Tesla is revolutionizing the way we power and build our homes – and architects are taking note. Hot on the heels of Tesla’s eagerly awaited solar roof, Tehran-based BMDesign Studios designed Alavi House – a home for Isfahan, Iran that will be finished with Tesla’s new and seemingly invisible solar cells. Optimized for solar, the Alavi House will produce more energy than it needs and it features an operable double-skin to promote natural heating and cooling.
Named after its clients, the 550-square-meter Alavi House is proposed for a site at the foothills of the Zagros Mountain range at the edge of a desert. Due to the arid climate, the architects used the prevailing winds from the south and southwest to inform the roof’s sloped shape and direction. “With a roof tilted toward East, we can create effective zones of negative pressure at the climax of the roof helping to ventilate the building naturally through most of the year,” wrote the architects. “Controllable vents, at the climax of the roof have a sucking effect, together with the large openings to the south of the building. Air filters by flowing through a broken line of evergreen trees (Cedrus deodara) and over a pool in the outdoors and then by passing over an indoor garden of Snake Plants (Sansevieria trifasciata) which is known to be a great air purifier (NASA Clean Air Study) and over a pond.”
Related: Tesla’s new Solar Roof is actually cheaper than a normal roof
The home is finished in concrete save for the double skin on the sloped roof that would be clad in the nearly imperceptible Tesla solar cells installed 30 centimeters above the roof. The operable double skin roof can rotate open to allow the sun to heat the concrete roof and warm the interior. Alternatively on colder days, the roof rotates close to provide shade from the sun, while simultaneously optimizing conditions for generating solar energy. The 194-square-meter solar roof would feature 104 solar modules capable of meeting a minimum of 29,000 kWh a year, far exceeding the average electricity consumption of an Iranian household.
Insulated glazing wraps the building on the south side to let in natural light and frame views of the cherry orchard and mountains. Communal areas are placed on the ground floor and include a tv room, kitchen, dining room, and bathroom that are connected to an indoor landscaped area and pool next to the outdoor pool. The upper level contains two master bedrooms and library.
Via highsnobiety
Images via BMDesign Studios
