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green house in Limpopo

Lengau Lodge in Limpopo, South Africa, is illustrated and described in New Sustainable Homes: Designs for Healthy Living. This house, like many others that are far from municipal services, has incorporated a number of features to minimize resource consumption and maximize comfort:

  • thatch roof is an excellent insulator;
  • high ceilings and large gable end windows allow cross-ventilation;
  • structural timber is of locally grown plantation pine;
  • bricks are locally manufactured;
  • design allows deep penetration of sunlight to reduce need for lighting;
  • winter sun heats concrete floors and thick masonry walls;
  • shower water drains into planting areas;
  • septic tanks overflow to aerobic rock filters and into wetlands; and
  • gardens include drought-resistant wild grasses.

The house is also described in Architect Online.

Comments

It looks fantastic, they've managed to blend contemporary with African bushveld in an efficient design and sourcing local materials. I was interested to read the water saving ideas: The black- and grey-water is fed through a series of filters and flows into the watering hole for wildlife. Man-made earth swales to direct any rainfall to where it's needed. And drought resistant plants.

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