How the 2226 building stays at 22–26°C without heating or air conditioning

Heatwaves are hitting harder and more often, and without action on climate disruption the outlook for the coming years will not improve. In response, air conditioning is becoming the default solution: it helps in the moment, yet it also worsens the underlying issue of pollution.

Put simply, it is hot because we pollute, and we pollute because it is hot. One building appears to have found a way to reduce our dependence on energy-hungry cooling and heating systems.

The 2226

This very real, non-experimental building has been nicknamed “2226”. It emerged in Austria around a decade ago, designed by architect Dietmar Eberle, who has since set up his offices inside it. The name reflects the idea behind the project: keeping the indoor temperature between 22 and 26°C.

The aim is clear: to do without heating or air conditioning systems, all year round, regardless of the weather outside.

A feat made possible by smart construction

What do Los Angeles, Andalusia and Quimper-very different places-have in common? They have embraced the value of painting roofs white, which naturally lowers a building’s temperature in summer. The 2226 building follows the same principle with its light-coloured exterior and limited glazed area.

Night-time ventilation, guided by sensors

Sensors in the building also automatically control ventilation shutters during summer nights.

70 cm walls that store and release heat

That coolness is held in place by 70 cm-thick walls that are extremely well insulated. In winter, those brick walls keep the residual warmth produced by computers, as well as the body heat of the people inside.

In the end, the idea is as simple as it gets-yet it still points towards new ways of designing energy-efficient buildings.