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Climate Responsive Design for Comfortable Living in Warm-Humid Climate:

The Need for a Comprehensive Investigation of Kerala Vernacular
Architecture and its Present Status

Article  in  Design Principles and Practices · February 2010

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 DESIGN
Principles & Practices:
An International Journal

Volume 4

Climate Responsive Design for Comfortable Living

in Warm-Humid Climate: The Need for a
Comprehensive Investigation of Kerala Vernacular
Architecture and its Present Status

A. S. Dili, M. A. Naseer and T. Zacharia Varghese

www.design-journal.com



















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Climate Responsive Design for Comfortable Living in
Warm-Humid Climate: The Need for a Comprehensive
Investigation of Kerala Vernacular Architecture and its
Present Status
A. S. Dili, National Institute of Technology Calicut, Kerala, India
M. A. Naseer, National Institute of Technology Calicut, Kerala, India
T. Zacharia Varghese, National Institute of Technology Calicut, Kerala,
India

Abstract: Kerala, the southern most state of India, which extends from 8°18’ to 12°48’’ N latitude,
74°52’ to 72°22’ E longitude, lying between the Arabian Sea on the West and the world famous
Western Ghats with its ever green rain forests on the East has a characteristic Warm-Humid climate.
The presence of high amount of moisture in the atmosphere for major part of the year causes thermal
discomfort as there is less evaporation, resulting in sweating. This is more acute in summer when the
air temperature is close to or higher than the body temperature. Climate responsive design is the one
that would provide a comfortable indoor environment in response to the seasonal variations of the
climate. The vernacular architecture of Kerala has evolved through ages where the climate has played
a very important role. In the present context where energy efficient and sustainable buildings have
become the order of the day, there is a need to revisit the vernacular architecture simply because they
are time tested. Efforts have been made by many researchers worldwide to study vernacular architecture.
This paper illustrates the dire need for a comprehensive investigation of Kerala vernacular architecture
to understand the climate responsive design techniques used for comfortable indoor environment and
some important findings reported so far.

Keywords: Kerala, Vernacular Architecture, Thermal Comfort, Energy Efficiency

Introduction
HE VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE of Kerala is known for ages for its climate

T responsive design for a comfortable indoor environment. The principles of vernacular

architecture of Kerala are based on empirical observations and experimental wisdoms
acquired through generations. It is found to be highly effective in providing thermally
comfortable indoors – cool condition during summer and warmth in winter.

Energy efficient and sustainable development has gained the world attention in the recent
past. The architects and engineers are now trying to make their designs less energy intensive
and more sustainable by adopting suitable design techniques. Efforts have already been made
in various parts of the globe to re-visit and re-learn from the vernacular buildings, the tech-
niques that are employed to achieve climate responsive design, so that the same can be

Design Principles and Practices: An International Journal

Volume 4, 2010, http://www.Design-Journal.com, ISSN 1833-1874
© Common Ground, A. S. Dili, M. A. Naseer, T. Zacharia Varghese, All Rights Reserved, Permissions:
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DESIGN PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

suitably adopted in today’s context also to achieve comfortable indoor living environment
that are energy efficient and sustainable.
Hence there is a dire need to undertake a comprehensive study of Kerala vernacular archi-
tecture to understand its efficiency in providing a climate responsive design.

The Relevance of Research and its Present Status

Investigations on natural and passive control systems in buildings the essential components
for a climate responsive design are underway on vernacular buildings, in various part of the
world [1-6]. These types of investigations, started in Korea in 1996 [6], has spread over
different countries such as China, Japan etc. within a few years. Some of these studies have
specific objectives to extract techniques to adopt in contemporary architecture. The results
of such studies have been used for the benefit of modern buildings in Korea [7].

Kerala vernacular architecture, evolved on the principles of climate responsive design,

has emerged as a novel area among the researchers in this field. The studies have so far fo-
cused on the qualitative analysis of the building types, materials and construction techniques
[8-12]. They lack therefore, the field tests and a comprehensive analysis. It is difficult to
establish the real performance of vernacular architecture in providing a comfortable indoor
environment, without conducting an experimental study by continuously monitoring and
recording the field data of various parameters in such buildings over a period of time.

Attempts are therefore made by a few researchers in this field for a comprehensive analysis
of Kerala vernacular architecture. The studies have started providing valuable results regarding
the effectiveness of climate responsive design techniques for a comfortable indoor environ-
ment [13-19].

The modern practice in architecture lacks conscious effort in using techniques for climate
responsive design. Extensive use of modern materials irrespective of their efficiency in
providing the indoor environment has often resulted in high energy consumption, leading
to many environmental problems. There is a close connection between the energy use in
buildings and the resulted environmental damage. This is because of energy intensive solutions
that are required in buildings to attain comfort conditions in the form of mechanical cooling
and ventilation and artificial lighting. The result is severe depletion of non-renewable energy
resources and environmental degradation.

The vernacular architecture of a region evolved through ages by consistent and continuous
effort for more efficient and perfect solutions can provide the present day architects and en-
gineers with energy efficient and sustainable design techniques even while utilizing the
modern materials and construction methods.

Some Important Findings

A vernacular residential building (Puthiya Kovilakam), nearly 300 years old, located at
Nilambur in the Malappuram district of the northern part of Kerala is selected for the invest-
 A. S. DILI, M. A. NASEER, T. ZACHARIA VARGHESE

igation. A drawing of Puthiya Kovilakam with the selected area for the study marked in
rectangle is shown in the figure 1 [16].

The selected vernacular building, Puthiya Kovilakam, has three rectangular courtyards in
which one is surrounded by a double storeyed structure. The other two courtyards are sur-
rounded by single storeyed structures. The space taken for the investigation is around the
courtyard of 6 ft x 12 ft, as shown in figure 1. The courtyard has an inward looking verandah
of 3.5 ft width. The two sides of the courtyard are semi open spaces used for living and
prayer and the other two sides are adjoined with rooms having windows opening to the
courtyard.

Fig. 1: Plan & Section of Nilambur Kovilakam – Selected Area for the Study Marked in
Rectangle [16]
DESIGN PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

An instrumentation setup called Architectural Evaluation System (AES) with electronic

sensors, data logger, memory module and computer interface to continuously record the
comfort parameters over a period of time, is installed inside and around the building at selected
locations (fig.2). A schematic diagram of AES is shown in figure 3 [17].

Fig. 2: Arrangement of AES around the Courtyard

Fig. 3: A Schematic Representation of Architectural Evaluation System [16]

 A. S. DILI, M. A. NASEER, T. ZACHARIA VARGHESE

Some of the results of the investigation carried out during winter, summer and monsoon are
given in figures 4, 5 and 6. From these, it is clear that the diurnal variation in indoor air
temperature is very less compared to that of outdoor ambient air temperature in all the three
seasons. The low diurnal variation of the indoor temperature proves the high thermal insulation
property of the building envelope.

No time lag is observed between the outdoor and indoor temperatures, as evidenced from
figures 4, 5 and 6. The absence of time lag between outdoor and indoor temperatures can be
attributed to the highly insulative wall preventing conductive heat flow and due to the con-
tinuous air flow maintained through the building.

Fig. 4: Air Temperature and RH vs. Time in Winter [16]

DESIGN PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES: AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL

Fig. 5: Air Temperature and RH vs. Time in Summer [16]

Fig. 6: Air Temperature and RH vs. Time in Rainy Season [17]

 A. S. DILI, M. A. NASEER, T. ZACHARIA VARGHESE

The experimental investigations conducted so far reveals that, the reason for thermal discom-
fort in summer season in Kerala is not due to the increase in minimum temperature alone,
but due to the increase in the moisture content in the air during that period.

In such a climatic condition, the best way to achieve a comfortable indoor environment is
to have a control over the air temperature supplemented with a continuous air movement
that can ensure the required rate of evaporation from the body of occupants. This demands
a building envelope which can maintain the indoor temperature at optimum and can provide
a controlled and continuous airflow through the building.

In Kerala vernacular architecture, this is achieved with highly insulative building envelope,
presence of the internal courtyard provided within the living spaces and optimum number
of window openings provided on the external walls with suitable sizes. The building envelope
with walls made of thick laterite blocks and pitched timber roof covered with Mangalore
pattern clay tiles prevents the conductive heat flow into the interiors. The heat flow due to
radiation is blocked by protecting the walls with roof overhangs and by providing sufficient
thermal insulation for the roof.

It is observed from the investigation that, the passive environment control system embedded
in the vernacular residential buildings of Kerala really controls the temperature and maintain
a controlled and continuous air flow through the building to provide maximum thermal
comfort to its dwellers.

Conclusion
The vernacular architecture gives solutions that are in perfect harmony with nature. Now,
the researchers in the field of energy efficient and sustainable design in various part of the
world are extracting the time tested climate responsive design techniques employed in the
vernacular architecture. Kerala with its rich heritage calls for a comprehensive research in
the area of vernacular architecture. This would definitely help the present day architects and
designers to adopt suitable techniques to make their designs energy efficient and sustainable.

References

1. Youngryel Ryu, Seogcheol Kim, Dowon Lee, The influence of wind flows on thermal
comfort in the Daechung of a traditional Korean house, Building and Environment, 44
(2009) 18–26
2. Mujgan Serefhanoglu Sozen, Gulay Zorer Gedık, Evaluation of traditional architecture
in terms of building physics: Old Diyarbakır houses, Building and Environment 42
(2007) 1810–1816
3. Do-Kyoung Kim, The natural environment control system of Korean traditional archi-
tecture: Comparison with Korean contemporary architecture, Building and Environment
41 (2005) 1905–1912.
4. Lin Borong, et. al., Study on the thermal performance of the Chinese traditional ver-
nacular dwellings in Summer, Energy and Buildings, 2003, 36, pp.73–79.
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5. Ryozo Ooka, Field study on sustainable indoor climate design of a Japanese traditional
folk house in cold climate area, Building and Environment, 2000, 37, 319–329.
6. Kyung-Hoi Lee, Dong-Wook Han, Ho-Jin Lim, Passive design principles and techniques
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house,Building and Environment 45 (2010) 51–57, available online.
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and Alternative Technology Construction – A Comparative Investigation, The Journal
of the Indian Institute of Architects, 2008, 16 – 18.
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The Journal of the Indian Institute of Architects, 2008, 7 – 8.
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of Engineers (India) Journal – Architectural Engineering, 2007, 88(1), 2-5.
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13. Dili A S, Naseer M A, Zacharia Varghese T, “The passive environment control system
of Kerala vernacular residential architecture: An experimental investigation on wind
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doi:10.1016/j.enbuild. 2010.01.002, available online from 11 January 2010.
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Living in Warm-Humid Climate: The Need for a Comprehensive Investigation of Kerala
Vernacular Architecture and its present Status, Design Conference 2010, 13th to 15th
February 2010, Illinois University, Chicago, USA.
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 A. S. DILI, M. A. NASEER, T. ZACHARIA VARGHESE

About the Authors

A. S. Dili
Mr. Dili A S is basically an architect, acquired his B. Arch Degree from University of Kerala
and M. Tech Degree with specialisation in Building Technology and Construction Manage-
ment from Indian institute of Technology Madras. He had been working as a faculty in the
department of Architecture of TKM College of Engineering, Kollam, Kerala since 1998 to
July 2007. Now, he is under deputation to pursue Ph. D programme at National Institute of
Technology Calicut. His areas of interests include climate responsive architecture, passive
environment control systems of vernacular buildings and thermal comfort.

Dr. M. A. Naseer
Dr. Naseer M A is an Associate Professor at National Institute of Technology Calicut, India.
He acquired his B. Tech (Architectural Engineering) degree from Regional Engineering
College, Calicut, Kerala in 1991. He acquired his Master of City Planning and Ph. D degrees
from Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. His areas of interests include Climate Re-
sponsive Architecture and Sustainable Buildings, Remote Sensing and Geographic Inform-
ation Systems and Transportation Planning.

Dr. T. Zacharia Varghese

Dr. T. Zacharia Varghese is a Professor at National Institute of Technology Calicut, India.
He acquired his BE (Civil Engineering) degree from PSG College of Technology Coimbatore
in 1975, aslo he acquired his ME (structural Engineering) degree in 1978 from the same in-
stitution. He acquired his Ph. D degrees from Indian Institute of Technology Madras in 1990.
His areas of interests include Cimte responsive buildings and Sustainable materials.
 



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