Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

This Compact Tasmanian Cabin Is a Testing Ground for Sustainable Design

This Compact Tasmanian Cabin Is a Testing Ground for Sustainable Design

Architect Jiri Lev’s home is a prototype for forward-looking architecture that could make a positive societal impact in Australia.

When Australian architect Jiri Lev set out to design a home for his young family in Tasmania, he saw it as an opportunity to try something different. "I consider self experimentation a bit of an architect’s moral obligation and duty," he says.

Rather than relying on traditional synthetic materials, he sought out raw, locally sourced materialsขsheep wool insulation and Tasmanian timber like macrocarpa pine, for exampleขto build a compact, sustainable, and affordable home that’s a prototype for his firm’s long-term project of developing ecovillages throughout Australia.



Architect Jiri Lev designed the Tasmanian House with a restrained material palette to keep project costs down and make it more sustainable.

"Our vision is a network of small, compact urban forms surrounded by shared agricultural land and well-managed wilderness," explains Jiri. "Our small cabin demonstrates to potential investors how very comfortable homes could be built economically, utilizing local resources and best practices, and regionally informed design language."



The house sits on concrete pillars and is largely constructed using local pineขradiata for the frame and macrocarpa for the cladding. Corrugated galvanized steelขa "very Australian" material, according to Jiriขis used as an accent on the window seat and base.

The 280-square-foot cabin, a studio meant to be the first phase of a two- to three-bedroom home, is a modern interpretation of the country’s Georgian-period vernacular, which Jiri considers to be "the most beautiful and appropriate of Tasmanian precedents." Buildings in this styleขmarked by simple, rectangular structures and gable roofsขcan be seen in well-preserved Tasmanian towns like Oatlands and Richmond.



Inside the 280-square-foot studio is a kitchenette and full bathroom, as well as a loft area.

Equipped with a kitchenette, full bathroom, and a loft area, as well as a cantilevered box window seat, the space is home to Jiri, his wife, and their children, both under the age of 3. Flexibility is key to the design, since it will be expanded upon in the future.



The interior floors are Tasmanian oak treated with a light coat of genuine Danish oil made with raw tung nut oil and citrus terpene. The walls are untreated radiata pine, a material that helps maintain ideal humidity in the home.

"By simply swapping the fridge for a washing machine and adding a single wall, it can easily be converted into a laundry when the house is extended," Jiri says of the kitchenette. "There will be no demolition whatsoever required when the extension is added later this year."

Sustainably, individually sourced Tasmanian timber is the primary construction materialขuntreated radiata pine makes up the framing and floor structure, while the floor is Tasmanian oak and the cladding is durable, long-lasting macrocarpa pine.



Jiri used macrocarpa pine for the exterior weatherboards, as it’s known for its resilience.

"A facade like this, ventilated from both sides, can anecdotally last decades without any paint or oil," says Jiri, adding that the timber boards used for interior lining are "quite vapor permeable, maintaining the optimum 50-60 percent humidity inside."



A large window juts out on one corner of the home, creating a cozy window seat inside.

The materials are largely organic, so if just a few things were removedขlike the furniture, bathroom tiles, electric cables, pipes, and the vapor-permeable wrapขthe home would naturally decompose into the soil.

Built at a cost of $90,000 AUD (which could be knocked down to $80,000 with a simpler bathroom and no window seat), the home is no more expensive than a commercially built project, but much healthier to live in, notes Jiri.



The home will be expanded later this year with a timber structure, and Jiri will test various types of renewable infill materials in its wall panels.
The location of the home, Meander Valley in north central Tasmania, is ideal for an experimental home as it experiences a wide range of weather conditionsขfrom snow and heavy frost to gale-force winds with intense rainfall and the occasional heat wave. It’s also a region prone to brush fires, and it sits atop a protected karst systemขa type of landscape where the soluble bedrock creates sinkholes and caves. All of which Jiri says add "a welcome layer of complexity and relevance to our research."

In order to address societal problems like the housing crisis, Jiri sees a need for "an easily replicable model of an affordable home which almost anyone willing could afford to build and later easily extend, without wasting time and resources." He’s designed the cabin to meet these needs, and he’s made the plans public domain so that anyone can use them, free of charge.



Located in the brush fire–prone Meander Valley of Tasmania, the house will be subjected to a wide range of harsh weather conditions, including snow, heavy frost, intense rainfall, strong winds, and the occasional heat wave.

The second phase of the home, planned for later this year, will involve a large timber structure wrapped in a curtain wall consisting of 40 individual panelsขeach filled with a different material, like wood chips or recycled paper (anyone can submit material suggestions for infill through the website 40walls.org). Jiri will monitor the panels for performance and durability, and the results will be entered into the public domain for all to use.

"The project is valuable not only because of the scope of experimentation it will allow me as the architect," says Jiri, "but also because unlike laboratory tests, this will be an actual space lived in by a family, with all the associated stresses a regular home undergoes."



A view of the Tasmanian House’s window seat at dusk.



Floor plan of the Tasmanian House by Jiri Lev Architect

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
×