How to Improve the Comfort of Your Midcentury Modern Home
You can maintain the era’s signature style in your home while improving its thermal performance
Colin Flavin
February 14, 2024
Houzz Contributor. Principal at Flavin Architects, a New England-based design firm specializing in naturally modern residential projects. Colin’s vision combines sustainable design and respect for a building’s context to create a cutting edge aesthetic. Expertise in restoring Midcentury modern masterpieces.
Houzz Contributor. Principal at Flavin Architects, a New England-based design firm... More
One of the main reasons midcentury modern homes fell out of fashion in the 1970s was that their thermal performance was so poor. Midcentury modern design was ahead of its time in aesthetics, but it also turned out to be beyond the technical performance of the materials available to designers and home builders. The spike in energy prices in the mid-1970s was a knockout punch, making these homes so expensive to heat and cool that homeowners had the difficult trade-off of paying exorbitant utility bills or stocking up on sweaters in the winter.
Aside from the heating and cooling costs, the homes tend to be uncomfortable because of drafty walls and windows and cold pockets due to inadequate mechanical systems. Here are some tips to improve the comfort of your midcentury modern home without losing any of the design vibe.
Aside from the heating and cooling costs, the homes tend to be uncomfortable because of drafty walls and windows and cold pockets due to inadequate mechanical systems. Here are some tips to improve the comfort of your midcentury modern home without losing any of the design vibe.
Update Windows
Extensive glass areas are a key feature of midcentury modern homes, providing sunlit interiors and a powerful connection between inside and out. All of this glass comes at a cost, however, adding dramatically to the heating and cooling loads. This is magnified when the glass areas are oriented to the north, away from the sun, offering only thermal loss in the winter, or oriented west, leading to excessive heating by the setting sun in the summer. Add to this the fact that many homes from the era still retain the original single-pane windows.
Find an architect that works with midcentury modern homes
Extensive glass areas are a key feature of midcentury modern homes, providing sunlit interiors and a powerful connection between inside and out. All of this glass comes at a cost, however, adding dramatically to the heating and cooling loads. This is magnified when the glass areas are oriented to the north, away from the sun, offering only thermal loss in the winter, or oriented west, leading to excessive heating by the setting sun in the summer. Add to this the fact that many homes from the era still retain the original single-pane windows.
Find an architect that works with midcentury modern homes
Window tech has come a long way, with double or triple glazing readily available with argon gas, achieving much improved insulation. To prevent heat gain, glass coatings called “low-e” have been developed to prevent the sun’s radiant heat from penetrating the glass.
The window frame is also important, as having a good thermal break between inside and out is critical. Take this midcentury modern remodel in Los Angeles done by JA Design. Much of the work involved the addition of windows to open up the space and improve sightlines to the ocean. With today’s technologies, this was possible to achieve without compromising the home’s design.
The original metal windows of midcentury modern houses have crisp sightlines and slim profiles. A few companies offer thermally broken steel windows with minimal sightlines and good thermal performance, including Hope’s and Brombal.
Energy-Efficient Windows: Understand the Parts
The original metal windows of midcentury modern houses have crisp sightlines and slim profiles. A few companies offer thermally broken steel windows with minimal sightlines and good thermal performance, including Hope’s and Brombal.
Energy-Efficient Windows: Understand the Parts
Insulate for Comfort
One of the beauties of midcentury modern homes was the modernist idea of exposing the home’s structural posts and beams. This was a refreshing change from traditional house design that covered the structure with wallboard and trim. While attractive, exposing the structural members precludes using the space between the beams for insulation.
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One of the beauties of midcentury modern homes was the modernist idea of exposing the home’s structural posts and beams. This was a refreshing change from traditional house design that covered the structure with wallboard and trim. While attractive, exposing the structural members precludes using the space between the beams for insulation.
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Exposed rafter ceilings. Exposed rafters are a key component of many midcentury modern designs. In order to preserve the beauty of this design feature, insulation needs to be added above the ceiling.
A great approach is to use rigid foam board along with an air barrier above the ceiling. The interior appearance is not compromised, and a high level of insulation is achieved. This approach also solves a problem seen in snowy regions, where heat can escape through the roof, unevenly melting the snow and causing ice dams.
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A great approach is to use rigid foam board along with an air barrier above the ceiling. The interior appearance is not compromised, and a high level of insulation is achieved. This approach also solves a problem seen in snowy regions, where heat can escape through the roof, unevenly melting the snow and causing ice dams.
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Walls. When structural posts are exposed, the main challenge is preventing air seepage where the posts meet the walls, such as in this midcentury home in the Bay Area renovated by Koch Architects. New spray foam products are highly effective in addressing this. Closed-cell spray foam can seal the air gap between the post and wall, along with filling the cavity between posts.
5 Midcentury Design Lessons for Modern-Day Living
5 Midcentury Design Lessons for Modern-Day Living
Improve Radiant Floor Heating
The concept of radiant floor heat dates back to the Romans. The standard approach is to place a loop of tubing in the concrete floor slab and then run hot water through the coils to heat the floor and provide heat to the room. When done well, it is one of the most comfortable sources of heat.
In midcentury modern homes there often were flaws in the way the radiant heat was installed, leading to poor performance or failure. Typically, the radiant heating tubes were buried deep in the floor slab without insulation below. Not only is heat lost to the earth, but it’s also difficult to control.
How to Add a Radiant Heat System
The concept of radiant floor heat dates back to the Romans. The standard approach is to place a loop of tubing in the concrete floor slab and then run hot water through the coils to heat the floor and provide heat to the room. When done well, it is one of the most comfortable sources of heat.
In midcentury modern homes there often were flaws in the way the radiant heat was installed, leading to poor performance or failure. Typically, the radiant heating tubes were buried deep in the floor slab without insulation below. Not only is heat lost to the earth, but it’s also difficult to control.
How to Add a Radiant Heat System
Now, the best practice is to place the heating tubes on top of the concrete slab with a layer of insulation between the heating coils and the concrete slab. This keeps the heat from being lost into the concrete slab, vastly increasing its efficiency.
A related challenge is the design of the concrete slab itself. In the midcentury modern era, the concrete slab was poured directly on the ground. The new approach is to waterproof the bottom of the slab and install insulation there. This keeps the slab close to the temperature of the interior of the house, which is very important in summer to prevent condensation on the slab and attendant mold.
A related challenge is the design of the concrete slab itself. In the midcentury modern era, the concrete slab was poured directly on the ground. The new approach is to waterproof the bottom of the slab and install insulation there. This keeps the slab close to the temperature of the interior of the house, which is very important in summer to prevent condensation on the slab and attendant mold.
Tell us: How have you improved the comfort of your midcentury modern home or one you have remodeled? Share in the Comments.
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Mid century modern homes can be absolutely stunning when thoughtfully updated/renovated. Very modern updates such as lots of glass and metal doors are perfect for them. Beautiful examples in this article. Thanks.
1953 single store almost flat roof 1600 sq ft in SoCal with original metal single pane windows and many floor-to-ceiling picture windows throughout. Energy- efficient upgrades that have made a huge difference:
The house stays cool in the summer with a single window AC and strategically placed fans; and cozy in the winter with two built-in gas wall heaters.
Our gas/electric bills are each $20-under $100 per month depending on the season (higher electric in summer/higher gas in winter). Replacing the windows with high quality windows that maintain the aesthetic would take a lifetime to break even.
We have a 1962 PNW beauty and have been updating it. We added a perimeter drain to help with drainage around the slab. We insulated, there wasn't a stitch of insulation except for a thin foil-faced fiberglass between the pithed ceiling joists. We added a winter air return downstairs in the daylight basement and raised the air return off the floor upstairs to work better with the warming summers. We replaced the oil furnace with a heat pump and will be installing solar very soon to offset the MCM energy cost issue. My biggest regret is with an 84-inch slim profile sliding door we installed downstairs. I went with a slim design by Milgard thinking surely a current day popular manufacturer would be more efficient. I was disappointed to learn AT INSPECTION that the R rating wasn't at the minimum. Luckily we had deeper exterior walls and could increase the insulation rather than paint the floors. I'm hoping to add a triangle clerestory window upstairs but I'm not sure if current energy codes will get in the way. I'm going to dig deeper into thermally broken steel windows in hopes of meeting today's code. THANK YOU, Houzz for this article. The link will be top of the list for future reference.