Dornob | Design Ideas Daily

Clear View: Glass Box Hovers Over Subterranean Home

Posted: 07 Dec 2013 08:02 AM PST

Hovering Glass Villa Self Sufficient 1

A carbon-neutral villa in The Netherlands features a rectangular glass volume hovering above the subterranean portion of the home. Located on a protected reserve, the dual-natured residence offers both the comforting feel of an earth-sheltered home and beautiful views of the landscape through floor-to-ceiling glazed walls.

Hovering Glass Villa Self Sufficient 2

Hovering Villa Self Sufficient 3

The entrance to the luxurious Villa Kogelhof by Paul de Ruiter Architects is underground, with residents driving high-end electric cars into a subterranean garage with its own bathroom and workspace and then taking stairs either to the ground-level reflecting pool or the volume containing the living space. The home looks out onto a 25-hectare (61-acre) plot that’s home to a variety of rare animals and plants; in order to build the home, the owners had to agree to return the plot to its pre-agricultural state by planting 71,000 trees.

Hovering Glass Villa Self Sufficient 4

An outer layer of insulated glass combined with an inner layer of sun-reflecting fabric enables the home to adapt to climactic conditions year-round, maintaining a comfortable and stable temperature inside. Rooftop solar cells and a specially constructed windmill generate all of the home’s power. Air is recycled through a passive ventilation system, and a range stove is used to heat the home’s water.

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Hydroponic Garden Lets Even Tiny Homes Have Veg Gardens

Posted: 06 Dec 2013 02:00 PM PST

plantree hydroponic garden

Plenty of people want to have fresh veggies at home, but don’t have room for a veggie garden. The PlanTree is a concept from designer Nur Yildidrim that would give everyone the chance to have a live, growing vegetable garden – no matter how small their living space may be.

hanging plants hydroponic garden

hydroponic indoor garden

The PlanTree is a tree-like hydroponic garden that holds small pots with growing substrates like coco fiber. The bottoms of the pots extend downward into the chambers of the PlanTree to collect water and nutrients.

apartment size hydroponic garden

plant tree hydroponic garden

With a simple interface, the user can control every aspect of the growing environment such as light, pH, temperature, humidity and everything else the plants need to thrive.

futuristic apartment hydroponic garden

The vertical growing system has a tiny footprint, allowing people with very small homes to have the kind of vegetable garden that even suburbanites with large yards will envy.

self contained hydroponic garden