House in House

Beijing, China

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House in House

Beijing, China

Firm

Christian Taeubert

Type

Residential › Private House

STATUS

Built

YEAR

2017

Christian Taeubert converts a 45 sqm Hutong into a big family dwelling with clean indoor air.

In a courtyard located just a stone‚Äôs throw away form Tiananmen in the Dashilar district of Beijing, a 45 sqm refurbished house has been designed to accommodate three generations. Apart from the challenge of having to accommodate 6 occupants within a rather small area, the architect set out to create a well-performing building envelope unfamiliar to most Hutong homes.

In order to avoid the inherent problems of deteriorated Hutong houses, such as notoriously damp floors and walls, 'Äòhouse in house' concept was developed. The existing dwelling was in a very poor condition; its only remaining purpose was to simply protect the newly inserted house from the rain.

Apart from re-designing the house, the owners were provided with one of the most essential needs in Beijing: clean indoor air! The new house is executed with 100mm of continuous insulation, including the floor. High quality windows keep the envelope rather air-tight. However, an air tight envelope requires controlled ventilation in order to prevent a stale air environment, as well as possible moisture in the walls.

The installed energy recovery ventilation system ensures a comfortable room climate and a controlled flow of clean air. With its energy recovery function, the system ensures cooling and heating throughout the year, reducing the overall energy consumption of the house.
The ownership of the yard had been divided among five parties in the past, and was mainly used for storage. Due to the complicated social condition of the neighbourhood the courtyard could not be utilized as a quality space for social gathering.

Internally, apart from four bedrooms, the small dwelling offers a living room, dining room, mezzanine reading room, kitchen and bathroom. Two skylights provide additional daylight.