the privilege to live there and design/build some additional features, you can read more about it clicking here.
CASA E PALO, THE PROJECT
Casa e Palo is a sustainable ecofriendly house project born of love: love for life, love for a profession, love for our planet. Casa e Palo is a personal experiment in which two professionals in the field of environmental sciences decided to build their house in a sustainable way.
This building adventure took more than three years; now the house is completed and currently being used. It consists of a wood structure from mangrove wood, bamboo beams (local bamboo or Guadua) and a clay tile roofing. The interior partitions and (non-load bearing) external walls are made using the local technique of Muro Tendinoso, although most of the building envelope is open to the outdoors.
N/T: Muro Tendinoso is a variant of the Bahareque technique. Bahareque is an ancestral indigenous construction technique that consist of intertwined sticks and/or cane walls plastered with mud. In the Muro Tendinoso variant, barbed wire (“tendons”) are fastened to a Guadua bamboo rigid frame, a layer of natural wide-weaved cabuya fiber sack performs as a base where to plaster with lime (or concrete) mortar.
For more about this Muro Tendinoso technique, check out this post and this post, both available in Spanish only.
AN EXAMPLE OF A PASSIVE-SOLAR BUILDING IN A SUB-TROPICAL WEATHER
The building was designed bio-climatically, taking into account the local weather, wind and sun patterns of the site in order to ensure the house remains cool – in a very hot and humid climate – and that minimizes the energy requirements for lighting and cooling. The building energy demand is 100% covered by solar power, by means of photovoltaic panels and a set of batteries, the fresh water comes from the municipal network and the building features an on-site sewage-treatment plant that provides irrigation to the surrounding forest.
The building energy demand is 100% covered by solar power
For its construction, we had the support of different experts, volunteers and friends that made this project feasible and continue to bring ideas, labor and good energy to the project.
A BIO-CLIMATIC BAMBOO BUILDING IN COLOMBIA, BY THE CARIBBEAN COAST
Casa e Palo is located in the municipality of Tubara, Department of the Atlantic, Colombia, and its doors are always open for friends and volunteers that want to be part of this experience.
ORIGINAL TEXT IN SPANISH
Casa e Palo:
Es un proyecto de Casa Ecológica, que nace del amor: amor a la vida, a una profesión, a nuestro planeta. Casa e Palo es un experimento personal en el cual dos profesionales del área ambiental deciden intentar hacer su casa de manera sostenible.
Esta aventura de construir la Casa lleva más de tres años, hoy es habitable, cuenta con una estructura de madera de mangle y en la cubierta guadua con tejas de barro, la técnica de cerramiento es de muro tendinoso, aunque ella es abierta en su mayor parte. La Casa es bioclimática, se tuvo en cuenta el clima, las brisas y el sol para garantizar que fuera fresca y necesitará del menor uso energético para su iluminación y refrigeración, además es una casa que funciona 100% con paneles solares, el agua es del acueducto municipal y cuenta con un sistema de tratamiento de las aguas residuales que luego de ser tratadas riega el bosque interno.
Para su construcción contamos con el apoyo de expertxs, voluntarixs y amigxs que nos ayudaron hacer este proyecto posible y que al día de hoy siguen aportando con ideas, trabajo y bonita energía.
Casa e Palo está ubicada en el Municipio de Tubará, departamento del Atlántico, Colombia, y tienen las puertas abiertas para amigxs y voluntarixs que quieran ser parte de esta experiencia.
Contacto: Maria Fernanda whatsapp: 573012996690
Red Before Green 