7.33.USA-8-detail-c Highlights Relevant to Sustainable Design:
Bend the light.
This drawing includes the image of a window and a plan of the thick wall. The wall is curved at the inside edge to allow more natural light to enter the room. One of the great by-products of this functional design move is an appealing aesthetic with the curved plaster and the thick walls. This twelve-inch-thick wall was one of the inspirations for the twelve-inch-thick concrete block walls at our house.
7.34.USA-8-detail-d
A thick perimeter wall does not by any means guarantee a higher level of insulation than thinner walls. Spray foam has the capacity to transform relatively thin stud walls or double stud walls into high-efficiency thermal boundaries.
Additional information on thick wall design from 5.17.Japan-4-detail-a
These thick construction members in Japan inspired me during the design of our solar house years later in America. I ended up using vertical studs, but I was able to create ten-inch thick walls by combining two-by-six studs for structure with a two-by-four interior wall. This combined approach not only allowed me to pack the studs with ten inches of insulation for energy-savings in both heating and cooling seasons, but I staggered the placement of the studs to reduce the thermal bridge that typically transfers the exterior temperature into a structure. The by-product was also a quieter home, since exterior sound waves do not have a direct path through the staggered studs.
Author and illustrator: Charlie Szoradi is an architect, inventor, and the CEO of Independence LED Lighting. He writes about many other topics related to thick wall and other wall types through his extensive travels around the world.
If you have found this posting online, it is an excerpt from Mr. Szoradi’s book Learn from Looking that served as the inspiring seed content for this drawing share resource. For additional drawings and insights on thick wall and natural light strategies, we hope that you enjoy exploring LearnfromLooking.com. You can search via general terms such as sustainability as well as narrower terms such as thick wall and concrete blocks.
