dananrg@yahoo.com (dnrg) wrote in message news:<c1888d06.0306210318.41f33545@posting.google.com>...
> Are there any good books on the Japanese way of making the most
> efficient use of interior (small) spaces? When I was in Japan a few
> years ago, for instance, visiting a friend teaching English, I just
> loved her little "box bathtub." It was tiny, square, but allowed you
> to soak up to your neck sitting in it. Great use of space. I'm
> wondering if I could order something like that for my own place in the
> US.
> 
> I'm looking into designing my own small, energy efficient house and
> would like to get some ideas from Japanese design. Are there any
> resources out there that will help? I think large American homes are
> inelegant, wasteful monstrosities.
> 
Get a box bathtub, and you might consider using a nice sliding,
removable door if you're wanting to divide a room up (but want the
option of a big open space for parties, etc.). But otherwise Japanese
homes, as has been mentioned, are not exactly models of efficiency.
Sure, the steps to the second floor take up much less space than, say,
their American counterpart; but they can be quite frightening because
they're only a few degrees short of being a ladder. Double and triple
pane windows are rarely used, insulation is a luxury item, and my
relatively new apartment had less weatherstripping than my forty year
old place in berkeley. Design wise they're not much different than any
small house in the world.

John W.