Picture yourself living in a 12 square meters dwelling on the top of a roof. Can you? This project by El Sindicato Arquitectura from 2019 shows us that literally anything is possible in the world of small homes.
Casa Parasito (Parasitic House) stands out as quite a unique minimal design object. Its goal is to solve habitation necessities for a young couple or for a single person. Inside you can find a bathroom, bed, kitchen, socializing space, and storage space. This is practically all that you would need and you just need 12 square meters for it.
As soon as you look at the images, the A-frame façade is noticed. This is a very interesting concept because of the fact that it offers you views and increases living space. The core is rectangular so that standing activities can easily be performed and allow you very simple access to all utilitarian spaces, like the bed, bathroom, desk, and kitchen table. Close to the rectangular core there are utilitarian spaces that are put within rhomboids and triangles. Basically, very good use of geometries create the most possible space and the clever use of furniture makes this small space very comfortable.
Good illumination, privacy, and ventilation is offered by a frosted glass façade facing the south. Then, on the west and east façade, you see that everything is closed. This is because of having to avoid direct sunlight access.
For the flooring and the interior walls there were OSB panels utilized, which also act as a finish. El Sindicato Arquitectura chose steel panels for the roof and the exterior walls. The insulating material of choice was coconut fiber.
If you wondered how this home is attached to a roof, the answer is a steel foundation that can be added to the existing structure with ease. Obviously, the project can easily be built in rural or urban plots, where there is no other construction, but the Parasite House was created to be added to unused rooftops. This is obviously preferred because of easily connecting to existing waste, electrical, and water grids.
