Houses of the Future - A Wish List - Part I

Single family houses have been the main places I have called home. There were a few apartments I lived in between the ages of 19 and 25…and an apartment we rented while we waited for our third house to be vacated so that we could move in; I always thought of the apartments as temporary and that is what they turned out to be. Of all the housing types available, the single family houses come closest to what I want in the future although I’ve been thinking a lot recently about what would make them better. Some of the items are possible now while others will require technological advances. Here’s my wish list:  

• All external surfaces need to be productive. They need to generate power or grow food. The paint, brick, siding, and shingles we’ve been using for years protected us from the elements but that is not sufficient for a house of the future.
• External surfaces and structural integrity need to be sufficient for the environment. In areas of high wind, heavy rain or snow, or extreme temperatures - houses need to be built to survive and remain habitable.
• Plan for older inhabitants. At least one suite and the main core of the house (den, eating area, and kitchen) must be accessible without stairs. The bathroom needs a large shower that is easily entered. Doors need to be wide enough to easily accommodate mobility devices (i.e. wheel chairs, walkers).
• A gray water system collects ‘slightly’ used water from sinks, showers, bathtubs, dishwashers, and clothes washers and then the water is used in toilets and for watering gardens reducing the water going into the sewer.
• The driveway and patio - any concrete or asphalt surfaces - need to be pervious pavement so that water soaks through rather than drains away too rapidly. If water drains from roof surfaces, it should be collected and used for gray water purposes. Again - this reduces the water that goes to the sewers.
• Yards have grass in areas where it is needed recreation (for example, a play area for children). Otherwise - the yard is either in native vegetation that does not need to be mowed/watered or used to grow food (vegetable garden, orchard) mixed with flowers.
• The inside of the house can be easily reconfigured as the needs of the inhabitants change over time. The number of internal walls is minimized; permanent walls are only built where they are needed for structure, sound proofing or privacy. Screens, storage units or sliders could be used a movable room dividers.
• Closets include shelves and racks to allow productive use of the space all the way to the ceiling.
• All rooms have some form of overhead lighting and ceiling fans.
• Heating and cooling is done to keep the temperature at comfortable levels in rooms that are in use at the time and the system is tunable for a particular person (for example, the room where an older person is located might be warmer in the winter time).
• Heating and cooling is done in the most efficient way possible for the area. In areas where geothermal (buried pipes) heat pumps are possible, this may be the way to go….or maybe there will be other technologies that will be even better. The classic gas (or heating oil) furnaces and electric air conditioners are not what we should be building in the future.
• Lighting is on when the room is occupied and it is needed. Otherwise the lighting turns itself off.
• Window coverings adjust based on temperature and are linked to the heating and cooling system. For example, on a  the window coverings will allow direct sunlight to shine in to warm the inside on a cold day to the temperature preferred by the person in the room.
• Kitchens need to function well for several people cooking at once.
  • If there is room for a center island, it needs to be counter space - not a stove top.
  • Ovens - microwave and conventional - are combined into one unit.
  • Water for drinking (and ice) is filtered.
  • Over counter cabinets go all the way to the ceiling to maximize storage space.
  • Task lighting is installed under the over-counter cabinets and comes on automatically when needed.
• At least one wall of each room is a ‘screen’ that displays art or functions as a computer display.
• Work from home is a growing trend - particularly for workers performing their jobs via computer. The house needs to be adaptable to support a work environment for everyone in the house.
• Modular construction may be a way to make new technology more accessible at a reasonable cost. The idea of a core of rooms (kitchen, eating, den) with all the utilities connected being built first with modules of rooms that plugged into those utilities is appealing both to allow for 'starter' homes and then enlargement of the house later by the addition of modules.
• No more items that are merely for ornament like shutters that don't close or dormers that provide no space on the inside. 

I’ll post the coninutation of my wish list tomorrow.