ABSTRACT
Arcones, the small village where the hay barn is located, is in the mountains about an hour north of Madrid. It has a mixed Mediterranean climate, cold and sometimes snowy in winter and warm and dry in summer, with mostly sunny days year-round. With careful planning, PH residence is possible to convert a hay barn built in the 1880s into a comfortable, efficient home for a four-generation family. The design solutions that Vogt developed include leaving the old stone walls intact on the ground floor and building an open staircase that hugs these walls as they rise to the next floor where four of the bedrooms are located. However, at least during the first winter, no backup heat was needed. The home has no supplemental cooling system and maintains comfortable temperatures throughout most of the summer, thanks in part to the thermal mass of the old walls, which moderates the daily temperature swings.
