Futureproofing our Homes
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto 
on 12.15.06
Zurich Insurance and Arup Associates just completed an interesting study about what the house of the future migh look like. They suggest that "By around 2080 our relationship with our home might have changed beyond all recognition" Although this rendering of a fairly traditional streetform with two cars in the driveway is pretty recognizable.
Some of the ideas are obvious; some are interesting and others are wacky- "Our homes could even move with us. Walls, rooms and even floors could be added or taken away to accommodate three generations as we live longer and land becomes an even more premium commodity." The others are listed below the fold. I suspect that the vision of life in the suburbs in 74 years will be not nearly so bucolic. You can download the whole PDF from ::Arup
•The end of the commute: Technology leaps could create a commute-free society as more people work from home. The future may also include echoes from the past; local communities, shops, services and even our relationship with our neighbours could play a far greater part in our daily lives.
•Houses on stilts: In areas particularly at risk of flooding, houses built on stilts could become a common sight.
•Self heating: Solar panels, gas-filled triple-glazed windows and intelligent insulation, which can automatically adjust to the external temperature to control the heat indoors, could all be standard fittings and fixtures.
•Self cooling: To cope with peak summer temperatures that might regularly reach seven degrees higher than today, energy-hungry air conditioning units will be replaced by pipes carrying cool, recycled water built into, and around, ceilings and beams. Solar shades and houses built with extended overhangs would also help beat the heat. As temperatures regularly soar to 35oC and above, opening windows could become less effective during the heat of the day and patterns used in Mediterranean climates might become more common.
•Energy self sufficient: The UK might be growing its own energy thanks to greater use of bio-fuels from plants, such as rapeseed. Renewable energy sources could be a necessity, as energy generation becomes a community activity with smaller, local substations supplied with energy generated by family wind turbines and solar panels.
•Water independent: Today’s bathrooms could represent relics of a more indulgent age as water could become a luxury the planet can’t afford to waste. The priority will be saving water and our homes will be tailor-made to re-use and recycle water. In the house of the future the entire water used and waste produced could be re-used and recycled.
•Plug in cars: As our homes become power sources in their own right, at night we could find ourselves putting out the cat and plugging in the car to charge up its batteries at the same time.
•Death of DIY: The more hi-tech the house becomes, with solar panels, wind-turbines and geothermal energy systems, the less able we might become in DIY-ing our house repairs. Increased modularity will make it easier for us to adapt to our homes.
•Roof gardens: The vista of pitched roofs spanning suburbia could disappear to be replaced by either flat roofs covered with gardens of gravel or vegetation to aid water gathering and help minimise flood damage, or inverted pitched roofs to maximise rainwater harvesting.
•Flora and fauna: As regular droughts and water shortages grip the nation, our gardens could take on a new look with thirsty, delicate plants such as roses and hydrangeas supplanted by olive trees and cacti.
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I know it is incidental to the purpose of the post, but the bullet point on plugging in your car mentioned "putting out the cat." Don't put out the cat!
See for instance this from another treehugger post: "Glass is one of the world's great bird killers," rivaled only by habitat destruction and perhaps cats. Or, to get more information, go to the American Bird Concervancy's Cats Indoors Campaign.
"Scientists estimate that free-roaming cats kill hundreds of millions of birds, small mammals, reptiles and amphibians each year. Cat predation is an added stress to wildlife populations already struggling to survive habitat loss, pollution, pesticides, and other human impacts."
I don't understand why they are projecting this 74 years from now when most of the highlighted technologies are available today. Where are the flying cars and nanomachines continually rebuilding the house if this is so far in the future? This list should apply to all new homes being built today.
I wouldn't worry about the death of DIY either. Have a look at makezine.com. Many people are making some high tech stiff so while an old time diy person might be lost others will learn how to.
I can forsee the multi-generational household becoming the norm. It just makes sense: Grandparents take care of small children while the parents work and then by the time the children are teens and can help with adult things they help take care of the grandparents who then might need more help.
Multi-generational households are already the norm in many countries around the world where it's common to have an extended family all under one roof.
I initially liked the idea of a house that you can adapt internally to accommodate a changing household, but then I thought, what's the difference between this and say a couple buying a four-bedroom home in anticipation of their future plans? The adaptable home simply isn't partitioned internally to represent four occupants, but both homes are probably around the same size.
What's better? Buy a one or two-bedroom property and then trade-up when circumstances change? Or buy a bigger home to begin with to accommodate future plans (that may or may not transpire)?
In the US every house will will have sprinklers, fire alarm systems and every mechanical system will need it's own engineering stamp of approval. All this adds a lot of cost to a building so you will see more and more factory built shells. But I don't see much interest in super efficient buildings unless mandated. Most people like to see their money in surfaces and fixtures. If you are buying a $300,000 house you probably are not that concerned with saving $90/month on heating and cooling.(unless you are advanced, that is...)
Did you notice that wind turbines in the picture are from http://quietrevolution.co.uk/?
http://kiyo.wordpress.com/2006/12/09/house-of-the-future/
This post, however off-topic it may be, is about Internet freedom. \"Network Neutrality\" -- the First Amendment of the Internet -- ensures that the public can view the smallest blog just as easily as the largest corporate Web site by preventing Internet companies like AT&T from rigging the playing field for only the highest-paying sites.
But Internet providers like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast are spending millions of dollars lobbying Congress to gut Net Neutrality. If Congress doesn\'t take action now to implement meaningful Net Neutrality provisions, the future of the Internet is at risk.
In the end game, only large companies will afford domains if the communications monopolies have their way with this. This of course isnt new news, but its coming to a head and blogs like this one will be a ghosttown unless all of us figure it our pretty darn quick. I wont post any links, but advise that if you value the internet, and blogs likw this one, that you search Google for \"Network Neutrality\" and educate yourself on this issue as it effects all of us.
This post, however off-topic it may be, is about Internet freedom. \"Network Neutrality\" -- the First Amendment of the Internet -- ensures that the public can view the smallest blog just as easily as the largest corporate Web site by preventing Internet companies like AT&T from rigging the playing field for only the highest-paying sites.
But Internet providers like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast are spending millions of dollars lobbying Congress to gut Net Neutrality. If Congress doesn\'t take action now to implement meaningful Net Neutrality provisions, the future of the Internet is at risk.
In the end game, only large companies will afford domains if the communications monopolies have their way with this. This of course isnt new news, but its coming to a head and blogs like this one will be a ghosttown unless all of us figure it our pretty darn quick. I wont post any links, but advise that if you value the internet, and blogs likw this one, that you search Google for \"Network Neutrality\" and educate yourself on this issue as it effects all of us.