Building underground

A concrete solution to energy and

ecology problems

BY R. W. STEIGER
DESIGNER, AND
M. K. HURD
CONSULTANT
FARMINGTON, MICHIGAN

ve ry w h e re today designers and builders are

E looking for ways to halt escalation of construc-

tion costs and energy consumption. Concur-
rently, conservationists and ecologists are striv-
ing to preserve the natural beauty of the land and to
eliminate the visual blight of urban sprawl. Fortunately
there is a design rationale that can meet these worthy
goals and provide residential, commercial, and public
buildings that have the following advantages:
• Reduced fuel costs—sometimes 50 percent or more
• Little or no exterior maintenance
• Lower insurance rates because the building is fire re-
sistant, termite proof, and rot free
• Natural tornado and storm protection
• Maximum privacy and insulation from surrounding
noises and vibration
• Conservation of oxygen-producing greenery
• Pre s e rvation of light and air flow to surro u n d i n g
p ro p e rt y
All of this is entirely possible by simply building con-
crete structures below ground. In many cases, there will
be an added benefit of lower cost of construction.
For too long it has been assumed that every mechan-
ical problem can be solved with a massive infusion of
e n e rg y. Buildings have been designed which require
heating on the northern side on a sunny day in winter
while carrying a heavy air conditioning load on the sun-
ny exposures. A growing awareness of the finite nature of
our energy supply has forced a reevaluation of this ex-
t ra vagant concept. Underground structures making use
of the earth’s natural thermal insulating properties offer
* Numbers in parentheses refer to metric equivalents listed with this article.
Floor plan of Ecology House.
significant relief for both heating and cooling loads
while providing an acoustical insulation premium and
many of the other benefits listed above.
Actually man has always used earth as architecture.
Ancient cultures used natural depressions and cham-
bers within the earth for protection and shelter. There
are numerous examples the world over that segments
of societies are still using both natural and manmade
s t ru c t u res in this same way. Designers today are suc-
cessfully avoiding the damp cave and dark dungeon im-
age associated with earlier underground living by in-
cluding skylights or open atriums in their buildings, and
by partially exposing one or more of the building’s faces
through carefully designed site grading schemes. Con-
crete is of course the predominant structural material
for these buildings, and this article will describe seve ra l
successful designs for a wide range of sites and purpos-
es—single family dwellings, apartment or condominium
structures, an elementary school, university classrooms,
a bookstore, and a state office building.
Ecology House
A prime example of the underground movement is
the concrete house designed by Massachusetts architect
John E. Ba rn a rd, Jr. and aptly named by him, “Ecology
House.” Located on Cape Cod, the house was sited to
conform to local zoning regulations. There is so little
change in the natural growth, due to the structure’s blan-
ket of earth 12 to 18 inches(1)* deep, that visitors wouldn’t
know the house is there except for the signs, parking
area, and the railing surrounding the atrium. “It’s obvi-
ous,” comments Ba rn a rd, “that a building of this type
would have to be sited properly in relation to the water
table and soil conditions. It could also be done on a slop-
ing lot with the atrium opening to a grade that could al-
so provide for an underground garage.”
Structurally Ecology House is simplicity itself; the ex-
terior walls are of cast-in-place concrete using standard
foundation forms and reinforcement. The roof is of 8-
inch(2) precast hollow core slabs which also serve as the
finished ceiling. The floor is 31⁄2 -inch(3) reinforced con-
c re t e, slab-on-ground construction with the heating
ducts and electrical conduits buried. Foamed poly-
styrene insulation applied to the exterior surfaces of the
building is 2 inches(4) thick on the side walls and the roof
and 1 inch(5) under the floor slab. Waterproofing consists
of three plies of 60-pound(6) asbestos felt and hot pitch on
the roof, with only hot pitch mopped on the side walls.
To minimize the danger of leaks, there are no open-
ings through the roof. The chimney, air intake and ex-
haust ducts, and plumbing vents all pass through the
side walls. A standard home air conditioning unit not
only provides heating and cooling but also handles ven-
tilation, humidity control, and air filtration to create a
dust- and pollen-free environment. Because of the sim-
plicity of construction, much of the labor can be per-
formed by relatively unskilled workers.
The Ba rn a rd house, which could be built on a 50- by
50-foot(7) lot, provides 1200 square feet(8) of living space. It
could be much larger, but for test purposes the architect
felt that one bedroom, bath, kitchen, and generous liv-
ing-dining room with a fireplace was sufficient to prove
his point. The secret of this light and airy house is that all
rooms but the bathroom are dominated by floor-to-ceil-
ing glass panels looking out onto a 300-square-foot(9) atri-
um. Attractive landscaping and colored or textured con-
crete paving material can provide a pleasant view and
space for outdoor relaxing, dining or sunbathing in com-
plete privacy—an ideal solution for densely populated
urban areas.
The house is entered by walking downstairs from
ground level into the atrium which may be covered with
a plastic bubble in the winter to provide for year-round
gardening by keeping out snow and ice. Two atriums
would allow for a larger house and preserve the open-
ness by maintaining the same wall-to-window ratio.
There is no exceptionally complicated equipment in
Ecology House. Sewage drains to a sump, is pumped up
into a septic tank, and finally flows to a leaching field as
in the case of an ordinary house not on a municipal sew-
er line. Instead of the normal 40 pounds per square
foot (10) roof load, Ecology House was designed for 250
pounds per square foot.(11)
Cost of the project was $24,000 in 1973, or just over
$20 per square foot(12) of living space, which compared fa-
vorably with the higher cost of conventional housing at
that time. If more rooms had been added, the unit cost
would have been lower.
Dune dwellings
Although the Ba rn a rd house design is based on con-
ventional rectangular shapes, the plasticity of concrete
makes it readily adaptable to other forms underground.
Florida architect William Morgan has designed adjoin-
ing apartments set into the side of a 15-foot-high(13) sand
dune, overlooking the Atlantic. The structures are com-
pletely organic in form, and sculpt the living space into
volumes designed for specific functions. Actually they
are reinforced concrete bubbles within a dune. The
building’s self-supporting shell was designed with the
aid of a computer. Each mirror-image 750-square-foot(14)
apartment contains a bedroom, bath and entry on the
upper level; immediately below the bedroom is a
kitchen-dining area, and the remaining space is a living
area with built-in seating. A single large glass wall at the
front of the form visually opens the space to the out-of-
doors and a beautiful view of dunes, beach and ocean.
The structure was built by casting footings and floors,
then shaping walls and ceilings with steel mesh into
which shotcrete (gunite) was sprayed. The apartments
are a prototype for multiple units which could be eco-
nomically built by spraying fiberglass-reinforced shot-
crete onto air-inflated bags which could be used repeat-
edly by the contractor in place of conventional
formwork. After completion the units are covered with
18 inches(15) of sand and sod.
Terraset School
“What are all the things we can possibly do to save en-
ergy in this school?” was the question posed by archi-
tects Davis, Smith and Carter during the 1973 oil em-
bargo as they worked on plans for the Te r ra s e t
Elementary School in Reston, Virginia. The first thing
they decided was to bury it in a hill. Essentially, their
plan was to shave off the top of the hill, cast the concrete
s t ru c t u re, and put the hill back on. The earth cover
would not only provide good insulation, but it would al-
so serve as an energy reservoir and delay the impact of
outdoor temperature changes on the 69,000-square-
foot(16) building. Another important decision was to in-
Terraset School: line drawings by R. W. Steiger
Terraset School detail showing bank of windows opening out
through hillside, with concrete overhang for sun control.
 Bird’s-eye view of the Terraset School in Reston,
Virginia. The line drawing is based on a model of the
elementary school facility.
stall a large solar collector as the prime source of heating
and cooling energy.
We had read about Terraset, and when the opportuni-
ty presented itself during a recent trip to Washington, we
decided to drive out to Reston to see for ourselves what
this underground building was all about. Arriving at the
school, located in a scenic rolling area on the outskirts of
Reston, we first saw the solar collector canopy directly
across from the parking lot. Crossing a bridge from the
parking area to the school, one notices a sunken court-
yard beneath the solar canopy. A circular drive joins two
approach ramps which descend and curve around to a
loading and unloading zone for school buses and auto-
mobiles. The concrete ramps and cantilevered structure
provide protection for the children in bad weather.
Inside we found a plan based on four “learning cir-
cles” subdivided by flexible partitions into classrooms,
with a media center at the very middle. Each circle is
huge, with only one central concrete column support-
ing the weight of earth above on a 10-inch(17) reinforced
slab which is carried by massive beams radiating out-
ward some 50 feet(18) to supporting perimeter columns.
Steps around the edge lead to the sunken circle via wide
ramps that flow from one area to another. Large bright-
ly colored numerals, arrows, and directional graphics
guide one through a building that is surprisingly light,
airy and quiet.
A four-sided pyramid provides a skylight and reflect-
ing surface for indirect lighting over the media center.
This structure is one of the few above-ground forms that
can be seen from the main road.
Four deep window recesses, one for each learning cir-
cle, open out through the hillside. Daylight enters
through these banks of wide windows, on the outer pe-
riphery of the learning circles, gymnasium and cafeteria.
O ve rhangs regulate the direct rays of the sun, intercept-
ing in summer but permitting the lower angle of winter
light to enter unobstructed.
At the front of the school, flanking the solar courtyard,
are the office, gymnasium, cafeteria and other support
rooms.
How does Terraset perform in actual service? Al-
Terraset School cut-away view showing interior structure of
concrete with four learning centers, media center and other
facilities.
though details were incomplete at the time of this writ-
ing, the building was opened to classes for 990 students
in September 1976. Faculty and other staff total about 50
persons. Estimated fuel savings were around $30,000 the
first year when compared with a conventionally built all-
electric school (at 3 cents per kilowatt hour(19)), and about
$20,000 compared with conventional oil heat (at 40
cents per gallon(20) of oil). With Terraset well into its sec-
ond year, actual data will become statistics, and time will
tell if the promises are all fulfilled.
University buildings
Institutions of higher learning were building under-
ground even before the Terraset plan was developed.
The University of Minnesota has an 83,000-square-foot(21)
building—95 percent underground—housing the cam-
pus bookstore. The University of Houston recently
added a 72,000-square-foot(22) underground structure to
its student center.
The entire Student Center at Southwest Minnesota
State College at Marshall is buried beneath an inge-
niously terraced and landscaped mall. The architectural
firm of Stegner Hendrickson McNutt Sullivan left only a
30-foot-diameter(23) circular skylight and four smaller
square ones visible at ground level. Three broad under-
ground corridors connect the 23- by 144-foot(24) student
center with surrounding campus buildings, providing
sheltered access in bad weather. Other advantages are
lower heating and cooling costs, less maintenance, and
reduced noise.
The heavy 2-foot(25) earth cover is carried by a two-way
waffle slab roof system whose exposed ceiling becomes
visually important to the interior effect of light and
openness. The skylight is the major focal point of the in-
terior; it is centered over a cast-in-place concrete “tree”
with six beams branching out to the 12-sided perimeter
shear area of the skylight.
Another college broke ground in 1977 for an all-con-
crete underground building, this one a science center at
Bluffton College, Bluffton, Ohio. The architect was di-
rected to “keep it simple, save energy and don’t disturb
the trees and hills.” James Rooney responded by design- naissance to our large cities.
ing a six-sided reinforced concrete structure with 90 per- Building underground can indeed provide one answer
cent of the wall and roof area covered with earth. One that has arrived on time, when the world must find so-
building entrance, exposed in the hillside, will be the on- lutions to energy and ecological problems. The concrete
ly uncovered surface. Other access will be through a tun- construction industry can be proud to take part in this
nel from the old science building. solution rather than be a part of the problem.
Conservation-minded renovation of the old science
Metric equivalents
building together with energy saving techniques in the
(1) 305 to 457 millimeters (16) 6410-square-meter
new underground building will make it possible for
(2) 203-millimeter (17) 254-millimeter
Bluffton College to add the new structure without in- (3) 89-millimeter (18) 15.2 meters
creasing its heating and cooling bill. (4) 51 millimeters (19) 0.8 cents per megajoule
(5) 25 millimeters (20) 10.6 cents per liter
State Capitol Annex (6) 2.93-kilogram-per-square-meter (21) 7710-square-meter
A $25 million annex to the Minnesota State Capitol (7) 15.2- by 15.2-meter (22) 6690-square-meter
will have all of its 380,000 square feet(26) below grade, as (8) 111 square meters (23) 9.1-meter-diameter
much as 48 feet(27) underground at the lowest point. Ar- (9) 27.9 square meters (24) 7.0- by 43.9-meter
chitect Helmut Jahn expects the underground location (10) 1915 pascals (25) 610-millimeter

will preserve the present capitol grounds, cut the build-
ing heating bill by one-half, the cooling by one-fifth. The
330- by 690- foot(28) reinforced concrete structure will use
both cast-in-place and precast concrete. An 8-inch(2) re-
inforced slab will rest on spread footings at the lowest
level, while columns and girders will support a precast
roof covered by 4 feet(29) of soil. At the bottom level, a 90-
foot-wide(30) garden will extend the full length of the an-
nex on the side closest to the present capitol. A laminat-
ed glass roof over the garden, supported on aluminum
trusses and flush with the capitol grounds, will support
pedestrian traffic.
Social consequences
The American Concrete Institute recently considered
a proposal for formation of a committee to study the so-
cial consequences of design, construction, and in-ser-
vice performance of concrete structures, with people as
the measure, and to promote research into the interac-
tion of people with concrete and the environment it cre-
ates. Should such a committee come into being, it will
find a growing number of individuals realizing the bene-
fits of life underground with concrete.
The case has been well made that eart h - c ove re d
concrete buildings offer a significant opportunity to
build both energ y-efficient stru c t u res and a better
physical environment. The “c o n c rete jungle” image
may well be dispelled as both urban and suburban
communities replace ugly or deteri o rating fra m e
dwellings with fire-resistant, low-maintenance under-
ground concrete. The new feeling of spaciousness, pri-
vacy and quietude, not to mention the soul-soothing
and air-cleansing introduction of greenery and above-
ground recreation possibilities, might truly bring a re-
(11) 11,970 pascals (26) 35,300 square meters
(12) $215 per square meter (27) 14.6 meters
(13) 4.6-meter-high (28) 100.6- by 210.3-meter
(14) 69.7-square-meter (29) 1.22 meters
(15) 457 millimeters (30) 27.4-meter-wide
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BUILDING UNDERGROUND:
Visit Ecology House on Race Lane in Marston Mills,
Massachusetts, a little more than a mile off the Mid-Cape
Highway. Open to visitors the past several summers for a
small admission charge.
Read a 353-page book, Earth Covered Buildings, edited
by F. L. Moreland and published in 1976. Available from
Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing
Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 for $3.25. Stock Number
038-000-002864.
A magazine, Underground Space, is published by Perga-
mon Press Inc., Maxwell House, Fairview Park, Elmsford,
New York 10523.
Write to the Center for Energy Policy Studies, Clearing
House for Earth Covered Buildings, P.O. Box 19069, Ar-
lington, Texas 76019; telephone 817-273-3071.
Join the American Underground Association, care of De-
partment of Civil and Mineral Engineering, University of
Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455.
See “Problem Clinic,” page 120.
PUBLICATION #C780090
Copyright © 1978, The Aberdeen Group
All rights reserved