Reciprocal House, in the heart of London’s Hampstead, is a wonderful example of meticulous architectural crafting rooted in passive design principles.
This dwelling has a unique history as the original extension was designed by Sir Norman Foster at the very start of his career. This latest incarnation of the scheme, led by Gianni Botsford Architects, can be considered to be an extension to the original extension which has been carefully preserved. The name has been given to acknowledge the ‘reciprocal’ nature between the two architects and demonstrating how the industrial themes can evolve over time.
Nestled under the canopy of mature trees, the building seamlessly connects with its natural surroundings. The trees also provide solar shading and thoughtful placement and orientation of the windows allowing daylight to flood the interior whilst promoting effective natural ventilation.
A striking feature of the house is the beautifully crafted spiral staircase, which also doubles to promote natural ventilation in combination with the high-level openable rooflight.
The structure incorporates exposed thermal mass materials as a core element of the night cooling strategy to create a naturally cool ambiance, eliminating the need for air conditioning.
Fabric improvements and high air tightness minimise the space heating demand which has been met by an acoustically attenuated air source heat pump. The schemes all-electric strategy includes the placement of the electric vehicle charger in front of the main lightwell.
Water consumption is kept to a minimum through the integration of low-flow fittings and a greywater recycling system which reuses shower and bath water for toilet flushing.
All services have been embedded into concrete floors and walls, creating the clean lines of the exposed concrete. Services distribute to the upper floors from a concealed plant cupboard in the basement via a central spine with horizontal services extending out within the floor build-up on each floor.
The dwelling is equipped with mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, underfloor heating, water mist fire suppression and cutting-edge AV and lighting control, flawlessly merging convenience and sustainable living.
Reciprocal House exemplifies how versatile building services engineering and environmental design approaches have the potential to be. Showing the ability to integrate innovative designs that complement the architecture, preserving the heritage of a building, while delivering the latest smart home solutions.
