RAIS Woodstoves

When I was younger and living at home, we lived in a beautiful house in Markham, Ontario. Since my father had decided to remodel the house, one of the elements he wanted was a wood stove. A fireplace would simply not do, as my father was raised in the country, where fire was all important for heating during the winter. It was during that time that he learned that a fireplace was mostly a decorative home element rather than a true source of heat. With a wood stove, the closed combustion chamber and the heavy mass of metal that make up the stove structure increase the efficiency of any wood burned within by capturing and releasing heat over time.

When most people think of a wood stove, the image of a small, black, horizontal, front-loading stove comes to mind. But these types of stoves are what I refer to as the basement stove; it works well enough, but it sure isn't pretty to look at, so might as well hide it in the basement! Well that is not the type of stove my father wanted. He told me about a stove he had seen in an old home, a vertical design, covered in enamel, with front and top loading. I had never seen anything of the sort, but lo and behold, my father returned home one evening with a receipt for delivery for the stove he wanted, the Petit Godin cast iron wood stove:

Although Godin stoves are no longer made, it is possible to find them through specialized dealers and other sources, including antique stores! Although I always found that little stove very nice, it just didn't appeal to me aesthetically. I prefer cleaner design, with less clutter and decoration, but higher manufacturing quality and more efficient functionality. My research led me to discover RAIS, a Danish company that designs and manufactures wood stoves in several different models based on the original RAIS wood stove, designed by the architect Bent Falk in 1970. He took on the challenge of designing an environmentally-friendly series of “green” homes that made use of effective fireplaces. For his designs, he was awarded the Danish Design Award that year for his stove, the RAIS 1.

Some of the models offered include several freestanding soapstone wood stoves. Yes, the same type of stone used in Inuit carving! Soapstone has many advantages to offer from a heating perspective. It is quite dense and retains heat long after the fire has died down. It radiates that heat in a gradual and diffuse manner, avoiding unnecessary hot areas in the room. It allows for the construction of smaller wood stoves that maintain very high thermal efficiency.

If you are looking for a new fireplace, whether a freestanding model or an insert, with or without soapstone, head over to RAIS and take a look at what they offer.

A new way to look at mobile homes

My wife and I are hoping to move into a home one day, but we both feel that the quality of most homes today leaves a lot to be desired. Spurred by a belief in self-sustainability, environmental friendliness and value, we are looking at home builders that provide these types of features in their design.

One company that caught our eye is the Canadian design firm, Sustain, that provides numerous designs based around a mobile platform. As such, many of their homes are classified as mobile, and may bypass several issues involved in typical residential construction, such as foundations and more. We have known about this company for a while now, and I've even posted some information about the MiniHome Solo, but we wanted to make sure that they would stay in the business and actually build some of the great concepts they came up with. It is nice to see that they have continued the premise of building on a mobile platform. One great advantage of such a design includes the possibility of moving the entire home to another location, which can be an attractive option.

The model above, called the MiniHome Solo, is a bit on the small side, but is fantastically appointed and one of the greenest and most eco-friendly homes available for production today. Take a look here for a gallery of images. And Sustain is expanding and improving, in more ways than one:

Many of the newer designs are based on the experiences learned with previous models and most of the designs share some common ideas, such as external materials that do not require any maintenance or painting, low power consumption and more.

Head on over to their website and take a look a what they've got to offer. So far, we have been pretty impressed and will inquire to get more information.

Something new from Lego: Architecture Series

The LEGO Group and Brickstructures Inc. have unveiled a great product labelled LEGO Architecture. The LEGO Group and Adam Reed Tucker of Brickstructures officially introduced the LEGO Architecture line in 2008, which now contains six different models and from the images I've seen so far, I am quite impressed. It is difficult to determine the exact scale of the models from the boxes, but most of them look simple enough that I imagine the scale to approach 1/500 to 1/700. It is also possible by comparing the different models to note that Lego has not selected a specific scale for the line, but rather has let the model itself decide the scale. It really is whatever looks good, and I think they look very good. Here is the image that can be found on the Lego website, in the Architecture Series section:









I look forward to getting my hands on one or more of these kits (specifically the Frank Lloyd Wright models). If you haven't played with Lego in a while, give it a try. It is a fantastic way to develop and improve your imagination!

Modern and minimalist housing...

For those who know me, my obsession with modern and minimalist housing is only increasing with time!!! Good Lord, I should have been an architect rather than a computer geek! Actually, the concept of this type of housing includes several ideas that really appeal to me, such as prefabrication, energy efficiency, use of natural materials and more.

Currently, it seems that there are many, many concepts, but very few actual products for sale. As I discussed in a previous post, architect Rocio Romero has been selling her idea for quite a while now. Some others are doing the same, including a Canadian company called sustain, which has been marketing the MiniHome:

The MiniHome is actually listed as a travel trailer by the Canadian government, so it can be towed to its location, without special permits:

And here is a look at the interior:

The more I research this topic, the more I realise that I am not the only one with this obsession... I wonder what I will find next?

More to follow...

More of my obsessions...

Ever since I got a look at some modern, prefabricated housing, I have been bitten by the bug... This is exactly the type of house that I have been looking for, and I believe that I have found the one!

After doing some extensive research, I have pretty much settled on Rocio Romero's design for the LV house. Although there are several interesting designs available online, this is the only one that I have found that has been built several times, and the layout seems to be the most rational:


One of the main reasons behind my interest in this type of housing is my concern about the lack of thought going into today's North American housing market. Careful research has led me to conclude that most builders in Canada (if not the USA as well) are far more interested in profit than intelligent construction. I have also concluded that most houses do not cater to the needs of their inhabitants, but rather seem to be built to impress visitors more than anything.

Here is a look at the internal layout for the LV house:

More to follow.

Our first visit to Velachery...

We had the incredible opportunity to visit the main office in Velachery, and let me tell you, I was really impressed... I think that the picture below says it all:



It was really a most impressive experience, and really demonstrated the commitment from our new friends... I had the very pleasurable experience of eating some Indian sweets when we were there, and I got this picture, thinking that it might bring a smile to a few people:


For your information, chats are Indian sweets!!!

Of course, we spend the majority of our time in Perungudi, so I thought that I would include a picture of Renaud, Martin and Alex, hard at work, of course:


We have made several friends, and they were really happy to pose in a few pictures with us:


I will add a little more when I get a chance later on!

A little more on the Taj Connemara...

And of course, I got the chance to take a few more pictures of the hotel this morning (there seems to be a lot of interest in this really great place); the Taj Connemara is a very old hotel, and has been around for over 100 years. Here is a picture of the very beautiful lobby:


Due to the excellent daily maintenance of the hotel, I am certain that it will continue for another century. Here is a picture of the small sitting area, near the interior garden:


And finally, another beautiful floating flower arrangement:


These floating flower "pizzas", as we have come to refer to them, are arranged in several places throughout the hotel. Finally, as we leave every day, we are greeted by this beautiful representation of Shiva:


After doing a little research (Indian mythology is somewhat more complicated than the more familiar Greek mythology), I learned that Shiva (sometimes knows as Shiva the Destroyer) is considered the oldest and the youngest; the eternal youth as well as the infant. He is the source of fertility in all living beings. He has gentle as well as fierce forms. Shiva destroys evil and protects good. He bestows prosperity on worshipers although he is austere. He is omnipresent and resides in everyone as pure consciousness.

I am continuing my study of this truly fascinating mythology, and I will add more information as I learn it...

A cooler day in Chennai...

After an evening of temperatures hovering around 38C, it was nice to wake up and note that today's high should be only 33C, a nice change. I took a few moments to take a some pictures for your enjoyment:
The picture above is of the hotel's main entrance:


And the following are of the pretty light traffic just outside of the hotel:


Here is one of the really nice atrium in the hotel, right next to the interior garden:


And as we leave the hotel every day, we are greeted by the statue of Ganesha:


In Hinduism, Ga' symbolizes Buddhi (intellect) and 'Na' symbolizes Vijnana (wisdom). So Ganesha is considered the master of intellect and wisdom. Ganesha is also known as the Lord of Good Fortune, so every morning, flowers are arranged on the statue in thanks.

I have to go, but I will add more a little later!

World Cup Fever and another day in India...

Although I had been invited to the German soirée, I decided to head to Distil, the hotels' very trendy bar. As the World Cup is presently on, the bar was packed with patrons, to watch the main game of the evening, England vs. Paraguay. Pretty good match, which ended 1-0 for England. I stayed to watch the second match, which was Sweden vs. Trinidad and Tobaggo, and it turned out to be a great match indeed, although the final score was 0-0.

On Sunday, on the advice of our friend Preiya, we visited a South Indian cultural center, called Dakshina Chitra. A 30 minute drive from the hotel, and we arrived. Let me tell you, it was a very warm day indeed, although a very enjoyable one. We learned a tremendous amount of information regarding South Indian culture, architecture, clothing and more. The entire complex is built of several old South Indian buildings, which I learned were moved from several parts of South India and brought to this center, piece be piece. I took several photos, and I thought that I might share a few with you:





And on a sad note, I am beginning to feel the effects of our wonderful friend, the common cold. I think a small epidemic has started, as Louis is also feeling the effects. I guess that a little too much recycled from the airplanes must have contributed. I just hope that Renaud doesn't go through the same thing! We will just have to see...