Thermal performance analysis of central hall houses in the Israeli coastal plain

Abstract

Vernacular architecture is believed to integrate certain building features that were developed in a long process of adaptation and adjustment and therefore may embody valuable solutions for maintaining desirable indoor conditions. This claim, however, should not be taken for granted and must be critically examined in different contexts and settings. The Central Hall House building type, which can be found in Lebanon, Israel, Syria and the Palestinian territories, is an example of an architectural vernacular that may prove to contain applicable design strategies in confronting the hot and humid climate of the region's coastal plain. The research proposes a method for performing an indicative assessment of the environmental features of the Central Hall House building type in the Israeli coastal plain through the integration of architectural and historical survey with computer-aided simulation techniques.