Climate Responsive Architecture: Hot and Dry Climate.
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Climate responsive architecture is prevalent and followed throughout the country and in the world to ensure a living protected from the harsh atrocities of the climate existing in the region. The practice of designing buildings and structures by utilizing the data of the region's weather patterns and accounts for factors like seasonality, the intensity of the sun, wind, rainfall, and humidity.
The goal of the architecture is to create a comfortable interior while reducing the building's reliance on artificial energy and to control the environmental harm caused during the construction process.
In today's blog, we will look deeper into the hot and dry climate of the respective responsive architecture.
Characteristics of Hot and Dry climate are as follows:
Temperature
- Very hot
- Temperature can easily raise up to 50°C and even more in summer
- The difference in temperature between day and night is 15-20°C (minimum)
Humidity
- Very low
- Varying between 10 - 50%
Precipitation
- Very Low
- Varying between 50 - 150 mm per year
Sky conditions
- Generally clear sky
- At times dust storm fills the complete sky which creates an unbearable glare
Solar Radiations
- Direct rays and strong during the day
- Often these turn to open clear skies at night
Wind
- Stong speed dusty winds are very common
- Wind speed varies from 20-30 km/h
- Wind Directions keep changing locally
Soil and Vegetation
- Loose soil
- Poor vegetation due to less rainfall and humidity
- Easy survival of thorny plants
States experiencing hot and dry climate in India are:
- Rajasthan
- Gujarath
- Maharashtra
- Parts of Madhya Pradesh
- Parts of Karnataka
Climate responsive architecture is very much essential in regions like these to survive extreme weather conditions. The general aim of architects in a hot and dry climate is to avoid the hot sun as much as possible, to capture cool air, and protect from dusty winds. Studies are done and construction is carried out keeping in mind the guidelines prepared for designing structures and buildings in regions with hot and dry climates.
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Let us have a closer look at the guidelines for the design concepts.
- Implementing thicker mud walls can act as insulation.
- Smaller size windows are preferred to reduce the solar glare.
- North-south orientation suits the best for this climate.
- Include courtyard with greeneries in the house plan.
- Thicker external walls with minimum windows to avoid heat and direct rays.
- Insulate the roof to protect it from heavy solar radiation.
- White color painted terrace is preferred.
- Small external openings
- Eastern and western windows should be protected by plants.
- Avoid large glass area
- Include deep sunshades.
- Use light colors for interiors and dark for reflecting surfaces.
- Hollow block construction technique can be considered.
- Make use of the double roof technique and sun protection devices.
