The Dog Trot House

I was reading Tim Flood's post "How To Solve The Affordable Housing Crisis" with some interest. There were quite a few comments, A lot of good points were made and lots of 'Cussing and Discussing' went on. But somewhere in the post Tim mentioned 'Dog-trot' houses; and that stirred the muck in the back of my brain and eventually it made its way to the front of my brain ... And I had a thought! (Yeah, I couldn't believe it ether - I marked the event on the calendar.) The Dog-trot houses were disseminated widely in the South. Both Log Cabin and Frame Structure, they were the preferred dwelling for homesteading new ground. There were a lot of them built.

So what was your thought? you say.    Just hold on, I'm getting to it.... One of the reasons that they were so popular is that they were modular. They had several good qualities - But what I'm interested in here is the modular-ness.
I have had a soft spot in my head for a long time for modular houses. Back many years ago there was kind of a movement toward modular building, but it never really caught on.
One of my gripes about tiny houses today (Now, let me say that I lived in a tiny house for over eleven years, and enjoyed it.) is than so many of them are so cleverly designed, that it makes it almost impossible to add onto them.

So... Anyway I was just sketching, and I wondered "What if you took the Modular ability of the Dog-trot and updated it? (See Attached.)

Looks like a house of cards! And also a bit like an Aztec temple. Where does the rain water go? Yesterday I read that Mayas constructed a large water container between two temples, I guess something like that could be built in here too.

Dog trot houses served their purpose back when there was no air conditioning.

That roof on that design doesn't offer much for rainwater catchment.

I would like to see a dog trot with passive solar.

Anne Miller wrote:I would like to see a dog trot with passive solar.

How about this Anne?

A single sloping roof such that the summer sun does not impinge on the floor, but the winter sun would. Solid floor for thermal mass for summer and winter comfort. Insulated (and/or ventilated?) roof for shedding solar heat in summer. I've drawn in a loft space that could be bedroom or storage. I haven't drawn a floor plan or size, but I'm imagining a small rocket mass heater for heating/cooling perhaps.

I don't know whether the prevailing winds suit the solar aspect in this way. You'd want the winds to be straight on the front (raised roof) side to get the through draft in the middle for summer cooling. Coming from a relatively cool climate I've probably got this completely wrong, but it is a start!

I'm actually thinking this suits a couple of tiny house builders. When they outgrow the single side, then (as a team) they build a second dog trot house pair, and one moves out into the new build.

Anne Miller wrote:Dog trot houses served their purpose back when there was no air conditioning.

That roof on that design doesn't offer much for rainwater catchment.

I would like to see a dog trot with passive solar.

Please keep in mind that this is just a rough sketch. I wasn't even paying attention to what I was doing. There is no scale or anything. I just threw it out there for YOU Guys to come up with ideas  - One thought a week is enough for me.
Rainwater catchment is not as big a priority where I live as it is in some parts of the world. We're more the rains weeks at a time and flash flood kind of people. But I guess you could do something like this.

I guess some kind Passive Solar Cooling is possible for a tall narrow building - Of course I could do it, but I'm interested in seeing how YOU would do it.
Passive Solar Cooling of the 'dog trot' porch between the two buildings would be a real magic trick - I would love to see that one.

"Thinking is hard work - humans avoid it whenever possible."

I've always like the concept of the dog-trot cabin, but I think it is really limited to usefulness in warmer climates. In the northern climates, you want to maximize internal living space and minimize exterior walls, the exact opposite of what these do so well. That being said, these are an amazingly easy concept for those warmer climates, and simplify the building process greatly. It wouldn't be hard to come up with solutions for all the sustainability needs that would then be just as modular as the design.

Ezra Beaton:   Not to mention you would be cold footing across that porch, when it was cold outside. Traditionally the kitchen and the living space were in one space and the bedrooms in the other. So you would have to put on your coat and boots when it was time to cross over for bed.

But wait, what if you closed in the dog trot area and made it into a greenhouse? You could make the roof out of translucent material, and close in the back and front. It would still be a lot cooler than the house, but not like being ripped by a wind straight out of the north pole.

I immediately became interested in this thread, and the word "modular" stuck with me.

I was reminded of a thread from maybe two years ago that piqued my interest, regarding a modular, modern take on the longhouse.

Something I can add-on to is high on my list in terms of structures I'd consider building, once I am granted an acre here at Wheaton Labs. These kinds of concepts are exciting...!

At that point the greenhouse or dog trot just become another interchangeable module, I like it! Please flesh this out further. I will read that other thread as soon as I can.

Things I might put in the dog trot/greenhouse area:
Plant starts
Hot tub
Water storage
Plung pool
Workshop
Laundry machines
Patio furniture
Wood fired kitchen
Cats

I think your idea gets rid of a lot of the best features of a dog trot house.

The earliest ones had a single roof line, and when built out of logs and traditional roofing materials that is a huge benefit.  They had no valleys or pitch changes to leak, and the four end walls are evenly spaced to support the log purloins.

I see your design having problems with water leaking where the covered porch meets the roof lines of the two buildings.

I am from up north so we worry way more about heating than cooling and a dog trot or an inset porch reduces your living space and gives you more exterior wall to loose heat from.  I had thought a person could put insulated roll up doors or airplane hanger doors on the dog trot area.  That way in summer it can be wide open.  In the shoulder seasons the doors can be opened or closed as needed in a few minutes.  When winter rolls around the doors can be closed and some time taken to winterize them.

I also really like the idea of a greenhouse/greenroom in the dog trot area. The glazing could be built into a door to make it open in the summer.

It is somewhat common for people to build camps similar to your idea.  They park two(or more) campers about 10 feet apart than put a share deck between them and a roof over them over the gap between them.  In the summer it works great.  I have even seen them partially walled in with shutters so they can be used in slightly colder weather.

Like This:

I've heard good things about that style of house in the right ecosystem. Nowadays, it seems like the same "style" of housing is used regardless of ecosystem/threats/needs all across North America, with just little tweaks that seem to patch, rather than fix, the problems.

I am a big fan of simple roof lines. I've read that the standard peaked roof is stronger than a shed roof but size makes a difference. It saddens me that it is so hard to find houses with simple roofs like that - they've all got valleys to trap tree duff, multiple dormers to make it easier to get leaks, etc. A Hip roof can be good in windy environments, but it is a bit more complex to build, and it would need good ridge venting.

I like the concept of attached greenhouse space, but greenhouses are high risks for humidity and mould, so in my climate, I'm better to go for a separate one.

The first house I bought was a small 2-story. Small foot-print, but a decent amount of space. It was in a colder part of Canada, and was a simple rectangle with an attached garage that helped block the north-west wind. There was no door from the garage directly into the house, which I considered an asset from both the air-quality and security point of view.

If I was starting from scratch, I'd go for a green roof, particularly in the right climate, as with the increase in UV and heat waves, I'm finding shingles just aren't lasting. My sister's "40 yr" shingles sprang a leak at 13 years of age over Christmas.

Modularity doesn't mean the roofline has to be interrupted. The modules can be designed to the top plate and the roof is just built longer or shorter depending on how many modules are added. For colder climates, the dogtrot itself could be replaced with a central RMH kitchen module (it is now no longer a dog-trot house yes). Greenhouse modules could use metal-roofing-compatible clear sheeting to maintain an uninterrupted roofline.

I've always thought 16'x16' would make a good module size.

In our cold weather zone, can you keep the foundations separate and still connect the roof? Traditionally, these are two completely separate buildings, even in foundation and the roof is the only connecting point. Our contract has some concerns about heaving between the buildings though in a cold climate. Does anyone know more about this?