AMPHIBIOUS HOUSE
fastened to flexible mooring posts and rest on
Floating and amphibious houses are built to be
situated in a water body and are designed to
adapt to rising and falling water levels. Floating
houses are permanently in the water, while
amphibious houses are situated above the
water and are designed to float when the water
levels rise. Amphibious homes are usually
THE THAMES AMPHIBIOUS HOUSE
concrete foundations. If the water level rises,
they can move upwards and float. The
fastenings to the mooring posts limit the motion
caused by the water. These type of houses are
popular in highly populated areas where there
is a high demand for houses near or in water.
Because floating or amphibious houses adapt to
rising water levels, they are very effective in
dealing with floods. Living on water can also
reduce the negative effects of heat, and may
improve the quality of life of residents, who like
to live on or near water. Floating houses have
already been built in various countries, like The
Netherlands and the UK, and amphibious
houses in The Netherlands. The scale can vary
from individual houses to major groupings of
dwellings to, theoretically, full-blown floating
cities. So far, this option has been most
experimented with in inland surface waters, but
marine applications are possible.
 Building Type : Isolated or semi-detached house

Climate zone : Marine Mild Winter, warm

summer, no dry season.

An amphibious house is a building that rests on the ground on fixed foundations but whenever a flood
occurs, rises up in its dock and floats there buoyed by the floodwater.

The amphibious house is located adjacent to the River Thames in Marlow is a UK first. Based on the
practices pioneering non-defensive approach to make space for water within the built environment - the
house marks a valuable and critical contribution to both architectural design and flood resilience
discourse.

The Amphibious House is a highly innovative approach to tackle extreme flooding. The 250 tonne
house, which sits on the ground within a purpose made dock, is able to rise upto 2.7m when a flood
occurs, bouyed by the flood water; whilst remaining connected to all utilities through flexible servicing.
Built on the banks of the River Thames in Buckinghamshire, the house is the first to secure Planning,
Building Regulations and to be constructed in the United Kingdom.

The house uses technology from marine and bridge construction as well as conventional building to
create an elegant solution to flooding that is also attractive and complimentary to the setting. The
flotation attributes, including the guide-posts, slide-gear and flexible services are expressed in the
architecture as is the industrial weather screen skin. The triple height glazed facade allows views of the
river from all floors. The northern elevation provides a simple complement to neighbouring houses.

The unique 225sqm house, which is located just 10m from the river’s edge and within a Planning
Conservation Area the house, also provides an intelligent and contextual response to its setting. The
design was tailored to overcome the challenges of having no vehicular access to the site, limited space
to work and needing all plant and materials to be brought across the river via a lightweight chain ferry.
This pioneering prototype house passed a full float test before client occupation.

The Amphibious house demonstrates that architecture, engineering and flood strategies can be
holistically combined to create beautiful buildings that allow occupants to enjoy living near water safely.
 MAASBOMMEL’S AMPHIBIOUS HOMES BY WATERSTUDIO AND DURA VERMEER

It should come as no surprise that the Netherlands is home to amphibious architecture given their
low-lying landscapes. Dutch firms Waterstudio and Dura Vermeer completed a famous example of
amphibious housing in Maasbommel, an area near the Maas River.

Though the homes there sit on the river bottom, the architecture is engineered so that the house and
foundation will float upwards in the event of a flood. Electrical and sewer lines are kept intact thanks to
flexible pipes.
 AMPHIBIOUS HOUSE BY BACA ARCHITECTS

Baca Architects designed the

Amphibious House, a flood-resistant
home that enjoys gorgeous waterfront
views without risk of water damage.
Sited on the coveted banks of the River
Thames in Buckinghamshire’s town of
Marlow, the luxury home, which is
described as the UK’s first amphibious
house, rests on separated foundations
that let the structure float upwards on
extended guideposts when the River
Thames overflows. The buoyant home
has a 2.5-meter-high floodwater
clearance.

HOW DOES THE AMPHIBIOUS HOUSE WORK?

The draft of the Amphibious House is based on Archimedes' principle: the mass and volume of the
house is less than that of water, and what determines its buoyancy.

The secret of the house is hidden in its foundations: here we find a sort of basin where it is housed a
real hull concrete anchored to 4 vertical axes that allow scrolling up, in case of flooding, bringing to a dry
stage two floors of living space.

At the front of the house designers have created the so-called intuitive landscape, a series
of terraces, which in case of flood, act as first obstacle and allow the inhabitants to notice the event in
progress. Once these two terraces have filled the house starts to rise.
 The lifting takes place thanks to a structure independent from that of the house, consists of flexible
hoses capable of extending up to 3 meters.
The house is designed to rise to a level of two and a half meters.

MAINTENANCE OF THE AMPHIBIOUS HOUSE

The structure of the amphibious house only has few moving parts but requires maintenance periodically
as all the houses and a series of tests as for cars or boats.

The house, in fact, can not float for several years, so it is important to test the floating parts and make
sure the correct operation in case of flood.

For this reason every 5 years is necessary to perform a test, pumping water into the basin until the
house is lifted of 50 cm and verify the integrity of the mechanism, then the water is slowly drained and
the house can touch the ground again.

REFERENCES

Coutts, R. (2018, June 15). The Thames Amphibious House. Construction21.Org.

https://www.construction21.org/case-studies/h/the-thames-amphibious-house.html

Climate-ADAPT. (2016, June 16). Floating and amphibious housing. https://climate-

adapt.eea.europa.eu/metadata/adaptation-options/floating-and-amphibious-housing/#source

SIG Design and Technology. (2015, September 25). Amphibious House Zinc Roofing and

Cladding #PerfectRoof. Slideshare.Net.

https://www.slideshare.net/SIGDesignTechnology/amphibious-house-zinc-roofing-and-

cladding-perfectroof

Wang, L. (2017, January 13). 6 amphibious houses that float to escape flooding. Inhabitat -

Green Design, Innovation, Architecture, Green Building. https://inhabitat.com/6-

amphibious-houses-that-float-to-escape-flooding/
Granata, A. C. (n.d.). Amphibious House. Homexyou. Retrieved May 4, 2021, from

https://www.homexyou.com/design/amphibious-house/