Project Details

Casa Sophia, in Guadalix de la Sierra (Madrid) is the result of two years of work and is designed to achieve the best results in energy efficiency and sustainability. Built from natural and recycled materials, Casa Sophia is both a home and a laboratory focused on sustainability and the healthiness of materials.

The company responsible for the project, 100x100 BioPasiva, explains the importance of “incorporating as many natural and recycled materials as possible, ensuring they are free of formaldehyde, emit minimal volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and ultimately are healthy and environmentally friendly.

As a research center, Casa Sophia is aimed at obtaining data on indoor air quality and its optimization. Additionally, it also serves as a showroom for the systems and materials used, being considered the most sustainable building in Europe. It monitors radon gas, humidity, energy consumption, and tropospheric ozone among other aspects. For this reason, ventilation is crucial for proper indoor air quality.

It is a single-family dwelling of 260 m² distributed on the ground floor, an integrated mini biopassive house, and an upper floor, in addition to a large exterior.

The construction is based on the three aspects that define bioclimatic architecture. First, energy saving, thanks to the application of the Passivhaus standard, with which the building will be certified; second, environmental respect from sustainable materials and installations, and finally, healthy construction, using wood from nearby forests as the main material. The house will be monitored for factors such as the presence of formaldehyde, VOCs, radon gas, O3-tropospheric ozone, CO2, suspended dust particles, temperature, humidity, consumption...

Information and Characteristics of the Project

Conclusion

In this sense, Casa Sophia has two distinct ventilation systems with heat recovery from the brand Siber. Specifically, a centralized ventilation machine of 400 m³/h certified Passivhaus and a decentralized system. “Apart from these devices, it is worth noting an extraordinary novelty: the installation of the ground depressurization system. This allows the extraction of air found beneath the house and expels it above the roof.

Prior to the start of construction, the company indicates the implementation of a “geobiological study of the terrain” and the consequent “measurement of radon gas levels, as we are in a high-risk area.” In addition to creating a plan with the Hartman and Curry lines, “which are the natural electromagnetic fields that the earth has. They are lines that are approximately every 2.5m and form a perfect grid. These lines are not dangerous in themselves, but they are for our health if we place a bed or a sofa at a crossing point of these lines.”