Words: Emmanuel Quartey (quartey.com)
Photos: Alfred Quartey (aquartey.com)
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Our home
Roughly ten years ago, the gas cylinder in my mother’s kitchen exploded.
Miraculously, no-one was injured, but the photos of the aftermath continue to haunt me. It catalysed an obsession with building a safe, enduring home for my family.
As a first-time homebuilder in Ghana, I hoped to learn from the experiences of those who had gone through this complex process before. Unfortunately, there is surprisingly little publicly available information about the home-building process in our part of the world.
Here are a few notes from our home under construction in Appolonia City, an enclave north of Accra, shared in the hope that our experience can be useful for anyone embarking on a similar project.
Our home is made from fire-resistant, double-wythe fired clay brick. This brick has a thermal regulating effect which ensures that rooms passively remain at a comfortable temperature at all times. As a result, it reduces the need for air conditioning.
Tall ceilings and a ventilation gap along the ridge cap induce the stack effect, where hot air rises up and out, inducing the movement of air which further keeps rooms cool. Deep eaves shade the building from high sun, and a central courtyard allows shaded light and ventilation deep into the building.
The overall effect of these passive measures is a cool, comfortable refuge from Ghana’s harsh climate.
We limited the use of concrete to minimize the project’s carbon footprint. The remaining material palette of the home includes reusable or recyclable materials: the doors and windows are made from odum timber, rainwater downpipes are sourced in copper, and outdoor areas are laid with granite and travertine.
A rooftop terrace over the Studio looks onto an outdoor living room tiled in green granite and cream travertine
View of the courtyard from the living room. Red safety railings surround the lightwells that bring light and air into the basement level.
Glass blocks allow light into the stairwell
Light spills through an odum timber window into a bedroom