This project focuses on the creation of a winter garden in a private house, eco-friendly and heated by a single little pellet stove. The project starts from the need to extend an early twentieth-century house in Vigneux de Bretagne, France without special features apart from the solid granite walls, typical of Breton tradition.
The architect Tristan Brisard chose not to force the similarities with the old house, but rather to create a stylistic liaison with an aesthetically autonomous volume as a living area, based on the archetype of the house, the icon typically drawn by children. A particularly suitable choice, which led to the creation of a sort of conservatory, basic and minimalist, a “cathedral”- like volume made entirely according to the principles of green building.
With the primary objective of maintaining a low environmental impact regarding CO2 emissions, energy consumption and use of raw materials, the natural choice was to create a building made entirely of wood. The beams are solid untreated chestnut and articulate the basic shapes of the room. The walls and the frame of the house are made of Finnish spruce wood, with natural wood fiber insulation, and the bright and basic furnishings, in true northern style, are also made of wood. Preference was given to materials made with raw, untreated wood, or processed with natural solvent-free glues.
The result is a high level of comfort, thanks to the effect that these materials have on air quality inside the building. Low conductivity, high thermal inertia, breathability and outstanding hygroscopicity reduces the need for heating in winter and cooling in summer. The energy needs of the entire extension are very low, thanks to the use of natural lighting, both in summer and winter.
The environmental sustainability objective was also achieved thanks to pellet heating, chosen as a more environmentally friendly and cost-effective alternative than diesel or natural gas, but even more practical than wood. The owners Julien and Fanny Guérin chose The Thema stove by MCZ. With this little-forced ventilation stove, which is just 80 centimeters tall, they can efficiently heat the entire room (over 70 square meters), while maintaining a constant 20°C during the day and 18 at night, with limited consumption (less than one tonne of pellets throughout the winter).
