To take advantage of the beautiful view over the small valley in the canton of Aargau, the house sits far up on the steep hillside property. The House is accessed from a largely recessed garage located at street level and an underground staircase connecting the entrance and residence.
The ground-lying areas are structured of exposed concrete with a pine plywood formwork. Sitting above it - in the interior precisely interlocking - a wooden bolt construction, cladding outside with shingles inside with untreated beetle and rough sawn boards made of silver fir. All levels were placed in a way into the topography, that direct outdoor areas could be assigned. The middle level for the living area offers with a striking cut in the otherwise restrained simply designed building a partly covered terrace.
In summer, the boundaries between inside and outside blur - the terrace enlarges the living space. On the terrace, the kitchen is visually extended to the outside in the form of a concrete element as a grill and working desk. One floor below are the children’s rooms also with direct access to the garden. The attic is reserved for the parents and partially lighted and ventilated by precisely positioned skylights.
The simple saddle roof is covered with cedar shingles whose durability exceeds those of silver fir and whose colour has already become a mere grey after a few months. The building complies with the Swiss Minergie-P standard. The passive house protects resources while it is operated with a geothermal heat pump and a living room ventilation system with heat recovery.
