Seeing my little guy sitting on the floor (previous post) reminds me. We loved that house. It was designed in 1956 by a Penn State Architecture professor by the name of William Hajjar. True to Modernism, it blended the indoors and outdoors artfully, so that each room had a view to the sky, the garden. Boo is looking out the living room's glass wall. Each room had a feature that made it harmonious, not overwhelming. Mahogany paneling. Double height living room. A balcony-like den. Borrowed light. Even as an architect, the best feature was the heating system. We're talking the 50's and yet the "cold" tile floor Boo was sitting on was actually WARM! Hot water pipes ran underneath and provided radiant heating through the tiles. It is wonderful to always have your feet toasty warm on those cold central Pennsylvania days. No more drafts up your ankles!
Did you know radiant heating has been used for centuries? It was most widely used by the Coreans, who helped to popularize it. It is called "ondol" in Corean. The flue for the cooking fire connected to a tunnel system that ran under the floor of each room. The part of the room closest to the kitchen was the "upper room," and was reserved the the elders, while the youngsters sat on the colder end.So! summer's here and I can tell you're not feelin' it right now. I'll remind you about this post around November, OK?
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1 comment:
My Dad was stationed in Korean in the 60's and I remember chilly winter mornings as a child when he would describe in painstaking detail the amazing radiant floor heating systems he discovered there. I think he always dreamed of retrofitting our house some how. Never happened. Best we could do was cozy slippers. =)
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