Gallery: Lindal Homes: Reinventing the...
A-Frame cabins were tremendously popular from the 1960's onward. Their simple, sturdy construction made them a great choice for families looking to construct a second home.
The story behind Sir Waltar Lindal (“Sir” is the translation of his given Icelandic name, Sculi) and his company Lindal Cedar Homes, is fascinating. After Lindal spent time in the Canadian Army during World War II inventing weaponry modifications, working up the ranks, and seeing the benefits of prefabricated housing at work in Army camps, he had the idea that the same construction methods could be used to create precut homes for the consumer market. He went on to develop a booming kit home business first based out of Toronto, then Vancouver, and now Seattle, where his children have taken hold of the reigns. An inventor at heart, Lindal holds over 17 patents, one of which is for an A-Frame cabin, which was pictured on the 1966 cover of Popular Mechanics.
Lindal’s A-Frame cabin went on to become wildly successful with vacation homeowners because it offered an affordable way to build a beautiful and functional vacation home. Materials for the cabin came pre-cut and were delivered to the site, where they were assembled. The A-Frame cabin revolutionized vacation homes by utilizing a simple design with a high, steep, pitched gable roof, a two-story wall of glass on either end, living space on the bottom, and a loft upstairs. A glass wall allowed the owners to experience their surroundings in a whole new way without leaving the comfort of their own home. The home was also energy-efficient, inexpensive, and easier to build than other vacation homes out there, and they can withstand the elements through the years with little maintenance.
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Hi,
I am looking for nice Unique bunglow plan in tropical design for canadian climate (Heavy show) with a triple car garage A-Frame would work too, needs a basement.
Boorada@hotmail.com
would love some of your designs to build in the Bunya Mountains in Queensland
my husband and I are planning on building a vacation home in eastern wa i was looking into a well built house that was cost efficient as well and was advised by a friend of precut and a frame styles
I would like to see afloor plan of your aframe house brown with the rock front
I have always loved the A-frame design. I fell in love with the Icelandic history and culture a few years ago. Now, I have discovered a beautiful combination of the two. Thank-You Lindal Homes!
[...] for guests. Designed as an easy way to add living space to any backyard, the Modern Studio by Lindal Cedar Homes, is a compact home that can be customized to suit any situation. The Modern Studio is styled and [...]
What’s up with that lawn in the first image? Why place a rendering of a building that claims to be sustainable on top of an incredibly manicured lawn- an icon of the unsustainable suburban landscape? It’s like if McDonalds dediced to sell a McVeganburger and served it on a plateful of McRibs, or like driving a hybrid Hummer over desert turtles, or like so many bandwagon green schemes. Maybe these houses weren’t meant to sustain the environment as much as Lindal’s profits.
[...] READ MORE> 0 email thisemail facebookfacebook diggdigg tweetmeme_url = "http://inhabitat.com/2010/08/22/lindal-homes-reinventing-the-a-frame-into-a-modern-green-home/"; tweetmeme_style = "compact"; [...]
These modern A-Frame homes are really gorgeous, and I love the story of Lindal’s history in making the A-Frame popular!
I’m glad to see that Lindal has added some nice modern designs to their line of homes. Although it helps that they are somewhat green (but could be more so, with LEED certification), they are quite expensive. This has kept Lindal to mostly the vacation home market where a pre-cut lumber package is delivered to a remote site, often in the mountains with a limited building season. Then homeowners can build it themselves to save on labor. Otherwise Lindal homes cost much more than average.
This is both a beautiful Story and beautiful design for a building.
A-frames are awesome – I remember spending summers at one as a kid – and it’s inspiring to see Lindal’s modern take on this classic, efficient design!
I like the warmth of the A-frame. It’s not as cold as some other modern green homes.
Interesting story about Lindal\’s history – never knew!
Love the fact that Lindal has revamped the A-frame to be green – it’s the best of both worlds!
This is so cool. Who knew that building weaponry could inspire this kind of innovation.