MDI HOUSE 7
Built next door to House 9, House 7 is a new ground up house, overlooking the original structure and the ocean beyond. The layout of the second house relates to the scale of House 9’s interior program, circulation, and formal expression, maximizing natural lighting with expansive floor to ceiling glass. They share a similar material palette and strong geometries – single-pitched volumes sloping up from the landscape and cupped in plan to catch the prevailing sea breezes.
House 7 is equipped with a solar array that feeds both houses: 40 high-efficiency solar panels that charge 6 lithium-ion batteries. Each battery supplies a continuous output rating of 5,000 watts, allowing the complex to operate without grid-tied electricity. The houses have no air conditioning and instead employ passive cooling strategies. Despite the extensive west-facing glass, both houses can maintain a temperate climate throughout the summer. Whole-house fans were installed in the attics, and bedrooms equipped with above-door transoms to allow extraction of hot air. Landscaping is minimal, employing a thoughtful “return to nature” approach, using indigenous plant material.
