Encounters with Stupidity

I wish to live in a house of my own design and construction. So far I have only built portions of the house, and then only in my head. Some parts are easy to build, and some solutions are obvious. Floors will be polished concrete with embedded local stone. Heating will be through pipes laid in the floor. Windows will be large and numerous, be able to open where possible, and be as unencumbered as pratical with crossbeams, supports, or anything obstructing vision. The roof will be of some relatively uncorrodable material, be it aluminum for cost and lightness or copper for durability and beauty. Roof panels can be welded together in such a manner as to create an extremely durable, waterproof and fireproof, if heavy, roof. It is my vision to create a house that has and retains a natural beauty with as little maintainence as possible on the part of the homeowner. This means employing unpainted, durable materials wherever possible, and also materials that look well with weathering and fit into the surrounding environment. A copper roof would serve nicely in this way, weathering to some type of green color after a number of years. I’m not sure what effect the metaliferous runoff would have, over time, on vegetation surrounding the house. Aluminum may produce a chalky white staining, and could also kill plants (though it has extremely low solubility, thus the production of bauxite in tropical climates). To achieve harmony with the environment and locale, stone from the region should be incorporated into some part of the exterior and interiour, and not in a superficial way or as a façade. No part of the house should serve only the decorate or “beautify” unless it is an integral part of the structure and physical purpose of the house. Economy is another major factor (especially in my first house). Wherever possible, recycled materials should be used and simplicity of design should be employed to produce both cost savings and simplicity of final form. To take this to an extreme, one envisions a house as follows: Two simple boxy sections, one situated higher than the other (most of my mental house plans are split level. It adds some interest to the house, allows it to lie in interesting terrain (e.g., a hillside) which in turn allows the architect some control over sun exposure (important in Arizona where I now live) and effects a split between living quarters and dining/entertainment quarters. Some overlap also leads to efficiency in heating/cooling like a 2-story house has (in theory). My ideal design involves a “tower” or an elevation, rough or many-sided section. Above would probably be a study with a view in some desireable direction. The roof would be fairly flat. If it must be sloped due to snow loads, perhaps it could be sloped in one direction (NOT peaked). or in two, with each half sloping a different way (of course this would create some problems). I envision the house being supported by a welded steel framework, not wooden studs. This could be accomplished by welding a series of standard sections, lifting into place, or could be engineered on the scale of the house. The other walls could even hang from a centrally grounded support column. Regardless, I envision walls made like a sandwich: outside of plywood, interior of several inches of (insulating) foam with an optional layer of another type of insulation, and an interior of some dense, tough material that is either able to take a finish or can have drywall screwed to it or plaster applied. Ideally, it would be directly finish-able to save much cost and hassle associated with hanging and finishing drywall/plaster. The pre-assebled panels should overlap in some ways to keep out the elements and allow strength in the assembled unit. For example the exterior plywood and interior finishing layer could each be offset several feet in opposite directions so the pieces fit together rather like puzzle pieces. The strength of the wall would be provided by the panels themselves, attached to a steel superstructure, over even cables suspended from a structure above. The floors could be simple poured concrete, stained or colored, with aggregate, polished fairly smooth. Walls painted and trimmed with metal or light wood to match light switches.