Concept: Dominant adobe walls shelter major living areas and are both a cultural reference and a heat sink. This house reinvents tradition as a climatically responsive dwelling by housing interior adobe walls within a well-insulated frame structure.

Passive heating techniques include: direct solar gain; ceiling fans to reduce heat stratification; sloped north roof to reduce winter wind infiltration; double pane skylights; and a well insulated, well caulked building envelope.

Passive cooling considerations include: supplemental mechanical evaporative cooling; time-lag cooling; ceiling mounted fans; high windows to exhaust hot air; enhanced convective ventilation; and movable skylight covers. The project is divided into two principal zones, one private and one public. The private zone is divided by a hallway into adult and children areas.

Site: Located on a high hill in Corrales, the site offers a spectacular view of the Rio Grande and Sandia Mountains to the east.

Construction: Thick frame exterior walls are well insulated, caulked and covered to prevent infiltration, and stuccoed. Interior mass walls are adobe. This 1,800 sf home was built at a cost of less than $80,000. The project was completed in 1976, with a construction time of five months.