ARCHITECTURE FOR

HOT AND HUMID

CLIMATE
HOT AND HUMID CLIMATE
In hot and humid climatic regions, high
temperatures are accompanied by very high
humidity levels leading to immense
discomfort. Cross ventilation is hence very
essential here. Adequate shading measures
are also necessary to protect the building
from direct solar radiation.

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 WHY THE CLIMATE OF PLACE
LIKE MUMBAI IS HOT AND HUMID?
Places that are close to sea or oceans have a
humid climate as there is large amount of water
vapour in the air. Actually what happens, land
and water don't get heated at the same
rate.Land gets heated faster so it radiates the
energy , that heats the air above the land, as a
result of which air above the land gets heated
faster than air above the water bodies. Now hot
air is lighter so it moves up and the surrounding
air above the seas rushes to take its place which
has lots of water vapour in it. This is the reason
for humidity .

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 One more reason for that is the fact that Mumbai is
near the Equator, where the light from the sun hit's
most directly.The Earth is tilted, so hence the
Equator is right in front of the sun, & hence the heat
from the sun is best
received there.

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Geography of Mumbai :

The exact geographical location of Mumbai lies in

the west coast of the state of Maharashtra facing the
Arabian Sea. It is an interesting fact that one fourth
of the city of Mumbai lies below the sea level.
Mumbai is spread across a total area of 440 sq.
kms. There are two ridges of flow hills that covers
the city on the East side and west side that forms a
sort of barrier from the vast and open expanses of
the Arabian Sea. The highest point of Mumbai is the
Malabar hills having a height of 180 feets above the
sea level.

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Climate of Mumbai:
The weather of Mumbai remains hot and humid through out the
year. This is mainly because of the cities proximity to the Arabian
Sea. However the weather turns out top be pleasant during the
months of November to March the winter in Mumbai. During this
period the Mumbai sky remain clear without clouds and the
temperature also cools down. The temperature starts rising from
the months of March and it continues until mid June when the
Monsoon breaks out. The monsoon season in Mumbai follows till
September and it brings a relief from the heat and the humidity.
That is why the best time to visit Mumbai is between the months
of October and March. The temperature in the summer months
usually varies from 35 to 23 degree Celsius. On the other has
winter brings a respite from the sweltering heat as the
temperature goes down from 29 to 19 degree Celsius.

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Climate of Mumbai

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The main design objectives
should be:
(A) Resisting heat gain
Measures that are convenient to resist unwanted
heat gain are:
(a) Decreasing surface area of the building
exposed to the outside.
(b) Using materials that take a longer time to heat
up.
(c) Providing buffer spaces between the outside
and the inside.
(d) Increasing shading of the building in general.
(e) Using materials that reflect heat.

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 (B) Promoting heat loss
To promote heat lost it is essential to ensure:
(a) Appliances used are well ventilated.
(b) Proper ventilation occurs throughout the
day.
(c) Humidity levels are reduced as much as
possible.

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General recommendations for building
design in warm and humid climate are:
(1) Site
(a) Landform
For flat sites, design considerations for the landform is
immaterial.
In case of slopes and depressions, the building should be
located on the windward side or crest to take advantage
of cool breezes.

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 b) Waterbodies
Water bodies are not essential as they would tend to
furtherincrease the humidity.

(c) Street width and orientation

Major streets should be oriented parallel to or within
30 of the prevailing wind direction during summer
months to encourage ventilation in warm and humid
regions.A north-south direction is ideal from the point of
view of blocking solar radiation.The width of the streets
should be such that the intense solar radiation during
late morning and early afternoon is avoided during the
summers.

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 (c) Open spaces and built form
Buildings should be spread out with large open
spaces in between for unrestricted air movement.
In cities, buildings on stilts can promote ventilation
and cause cooling at the ground level.

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 (2) Orientation and Planform
As temperatures are not very high, free plans can be evolved as
long as the house is under protective shade.An unobstructed air
path through the interiors is important to ensure proper
ventilation.The buildings could be long and narrow to allow cross-
ventilation. For example, a singly loaded corridor plan (i.e. one with
rooms on one side only) is preferable over a doubly loaded one.

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 Heat and moisture producing areas like toilets and
kitchens must be ventilated and separated from the rest
of the structure.

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 Semiopen spaces such as balconies, verandahs and
porches can be used advantageously for daytime
activities as well as give protection from rainfall.In
multistoreyed buildings a central courtyard can be
provided with vents at higher levels to draw away the
rising hot air.

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 (3) Building Envelope

(a) Roof
In addition to providing shelter from rain and heat, the
form of the roof should be planned to promote air
flow.Vents at the rooftop effectively induce ventilation and
draw hot air out.

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 Insulation does not provide any additional benefit for a
normal RCC roof in a non-conditioned building.However,
very thin roofs having low thermal mass, such as AC
sheet roofing, require insulation as they tend to rapidly
radiate heat into the interiors during daytime.A double
roof with a ventilated space in between can also be used
to promote air flow. The space in between can also act as
a heat buffer.

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(b) Walls:
The walls must also be designed to promote air flow so
as to counter the prevalent humidity.Baffle walls, both
inside and outside the building can help to divert the flow
of wind inside.

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 They should be protected from the heavy rainfall
prevalent in such areas.If adequately sheltered, exposed
brick walls and mud plastered walls work very well by
absorbing the humidity and helping the building to
breathe.

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 (c) Fenestration
Cross-ventilation is of utmost importance in warm and
humid climatic regions.All doors and windows should
preferably be kept open for maximum ventilation for most
of the year.These must be provided with venetian blinds or
louvers to shelter the rooms from the sun and rain, as well
as for the control of air movement.Openings of a
comparatively smaller size can be placed on the windward
side, while the corresponding openings on the leeward
side should be bigger for facilitating a plume effect for
natural ventilation.

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 The openings should be shaded by
external overhangs.Outlets at higher
levels serve to vent hot air.

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Examples illustrating how the air movement within
a room can be better distributed

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 (d) Colour and texture
The walls should be painted with light pastel shades or
whitewashed, while the surface of the roof can be of
broken glazed tile(china mosaic flooring) to reflect the
sunlight back to the environment, and hence reduce heat
gain of the building.The use of appropriate colours and
surface finishes is a cheap and very effective technique to
lower indoor temperatures.The surface finish should be
protected from/ resistant to the effects of moisture.

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 Remarks
Ceiling fans are effective in reducing the level
of discomfort in this type of climate.Desiccant
cooling techniques can also be employed as
they reduce the humidity level.Careful water
proofing and drainage of water are essential
considerations of building design due to heavy
rainfall.n case of air conditioned buildings,
dehumidification plays a significant role in the
design of the plant.
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 ASMITA RAWOOL
RIA SAURAV
NITIKSHA PATEL
ANJALI SINGH
RAGINI SINGH
SHRUTI AIL

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