The design process for a concrete and wood contemporary home does not begin with material selection. It begins with the site — its solar orientation, topography, and relationship to neighboring structures. Materials are assigned after the section is understood. The process before the style.
In MÉTODO, concrete and wood are not chosen because they look well together in photographs. They are chosen because they solve different problems, and together they solve the problems of a specific residence on a specific site.
Phase One: Site Analysis Before Material Assignment
Before material choice is made, the site imposes its conditions. We document:
- Solar path: The sun's position at summer solstice, winter solstice, and equinox, mapped onto the site at the hours of occupancy. This determines where thermal mass (concrete) is most effective and where wood should be positioned to avoid overheating.
- Prevailing winds: Natural ventilation strategy depends on wind direction, which determines where openings are placed and how the building section manages cross-ventilation.
- Views: The apertures that frame the most significant views are designed in section before floor plan is fixed. The view direction relative to the sun determines whether glazing requires shading elements.
- Topography: Slope determines how the building meets the ground. In Mexico City's hillside neighborhoods, a split-level section in concrete with a wood upper volume is a rational response to grade change.
Only when these site conditions are mapped do we begin assigning materials to building elements.
The Material Assignment Logic
Concrete and wood occupy different structural and spatial roles in a contemporary residence. The assignment is not aesthetic — it is functional.
Concrete carries the following functions:
- Load-bearing walls and columns
- Roof slabs and floor slabs where long spans are required
- Thermal mass walls oriented toward the sun
- Basement and below-grade elements
- Exterior boundary walls where water resistance and thermal mass are both needed
Wood carries the following functions:
- Roof structure in areas where span, weight, and acoustic quality favor timber
- Ceiling finish in rooms where reverberation control matters
- Floor finish at ground level and above where concrete slab exists below
- Window and door frames and reveals
- Cabinetry, built-ins, and interior elements at human reach
Where the two materials meet — concrete columns within wood-framed walls, wood floors over concrete slabs, wood ceilings at concrete beam soffits — the junction becomes a detail decision. Every junction is drawn at 1:5 or 1:10 scale before construction documents are issued.
Structural Logic and the Section
The section as relato is most evident in concrete and wood hybrid structures. The section shows which elements are carrying load (concrete) and which are enclosing space (wood). This visual distinction can be legible in the built work when the design is honest about the structure.
In a typical MÉTODO section for a concrete and wood residence:
- Concrete shear walls provide lateral resistance in the direction parallel to the primary facade. These are typically 200 to 250 mm thick.
- Floor slabs span between concrete walls or beams. Slab thickness depends on span — a 5 m span requires approximately 180 mm of slab depth at minimum.
- Wood roof framing sits on top of the concrete structure, expressed above the slab as a separate element. The structural joint between concrete and wood is a bearing plate with anchor bolts — visible and designed.
- Wood ceiling cladding drops below the wood roof framing, creating a cavity for insulation, electrical conduit, and acoustic absorption.
This section logic is developed in schematic design and refined in design development. The contractor who builds it is interpreting a documented design decision, not making material choices in the field.
Moisture Management at Concrete-Wood Junctions
Wood in contact with concrete will absorb moisture from the concrete if the junction is not properly detailed. This causes dimensional change in the wood and, over time, potential biological growth.
We address this with three strategies:
- Physical separation: A capillary break between wood and concrete — typically a bituminous membrane or closed-cell foam — prevents moisture migration.
- Drainage plane: Where wood framing meets an exterior concrete wall, a drainage plane allows any water that enters to drain down and exit, rather than being trapped against the wood.
- Vapor management: In high-humidity climates (coastal Mexico, humid Colorado valleys), vapor barriers or retarders are specified at the concrete-wood interface to manage vapor drive direction.
These are standard building science practices. The reason they are specified explicitly is that residential contractors in Mexico and Colorado do not always apply them without direction. The construction documents must include them.
Acoustic Performance of the Combined Palette
Concrete and wood have different acoustic properties. Concrete transmits structural impact sound efficiently — footsteps on a concrete slab above are clearly audible below. Wood absorbs some impact energy before transmitting it.
In a multi-story concrete and wood residence, acoustic performance between floors requires:
- A floating floor system: The finish floor (wood or stone) rests on a resilient mat above the structural slab, decoupled from the concrete.
- Acoustic insulation in the ceiling cavity below the slab.
- Isolation of mechanical equipment from structural elements.
The design decisions that determine acoustic performance are made in design development, not during construction. A quiet house is designed, not retrofitted.
Próximos pasos
The design process for a concrete and wood home is a sequence of decisions, each informed by the one before. It is not a style application — it is a structured method that produces a house specific to its site, its climate, and its occupants.
Conoce el método de MÉTODO — how we structure the design process from site analysis through construction completion.