Unit 7 Building a House - the Requirements

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 453.

A house in this country needs protection against the elements, the environment and a number of other risks. Of course the location of the house is an important factor. However, some types of protection are important for both city and country houses. Other types of protection will depend on whether the house is in a city or in the country. And, of course, although protection is important, it is certainly not required against everything. In fact it would be impossible to give a house total protection. So we must look at each factor and decide how important protection is in each case.

The first factor is solar radiation. As we live in a temperate climate, it is unlikely that a house will need protection against it. However, in hot climates this type of protection is often provided by means of external wooden shutters or internal blinds. These are closed to prevent the sun from entering the house. But I think that in Britain both town and country houses are unlikely to get too much sun !

Moving on, the next factor is rain. All houses in this country are certain to need protection against rain. This type of protection is provided by solid brick walls and a sloping roof. Of course we don't have monsoons, but our climate can be very rainy and damp.

The next factor is high winds. Here I think we need to distinguish between city and country houses. A country house in an exposed location may need protection. But I think that in a city a house is unlikely to be so exposed, and therefore unlikely to need protection against high winds.

The fourth factor is noise from outside. But a normal brick structure, perhaps with double-glazed windows, provides sufficient protection. Again we need to look at the location of the house. Even in a city, there are likely to be differences. Some houses are in quiet areas; others in noisy areas. So a city house may need protection against outside noise.

Now I'd like to move on to the next factor — noise from inside. Here we need to consider how to insulate one room against noise coming from another room. For this purpose interior brick walls are recommended. Here both city and country houses are likely to need protection.

I've already mentioned rain, but there is also damp from underground or rising damp. And it is likely that both city and country houses will need protection against this. Good foundations and a solid stone floor are ideal for this type of protection.

The next factor is the risk of fire from outside. All houses will certainly need protection against this. There is also the danger of fire from inside. In this case we need to consider the type of heating used, as well as other factors. In my opinion, all houses may require this type of protection.

The next point is heat loss. Although we live in a temperate climate, the British winters are typically cold and very damp. So houses are bound to need protection against heat loss. Here again thick walls and well-fitted doors and windows prevent heat loss.

And finally there is the question of heavy snow. Heavy snow is not normal in most parts of Britain, and therefore a house here definitely won't need this type of protection.