Britain’s First Amphibious House is Designed to Escape Flooding

By: | February 6th, 2016

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Waterfront properties offer great views but often come with a major drawback – flood damage.

But a London-based design firm, Baca Architects, has developed a potential solution – an amphibious house that rises with the water level during times of flooding.

The flood-resistant amphibious house is located on an island in the middle of the River Thames in Buckinghamshire’s town of Marlow

This family home will be Britain’s first ‘amphibious house’. The house can tackle floodwater by rising like a ship in its dock.

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Image courtesy Baca Architects

Here’s how it works:

  • Made from lightweight timber, this three-story waterfront home rests on a floating concrete hull set between four permanent guideposts.
  • Once the water enters the dock, the water levels push the floating house upwards.
  • The guideposts keep the house in its place and allow for a 2.5-meter vertical floodwater clearance.

Nidhi Goyal

Nidhi is a gold medalist Post Graduate in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences.

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