Small Oregon Coast Garden House

This is so great. I found this over at http://www.smallhousestyle.com/ and thought I would share it. Original article can be found HERE.

At 325 sq ft, this small off-grid building on the Oregon coast serves as a guest house and a writing studio all wrapped up in a single, small green house. Designed by Obie Bowman, a Sonoma County, CA architect, the basic structure and materials were influenced by the main house on the property which was constructed a few years earlier and uses recycled, locally sourced, and certified materials in construction of a low maintenance house.
The Small Oregon Coast Garden House by Obie Bowman was featured in a new book by Cristina Paredes Benitez and Alex Sanchez Vidiella Small Eco Houses: Living Green in Style

This small, environmentally friendly cabin on the Oregon coast was situated to get amazing views over the Pacific Ocean. Integrated photovoltaic panels with battery storage provide AC power for lighting, convenience outlets, and pumps. Heating is primarily passive as solar radiation is absorbed into the dark concrete floor and counter as well as with a radiant floor powered by an evacuated tube solar hot water collector (with a tank storage). Fresh air enters through low windows and exhausts through the high operable skylight at the center of the ridge line. Gravity pressurized domestic water is stored in uphill holding tanks filled by solar powered pumps from a rooftop condensation/rainwater collection system and a shallow well. The timber beams you see in the images below funnel rainwater into tanks. The featured material is locally grown Port Orford cedar. The planks are arranged in horizontal rows to allow for seasonal shrinkage and expansion and require little maintenance. The frame was built to respond to geological instability and the harsh climactic conditions being in close proximity to the ocean. The house is built on a foundation designed to withstand earth movements and is steadied by four pairs of beams that can withstand winds up to 90 miles per hour.