from Hacker News

Staying in Zumthor's Swiss Wooden Cabin

by abhv on 11/22/22, 11:06 PM with 29 comments

  • by snickmy on 11/24/22, 3:54 PM

    For the architect / construction engineers out there.

    I'm always a bit concerned where I see those wood projects I really wonder about two aspects:

    1- thermal conductivity. How well isolated can they be when you have full beams of wood with one side outside and one inside.

    2- durability. I really appreciate wood for SOOO many properties, but what is really the realistic durability of woods? from an ecstatic standpoint, from a maintance standpoint (do I need to regularly treat it), and from a functional standpoint (what happen with heavy duty use)?

    Would love some inform opinion

  • by ggambetta on 11/24/22, 2:29 PM

    Peter Zumthor is one of my favorite architects <3 Therme Vals is just spectacular [0]. Zumthor is all about plain surfaces and 90 degree angles (maybe he used the Wolfenstein 3D editor to make his plans?) but somehow Therme Vals feels like being in an underwater cavern.

    I don't know if I'd live in a house designed by him (although the author of this article seemed to love it). Might be too minimalistic -- thinking of the Kunsthaus in Bregenz for example. Of course this cabin is made of wood, not concrete. But in terms of a house that feels like a home, I'd go with Alvar Aalto; his designs ooze cozyness in a way that Zumthor's don't, and for a famous architect, they feel surprisingly pragmatic and sensible :)

    [0] https://7132.com/en/therme/thermal-baths-and-spa/overview

  • by cinntaile on 11/24/22, 2:06 PM

    Pricey for a wooden cabin... 3100 CHF ~ 3100 euro for a week during low season for the 2 cheapest cabins.

  • by huhtenberg on 11/24/22, 6:21 PM

    In related news, the Villa Vals featured on Netflix Most Extraordinary Homes series (with a hobbit-like circular facade, dug into the steep slope with an access tunnel) is also available for rent

    https://www.villavals.ch/

    Also remote as heck, rented for several days at a time and with pretty much nothing to do there, but eat. Fantastic build though.

  • by galfarragem on 11/24/22, 2:44 PM

    Architect here.

    An analogy: staying in an (artist) architect house is like having a meal in a Michelin restaurant.

  • by dpatru on 11/24/22, 4:19 PM

    The cabin’s webpage is here: https://zumthorferienhaeuser.ch/m/en/homes/oberhus

    It shows the floor plan.

  • by michaelbenjamin on 11/24/22, 4:42 PM

    beautiful pictures! sounds isolated but that's part of the appeal I guess. interesting that it isn't better known given how famous Zumthor is, thanks for your post!

  • by zkdev on 11/22/22, 11:17 PM

    What is there to do in a small Swiss village with no shops?

  • by cassepipe on 11/24/22, 2:42 PM

    I am disappointed there's no mention of energy management/insulation. Seems even more relevant for a high altitude cabin, living far away from civilization. What's its impact on its environment? For the price of the stay for a week, I would expect something clever on that aspect of the building.