The project is a single family building with gross area of 310 sq.m. designed to meet the residential and recreational needs of the Investor. The site is located at the foot of the Vitosha Mountain near Sofia. Its area is 2780 sq.m. The main features of the plot are the significant slope to the north-east with a spectacular vista towards the city. Another characteristic is the fresh air, cooler summer days and snowier winters, inherent to the mountain climate. During the wet seasons there are also surface waters coming from the mountain. Accordingly, the project had to address all these features along with the Investor's specific needs.
The building is designed to “float” above the ground. Due to the steep slope of the terrain its main entrance, which is formed as a bridge, is on the upper of two levels. All of the main residential premises consisting of three bedrooms and a living room with a separate kitchen are located on this level. This floor is planned in such a way that an atrium is formed in the middle of it allowing the sunlight into the premises more effectively.
Naturally the main residential premises are designed to be fully exposed to the maximum amount of sunlight from each and every direction, and afford the greatest views of the surrounding area.
The ground floor is only partially beneath the upper one, as the atrium, main bedroom and living room are projected on slender columns above the yard. This floor consists of a service room along with a small SPA equipped with a counter-current swimming pool.
The structure of the building is mainly concrete, but the upper floor has only beams without a concrete slab for the roof. The roof itself is a timber structure with profile sheet metal covering. The entire building is aptly insulated and most of the walls are stone or timber clad.
To receive maximum amount of sunlight the building has been glazed as much as possible. Only the west facade has relatively reduced glazing because of the steep mountain slope in that direction and the necessity for acoustic insulation from the nearby road. All windows are triple glazed with the higher possible thermal bridge rate. In terms of heating there are convectors recessed in the floor below the glazing that allow fan driven hot air to effectively heat the premises.
The building is designed to have a mixture of independent renewable energy sources and backup systems. The heating and hot water are designed to have a single collector that receives combined energy from several different sources: solar panels installed on the south slope of the roof for optimal sun exposure; hot water mains that run from a water tank installed within the fire place; gas and electrical boiler. The sewerage system runs through custom designed waste management station equipped with holding tanks so the purified water can be used for irrigation.
