Sweden is facing an energy crisis due to its dependence on non-renewable sources. This has increased interest in renewable energy sources and off-grid living to reduce energy consumption and promote sustainability.
Living off-grid in Sweden requires careful planning and management of resources, but it can be a fulfilling and sustainable way of life. By generating their power and using sustainable methods of living, off-grid homeowners can reduce their environmental impact while still enjoying the comforts of home.
The Träskapö dwelling is 37 square meters of grid house in Västerbotten, Sweden. Träskapö has the ambiguous meaning of the wooden crafted island representing solidarity with the intensive wooden construction technique for sustainability. The design approach attempts to create an architecture that solves the problems in the site context of Sweden, such as the energy crisis, unsustainable construction, and lack of passive heating. The Träskapö is almost entirely built by hand as they approach the intensive construction. The main principle that drives the cycle systems of materiality with Träskapö is the idea of the cradle-to-cradle concept.
Sustainability introduces by the heating system. In a cold climate like Västerbotten, the water boiling system is essential to the house. In this case, the water will boil and heat the house; by this method, the water boils by solar energy, sunlight absorption, and using the oven to heat the bottom of the house. The heat is the most important thing to take into consideration. At the same time, the water is less important in Västerbotten; during the winter, the water comes from the melted snow stored inside the heating system and stored within the house. Träskapö designed to be highly energy-efficient and require very little energy for heating or cooling. This is achieved through a combination of design elements, including airtight building envelopes, high-performance windows and doors, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery.
The uses of Pine and Birch timber and mixed concrete as construction. For the timber from Pine and Birch, both of these wood species can be sourced locally in Västerbotten. The material can be used in the cradle-to-cradle process, which considers the entire lifecycle of a building, from its construction materials to its eventual demolition or reuse. The aftermath of Träskapö may be fulfilling the life of the other buildings in the local context.
The construction part mainly focused on the intensive technique of construction to value sustainability in architecture. The timber structure is designed to perform edge joints connection between each other to use fewer bolts and screws. They are allowing people to construct the building by themselves without heavy machinery. To assemble and disassemble the architecture’s life cycle from old to new construction.