Philippine Architectural Design Paradigms
Copyright 2013 Architecture Advocacy International Foundation (AAIF), Inc.
1.1
Architectural Paradigm 2 : Architectural Design for the Tropics
(Hot-Humid Philippine Climate)
1.1.1
Buildings/ Structures
Climate and Solar Orientations:
1.1.2

In the Philippines, the prevailing winds are the heavy, very wet
and destructive southwest monsoon winds (the ‘habagat’) which
blows from March through September and the cool, pleasant but
equally strong northeast monsoon winds (the ‘amihan’) which
blows from November through mid-February; October is usually
the transition month; in some parts of the country, particularly
along the eastern seaboard i.e. the Philippine Sea and the Pacific
Ocean, the easterly winds are quite strong while in the western
part of the Philippines i.e. in the vicinity of the West Philippine
Sea, the north wind (the ‘daplak’) is also quite strong;

The Philippines is visited by anywhere from 15 to 22 storms/
typhoons annually, some of which are super-typhoons, with wind
speeds in excess of 225 kph, with gustiness in excess of 270 kph,
coupled with very heavy rains and storm surges, all of which are
very destructive;

The long axis of buildings must run along a North-South (N-S)
direction inasmuch as the actual sun-paths actually run along a
southeast to southwest (SE-SW) direction for about seven (7)
months a year i.e. circa September through April and along a
northeast to northwest (NE-NW) direction for about three and onehalf 3.5 months a year i.e. circa May through August (reference
Figures 1 and 2); the one and half months in between are
transition months, part of which has the sun traversing an east to
west direction twice a year;
Topography
Sites with slopes in excess of eighteen percent (18%) are by law
considered NON-buildable and must NOT be made to host habitable
buildings, mainly due to the instability of the soil; and
Site grading and cut-and-fill building solutions must be kept to an
absolute minimum to retain the topsoil as much as possible.
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Philippine Architectural Design Paradigms
Copyright 2013 Architecture Advocacy International Foundation (AAIF), Inc.
1.1.3
Energy and Emissions
Passive Design: Passive design is working with the environment to
create the most optimal conditions inside a structure, taking
advantage of the behavior of the sun and wind patterns
simultaneously reducing the need for mechanical lighting and airconditioning, thus effecting energy conservation. In the tropics, the
main principles are avoiding heat gain, encouraging natural
ventilation, making use of natural light and creating cool outdoor
areas. ______(undated/ unpublished) DPWH.
Orientation: The placement of the building on the site and the
arrangement of the rooms inside it should be oriented in a way that
windows and walls allow maximum airflow, penetration of natural
light while being easily shaded from direct sunlight.
1.1.4
Orienting for Minimum Solar Heat Gain
Orienting the building for minimum solar heat gain must take into
account the general sun path for the Philippines as well as changes
pertaining to site conditions all throughout the year and designing to
have all the walls shaded from direct sun all year round.
It may be desirable to allow more sunlight to enter, depending on
building use. Certain hospital wards, solaria, children’s playrooms
and sun porches need plenty of sun, either during the whole day or at
preferred hours of the day because of its medicinal properties and
anti-bacterial characteristics. In factories and laboratories, the total
exclusion of the sun is essential for the protection of both chemical
materials and employees working within. In offices and classrooms,
direct sunlight causes serious problems like visual discomfort and
eyestrain due to uneven illumination and reflected glare. Therefore,
in designing a particular device of sun control, the following should
be given careful thought to find the most satisfactory working
compromise:

Protection of opening against other weather elements;

Initial and maintenance costs of control devices;

Exterior appearance;

Minimization of noise penetration through openings;

Arrangements for privacy, if required;
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Philippine Architectural Design Paradigms
Copyright 2013 Architecture Advocacy International Foundation (AAIF), Inc.


Non-obstruction of the view from within; and

Accessibility for the cleaning and maintenance of windows and
the sun control device itself.
Orientation for Maximizing Air Flow

1.1.5
Buildings should be oriented to make the most of prevailing
winds. ______(undated/ unpublished) DPWH
Passive Ventilation
Energy intensive air-conditioning can be greatly reduced by
designing in a way that maximizes natural ventilation .
Windows, doors and vents must be aligned in a reasonably straight
line to allow air flow through the building.
Internal obstacles such as internal walls should be minimized to allow
unimpeded ventilation.
Natural ventilation should be maximized by:

Exposing windows to the prevailing winds in the locality during the
hot months if there are no constraints to such orientation and/or to
a western or eastern orientation to reduce solar heat loads;

Properly sizing and locating the window opening for maximum
cross ventilation and/or speed up prevailing breeze;

Adopting the ‘venturi’ principle in air movement to increase rate
flow inside buildings;

Adopting the ‘stack effect’ principle where appropriate.

Making proper layout of the buildings to avoid being in the wind
shadow; and

Providing buildings with at least 2.0m setback from the property
line making provision for open courts or yards where feasible.
______(undated/ unpublished) DPWH
1.1.6
Passive Cooling
The ceiling cavity of a building may also provide an effective means
of replacing hot air with cool air from outside using convection. Roof
ventilation can be provided through the use of spinning vents placed
on the roof top to draw out hot air from the ceiling cavity due to their
spinning motion, or a ridge vent placed at the highest point that
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Philippine Architectural Design Paradigms
Copyright 2013 Architecture Advocacy International Foundation (AAIF), Inc.
allows collected hot air at the highest point to flow out. These are
aided by installing vents in eaves or in ceilings to allow cooler air in
and promote better air flow through the roof vent. ______(undated/
unpublished) DPWH
1.1.7
Thermal mass
Thermal mass refers to the capacity of a material to absorb, store
and release heat. The use of materials with lower thermal mass such
as non-banned timber is preferable on walls directly exposed to the
sun. The use of lightweight materials like timber enables the building
to cool faster. The use of heavy textures of non-timber materials i.e.
that create light and shadow features on walls directly exposed to the
sun may help achieve the same effect. ______(undated/ unpublished) DPWH
1.1.8
Natural lighting
Designs should maximize the utilization of natural lighting in order to
minimize the use of artificial lighting during daytime, thus effecting
energy conservation and has been shown to increase productivity
particularly in workplaces.
Natural lighting or sunlight should be used to best advantage by:

Providing rooms with adequate window opening with area of at
least ten percent (10%) of the room area served; windows should
be glazed and opening directly to a court or open spaces;

Providing skylight where necessary;

Providing setback or open courts as required in P.D. No. 1096;
and

Providing means of controlling direct sun rays into the building
such as overhangs, vertical or horizontal sun baffles, etc.
Natural lighting can be enhanced by aligning ceilings and internal
walls to maximize reflection of light sources, as well as using light
colors on floors, walls, and horizontal surfaces. This must be
balanced with strategies to manage heat gain and glare.
______(undated/ unpublished) DPWH
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Philippine Architectural Design Paradigms
Copyright 2013 Architecture Advocacy International Foundation (AAIF), Inc.
1.1.9
Energy Efficient Systems and Appliances
Building fit outs, if possible, should install the energy-efficient
appliances and systems to minimize building operational costs.
These include the following:

Air-conditioning Systems;

Lighting Systems; and

Water Heating Systems.
1.1.10
Renewable energy
Investing in systems that make us of renewable energy, and
renewable energy generation systems help lessen greenhouse gas
emissions and increase energy security.
1.1.11
Transport
Sustainable building design encourages active and public transport
by building users. This helps lessen the carbon footprint of the
building and its workers and visitors. This can be done by:

Situating the building near public transport routes;

Providing safe and user friendly paths for walking and cycling as
access to the building; and

Provide facilities that encourage walking or cycling to work such
as: showers, lockers and bicycle parking facilities. ______(undated/
unpublished) DPWH
1.1.12
1.1.13
Water and Wastewater
 Water Efficiency;

Rainwater Tanks;

Recycled Water; and

Managing Stormwater.
Indoor Environment Quality
 Light quality and views to outside;

Temperature Control;

Noise;
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Philippine Architectural Design Paradigms
Copyright 2013 Architecture Advocacy International Foundation (AAIF), Inc.

Air Quality;

Low Toxicity Indoor Environment: Paints, Flooring
Materials: Various materials are the subjects of environmental
regulation, and consideration should be given to these in the design
of new and renovated buildings. Noxious building materials, including
some types of urea, formaldehyde, foam, insulation, must not be
used. In renovation projects, Architects should be aware of asbestos
and industrial chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Another material subject to extensive regulation is lead paint.
New as well as recycled materials considered to be environmentally
sound are being used on construction projects. Gypsum board can
be ground and used as spray insulation, and some glass can be
recycled and used in windows. Some masonry, metal and aluminum
can be reused. Not only is such reuse environmentally sound, but it
can be economically beneficial as well. ______(undated/ unpublished) DPWH
Nothing follows.
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