The earth house in glashutten is more effective than a passive house
The driver of the low-loader was puzzled: he was supposed to deliver ten curved precast concrete parts, each one a meter and a half wide and weighing 16 tons. Right here, on the edge of glashutten, a little village of 1400 souls in the district of bayreuth. But where was the corresponding bridge construction site for this?? Werner leykam was able to enlighten the helpless searcher: he was spot on with his freight, but the carriers were destined for a residential building. What do you mean? Ten concrete giants for a family home?
Of course not for just any house. At this object, which stands like a mirage behind the abandoned restaurant "zum hirschen from the boschung rises, many things are unusual. It not only exceeds some building standards (and thus official requirements), but was also allowed to be unique in france.
For werner leykam, his wife claudia and their children tamara and joshua recently moved into a 240-square-meter house on the ground floor. The builder dug himself five meters deep into the ground. "Others spread their excavated material in the garden or have it picked up for expensive money – we simply put the tens of cubic meters on the roof." The self-employed car mechanic, whose workshop is only a screwdriver's throw away, points upwards. The crumbly layer is spread over a height of 80 centimeters; the supporting structure is protected by several layers of drainage made of styrofoam, fleece and lava chippings. "I did not know a better damming", says leykam "and it bleeds, too." Still only grass grows over the thing, in the next year it should be flowers.
The 41-year-old also made a good start from the bottom, leaving cold drapes in his wake. "The complete floor slab lies on a bed of glass foam ballast, one meter thick." In general, the tendency to save energy dominated the entire project, which the owner also planned himself. "I did not want to build a house off the rack, but I also wanted to spend as little as possible on follow-up costs." The building costs at least twice as much as a new building in conventional construction, but is an energy-plus house. Means: thanks to the 20-kilowatt-peak-photovoltaic-system it generates more electricity than the residents consume. Triple-glazed windows keep the warmth in, as does a heat recovery ventilation system.
No more than 20 euro per month
Another highlight: fortress-thick walls. The builder used 42.5 centimeter thick bricks in the front half of the building. "This is even more effective than a full thermal protection – and moreover i can do without artificial materials like styrofoam." The k-value of 0.12 even falls below the current top standards for passive houses. How much money he needs for heating? Leykam is as curious about this as the energy consultants who assisted the glashuttener. "The first winter will show. According to my calculations, it should not be more than 20 euros per month." The main heat is supplied by a brine heat pump that preheats its water via 500 meters of ground collectors.
As an "emergency stove a pellet stove is ready in the winter garden; a stucco wood stove is to be installed in the 65 square meter open living room. "If it must be", so the house builder believes "three dozen tea lights also had to be enough to keep it toasty warm for one day."
Because there were many inquiries about their unusual building project, the leykams invited people to an inspection in july – shortly before moving in. More than 500 visitors took advantage of the opportunity. And you could also convince yourself that the inhabitants of an earth house are not light-shy creatures, who have to do without any brightness. A light-flooded entrance leads into a bright kitchen, then into the open living room. The gallery window front shovels light into the children's rooms, two bathrooms, and the sleeping quarters.
"I want to save energy", says the builder "but that doesn't mean we have to live in a cave or use prisms and mirrors to artificially direct the light into the interior." Therefore his burial "welcome to my cellar dungeon" is always accompanied by a smile.