Showpiece House Harnesses Wisdom of the Ancients

Does the classical architectural style of ancient Greece and Rome have any relevance for today's homeowners? Did the builders of preindustrial-era houses develop climate-control techniques that could be adapted to today's houses?

At least in some cases, the answer is yes, judging by architect Geoffrey Mouen's Tradewinds, which was Builder magazine's showhouse at the 2008 International Builders' Show in Orlando last week.

The ancients are everywhere in the house, but not in ways most people would expect.

Tradewinds does not have the visual hallmarks of the classic Greek orders as we have come to know them in suburban America. There is no imposing Tara-esque porch across the front with four or five outsize columns and a rigid symmetry in the placement of windows. Nor are the 15-foot ceilings dripping with six- or seven-piece crown moldings. There is no grand entry foyer.

Rather, Mouen's classicism can be found in the simplicity and symmetry of his U-shaped floor plan and the restraint of his front elevation, which has a small front porch with modestly sized stained cypress columns.

There is a classicist's discipline in the limited vocabulary and repetition of Mouen's interior details, as well as in his use of the ancient Greek proportion system to size rooms, ceiling heights, and window and door openings. The latter, he said, "brings the spaces of the house into harmony with each other."

Of perhaps greater interest to the average homeowner, Mouen shows how Roman-era domestic architecture can be adapted to 21st-century lifestyles and how ancient climate-control principles can provide comfort that meets a 21st-century standard.

Mouen's U-shaped plan is an adaptation of a Roman courtyard villa with living spaces opening off a central courtyard. In this case, the central area is occupied by a swimming pool and a spa. It is open at one end to capture the view of an adjacent lake and to funnel the cool breezes blowing off the water into the interior rooms.

To create cross-ventilation -- essential in Florida's climate -- each room has large windows on one or more outside walls. Some rooms have transoms, as well. To give interior wind currents an assist, a hideaway cupola projecting above the roofline will draw air up when its windows are opened.

Mouen used two other ancient techniques for comfort control. The light colors of the exterior -- white stucco walls and a gray metal roof -- will help to reduce heat gain. With the high ceilings, the hottest air will rise well above occupants' heads.

There were some modern climate-control touches, too. Heat gain through the roof was further reduced with modern insulation in the attic. Insulated walls and coated windows also help to keep the heat outside.

These arrangements should keep the household comfortable for up to eight months a year without air conditioning, Mouen said. Though many homeowners may be skeptical on this point, he said that in a humid climate such as Florida's, the most important factor in human comfort is air movement. As long as the air is moving, a person can be comfortable even when the room temperature reaches 78 degrees.