Prefab Apartments for the Homeless

The Y:Cube, a prefab modular block of apartments has just been completed in London. It will provide comfortable and affordable units for the city’s homeless. Being modular and prefabricated offsite, the constructions costs can be kept low, so the rent will be about 65 percent of the market rate for similar apartments. It was designed by architecture firm Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and built for the international YMCA youth charity, who will also be in charge of renting it out to the homeless.

The apartment complex is located in the Mitcham area, which is in southwest London. It consists of 36 one-bed studios, each measuring 280 sq ft (26 sq m). The entire complex is constructed using high quality and eco-efficient materials, like, for example, renewable timber. The buildings are also well-insulated, so very little or no heating will be needed in the winter.

To keep the costs low and rents affordable, the necessary parts were all prefabricated in a factory and already had all the plumbing, electrical and heating infrastructure already built in upon transporting them to the building site. The prefab units can be stacked side-by-side or on top of each other to create the apartment buildings. Once this is done, all the utilities are connected.

This building method is very efficient and speedy, making the Y:Cube process well adapted for quickly developing unused sites in urban areas. The buildings can also be easily dismantled and transported elsewhere should the area where they are located become unavailable.

The units will be made available to the homeless referred to it by the London Borough of Merton, or those who were previous residents of the YMCA London South West. The YMCA is also planning on building more Y:Cube apartment blocks in London, and elsewhere in the UK in the near future.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Shipping Container Apartments Coming to Downtown Phoenix
2. Decent Accommodation for the Homeless
3. Billboard Homeless Shelters Might Soon be a Reality

Manual Dishwasher Saves Water and Electricity

On the whole, dishwashers are better than hand washing dishes when it comes to water efficiency, though it is harder to figure out which method is more energy efficient. The new dishwashing device called Circo Independent, designed by Chen Levin, takes electricity needed to heat the water out of the equation, making using it a pretty sustainable choice.

The Circo Independent is a manual dishwasher that uses only 0.7 gallons of water per washing load. Since electricity is not needed to power it, it must be operated via a hand crank. According to the developers, the Circo can wash a small load of dishes in one minute.

The first step in using the machine is pulling out a tray on the bottom of it and filling it with water, sodium acetate tablets (which heat up the water), and a small amount of dish soap. Next, the plates and other dishes are loaded and the user must turn the crank to wash the load. The Circo dishwasher works on the basis of a centrifuge mechanism, which sprays water up from the base and cleans the dishes in a very similar fashion to the way a normal dishwasher works.

Once the cleaning cycle is complete, the machine also works as a drying rack. This involves simply opening the door and letting the dishes air dry, or the user can pull out the loading part and place it on top of the device for faster drying.

The Circo dishwasher is relatively small and can only wash about two place settings at a time, but being so small also makes it a lot more useful. It works great for camping, tiny homes, small city apartments and anywhere else where there is no room for a full dishwasher. In terms of size, the Circo takes up about the same amount of space as a drying rack, and it cleans dishes faster and much more efficiently than hand washing them. It also does not impact the power bill at all, and is a great alternative for people who can’t afford a normal dishwasher.

The Circo manual dishwasher is currently in the final prototype stage, and its creator is looking for investors to start production. It looks promising, so I hope it makes it to market soon.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. A New Type of Washing Machine Cuts Water Use by 70%
2. KBHome Unveils ZeroHouse 2.0 Which is Both Water and Energy Efficient
3. The SpaTap Portable Shower is Super Simple and Super Smart

A Vacation Cabin on Wheels

Getting out of the city and back to nature is something most city folk want from time to time. Such getaways can take a lot of planning, but there are countless choices out there. Hristina Hristova, a designer from Bulgaria, has just added one to the mix. The tiny getaway cabin she designed is beautiful and completely mobile, while the price is affordable too.

The cabin is called “Koleliba” which is a made up word that roughly translates to “hut on wheels”. It was constructed on top of a trailer base and built using pine and birch plywood. The cabin measures 96 square feet and has the dimensions of 22 feet by 7.5 feet, with a height of 8 feet. To make the most of the small interior space, it is furnished in a minimalist fashion. The glazed door and large window let in plenty of natural daylight and give the appearance of greater spaciousness.

Storage is also cleverly worked into the design to keep the place clutter-free. There is a fold-out couch-bed, which can be stowed away when more space is required. The tiny cabin also has a fully functional kitchen, which includes a sink, oven, fridge, and plenty of counter space. The bathroom is small and functional, hidden away behind the kitchen area. For lazy outdoor lounging, there is also a removable outdoor bench, which provides seating for the owners and guests.

A cabin like this is a great option for young families who do not have the funds to purchase land and build a vacation home, yet who still want to have a place to call their own during the holidays for a minimal investment. And the best part about this one is that it can be taken anywhere.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Off-The-Grid Eco-Tourism Vacation Cabin
2. Sustainable Tiny Homes on Wheels
3. Couple Builds Tiny Home From Old Camper

Store Repurposes Car Windshields in a Unique Way

Recycling old cars into something useful again requires some out of the box thinking, which is exactly what Holland-based design firm Superuse Studio did. They repurposed 350 disused car windshields (along with a lot of reclaimed wood) to create the interior for a shoe store in The Hague.

The windshields were used as shelves for displaying and storing the shoes and shoeboxes. The final result is a store, which seems to wrap around the customers, while also allowing plenty of light to enter the otherwise quite small area. The whole interior design is built around a central shoe fitting island, which is made from reclaimed wood. There are also a couple of ergonomic sofas with a footrest for trying on shoes with the aid of the store clerks.

They also included a conveyor belt, repurposed from a supermarket, which the customers can use to try on shoes, which is an ingenious design element even without it being made of recycled parts. The shelves surrounding the island were made of Audi100 windscreens and they serve the purpose of giving the fitting area a uniform look and feel. For consistency, even the front desk is constructed out of car windshields.

The whole thing is arranged into a circular pattern, which welcomes customers into this cocoon of shoes. Apart from the sofas, there are also plenty of footrests that can be used for trying on shoes. I suppose these could be made from repurposed car seats too, though I guess they didn’t want the interior to look too much like a car.

This store has been around for a while and I think it should serve as an inspiration for other stores or even homeowners. Using car windshields as shelves and tables could work in many homes.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. Unique Glamping Alternative
2. Unique Home Made From Used Car Parts
3. A Unique Tiny Home Built From SIP Panels

Great Modern Spin on the Yurt

The yurt has been around for a long time, which makes sense since it is a pretty good design for a shelter. Freedom Yurt-Cabins, based in Aurora, Colorado have recently unveiled a modern take on this classic, which includes energy-efficient windows, good insulation and a real front door.

The Freedom Yurt Cabins feature a roundwood frame, which is constructed from Lodgepole pine, and come with an integrated floor. The walls are made from IPs and insulated using fiberglass, which gives them an R-value of R-9.7. The ceiling is made of Polyisocyanurate (PIR) rigid foam insulation board that has an insulation rating of R-13.7. The interior ceiling is made of wood and supported by a steel roof ring. A DuraLast heavy duty vinyl roof and a clear acrylic roof dome are placed over this.

The cabins also feature Low-E (energy-efficient) windows and an insulated steel door. A concrete foundation is not needed to erect the cabin, meaning it can also be moved from place to place relatively easily. The yurts work great as an extra bedroom, a workspace, a party space, while they can also be used as a holiday cabin or tiny home. The yurt comes unfurnished, but y=the company plans to begin offering prefab interior accessories by the end of the year.

The yurt is delivered in the form of a kit, and the company says that 2 people should be able to assemble it in a weekend. The yurt they offer can be purchased in several sizes. The smallest measures 217 sq ft (20 sq m) and is a 12 wall model that costs around $12,000. The next size up is a 14-wall model measuring 296 sq ft (27 sq m), which costs just under $14,000, while the largest is a16-wall 377 square foot (35 sq m) yurt, which costs $15,995 to buy.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. A Solar Powered Yurt Cabin You Can Build Yourself
2. Off-The-Grid Living in a Yurt
3. Sustainable Tiny Homes on Wheels

New Coating to Cut Carbon Emissions Dramatically

As it is with most things, sometimes very small actions can make a huge impact in the quest for a more sustainable world. The company DropWise has developed a new type of coating for use in power plants, which could reduce carbon emissions considerably. Adam Paxson, one of the people behind the project, was also part of the team that developed LiquidGlide, which are the super slippery surfaces in ketchup bottles and elsewhere that reduces waste considerably.

Similarly, DropWise has now developed a slippery coating, which can be applied to all kinds of power plants that feature steam-driven turbines, namely coal, natural gas, geothermal, solar thermal, biomass and nuclear power plants. In power plants such as these, steam is passed through a turbine and then captured in a water condenser where it is cooled down and turned back into liquid form. The suction that is created when the steam meets the coolant works to pull the steam through the turbine, turns the blades and generates electricity.

The coating developed by DropWise would be applied to the surface of the condenser to make it more slippery and thereby allow the drops of water to pass through it more easily. With the current technology, a lot of these drops build up on the surface of the condenser, going to waste, so using the new coating would make the turbines a lot more efficient.

DropWise’s coating could easily be added to existing turbines, since the process involves passing two gasses into the condenser and then simply adding heat, which makes these gases react, causing a thin coating to be attached to the walls. This coating can be applied with nanometer accuracy, according to DropWise, by simply controlling the temperature and pressure during the application.

DropWise also claims that adding this coating to a single power plant could lead to a reduction in carbon emissions equal to removing a few thousand cars from traffic. And if the coating were used across the world, it would cut the same amount of carbon emissions as all current solar and wind power installations combined.

This coating would also save massive amounts of water, given that power plants are huge consumers of water. This is due to the fact that by making the condenser more efficient, the same amount of electricity can be generated using less water for cooling.

It’s nice to work towards a world powered only by renewable energy sources, but right now, almost all of our energy still comes from thermal power plants and finding ways to make these more environmentally friendly should be a top priority.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. MIT’s New Concrete Formula Could Cut Carbon Emissions by Half
2. Low Carbon Positive Energy Home
3. Breakthrough News for Improving Concentrated Solar Power Plants

Rammed Earth Workers’ Quarters

No, I’m not talking about the simple, bare bones homes of workers in ages past. The Australian firm Luigi Rosselli Architects have adopted this sustainable and energy efficient building material and practice to construct a residence for seasonal workers at a cattle ranch.

The workers’ residence takes the basic shape of a rammed earth wall, which forms a zigzagging line that is 754 feet long. Some have even dubbed it “The Great Wall of Western Australia,” due to its impressive length. The wall acts as a façade that faces an embankment of sand, under which twelve small but functional residences are located.

The residence is built using locally sourced sandy clay, which is rich in iron. The facade is 17.7 inches thick, which together with the roof, also made of earth, works great at reducing solar heat gain and keeping the interior of the units cool in a natural way. Each of the residences has its own private deck, while there is also a shared garden.

For binder in the wall, they used gravel from a river flowing nearby, and water from the well on the premises. The wall was rammed by hand, which gives it a beautiful and layered look. The residence rests on a poured concrete slab. To give it the same color as the wall, they added the same gravel and aggregates from the river to the concrete mixture.

It’s nice to see this sustainable and eco-friendly material making a comeback. Also, if naturally cooled structures can function in a climate such as that of West Australia, then they can easily do so elsewhere as well. It is also a great example of just how well traditional building techniques, are still relevant and can easily be adapted to modern purposes.

Related Articles on JetsonGreen.com:

1. A Natural Concrete Made of Hemp
2. Ricola’s Headquarters Now Made of Mud
3. Earth Sheltered Home Fit For Hobbits and Men