A family that does not want to settle in one place needs a house that can travel with it. DeKruif House, designed by NOA, is a prefabricated timber house built around that idea. The project was first envisioned for two waterfront sites: one in British Columbia, Canada, and another in Ilwaco, Washington.
The house uses cross-laminated timber (CLT), a panel system made by gluing layers of wood at right angles to each other. Panels like these can be cut and assembled off site, which makes this approach well suited to building a prefabricated house. In DeKruif House, the panels form a stack of compact rectangular volumes, each set slightly out of line with the one below.
A stacked silhouette that changes with height
The offset volumes give the house a totem-like profile. Each floor faces the land at a different angle. The ground level sits close to the terrain, while higher floors gain wider views. A circular skylight at the top opens the interior to the sky.
A scaled skin of timber shingles covers the exterior. Circular and semicircular openings cut through it, framing chosen parts of the surroundings rather than exposing the whole facade. The architects at NOA describe the windows as a way to select views, not to show everything at once.
The house rests on slender supports, and its base is clad in mirror. The reflective surface picks up the ground beneath the building, so the structure appears to sit on the landscape rather than on top of it. Rungger, an architect and co-founder of NOA, said, “We wanted the landscape to simply carry on beneath the building.”
A prefabricated timber house built to move
Mobility drives the design. The home is meant to adapt to different sites, but each installation must meet local conditions and building regulations. Orientation, views, and access to natural light can shift from one location to the next.
If the idea of a home that adapts to changing needs appeals to you, Innovative timber framework turns a Tokyo home adaptable shows how a wooden structure can be reconfigured over time.
The structure can also sit on a larger boat, turning it into a movable houseboat. That option suits families who want to avoid a fixed address altogether.
This timber home comes in three configurations with 45, 60, and 75 square meters of net internal area. Each layout can add bedrooms and bathrooms without changing the core architectural concept.
Inside the timber shell
A spiral staircase links the stacked levels. The exposed CLT gives every room the same warm grain, and the finishes stay plain. The living and kitchen area forms the main gathering space, organized around a suspended fireplace. Large openings connect it to the terrace, so daily life spills outside.
Bedrooms occupy the upper floors. Here, the circular windows create quieter, more personal views. In the bathroom, a freestanding bathtub faces one of these openings, placing the landscape within the bathing routine.
Rungger described the balance between the outside and the interior: “Inside, we balance the sculptural exterior with calm. Rather than opening up the whole facade, every window frames one specific view: we embrace the panorama by framing it.”
DeKruif Island
A separate outdoor element, DeKruif Island, extends the home into the land. It is a small circular courtyard. It holds a hot tub, a shade tree, seating, and a central fireplace. The space works as a private garden and an outdoor room in one.
For another prefabricated timber approach, Downloadable timber home design by Plana Architecture offers a simple, adaptable plan that can be built from standard components.
The project shows how timber architecture can be built once in a factory and then placed, rotated, or moved to suit a new place. Its stacked timber form and its carefully cut openings give each location a different experience of the same home.
H/T designboom.com
Frequently asked questions
What material is the DeKruif House built from?
The DeKruif House is built from cross-laminated timber (CLT), a panel system made by gluing layers of wood at right angles to each other. These panels can be cut and assembled off site, which suits prefabricated construction.
How many size configurations does the DeKruif House come in?
The DeKruif House comes in three configurations, with 45, 60, and 75 square meters of net internal area. Each layout can add bedrooms and bathrooms without changing the core architectural concept.
Why does the DeKruif House appear to sit on the land?
The house rests on slender supports, and its base is clad in mirror. The reflective surface picks up the ground beneath the building, so the structure appears to sit on the landscape rather than on top of it.
What is DeKruif Island and what does it include?
DeKruif Island is a separate outdoor element that extends the home into the land. It is a small circular courtyard that holds a hot tub, a shade tree, seating, and a central fireplace.
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