I need some clarification on this question from a BS exam posted on Youtube Dec 8/2022: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNf2Kvnw4J0 Min 45:15
in his explanation Mr Hopstock (sorry any misspelling) chooses variant B at the end, alluding to the fact that it is the one that best solves the water runoff issue.
As the explanation progressed, I wondered if the variant that best applies “any disturbance” to the terrain is D, and it is a condition imposed by the question. If we compare B with D, B would have a slight advantage in terms of water runoff, but D is absolutely the best in terms of terrain disturbance, and it does not leave the water issue unanswered either.
This brings me to another consideration in the questions about choosing sites by evaluating topography. There are dozens of variants, and that leaves us with the only strategy to follow the postulates of the question and the conditions that are sought, and any other consideration, however absurd it may seem to us, need to be discarded.
Why here, for example, Mr. Hopstock gave more weight to the water runoff and a secondary value to terrain disturbance, both being in the postulate of the question?
Could you give us a suggestion about such dichotomies facing the exam?
Hi @ussbea thanks for posting! It’s been a while since I spoke about this so I had to refresh my memory.
Keeping water from entering the building is always going to be the top priority. I would approach any questions about managing water like this - first, the solution needs to absolutely keep the water from the building. Once you have options that can do that, you can choose from those options based on any secondary criteria (like disturbing the site as little as possible, for example).
I would never compromise preventing water intrusion for any other consideration - not site disturbance, aesthetics, cost considerations, sustainability, or anything else I can think of. Not controlling water around the building can lead to uneven settling, poor indoor air quality in the building (mold, dampness), and legal liability for such defects for you as the architect.
In this example, D doesn’t really control water runoff in a meaningful way. Storm water is moving right to left in these diagrams - the water coming from directly behind the building won’t be diverted at all. In option B, the same water would be diverted around the building. Of the options presented, Option B is the only one that really controls storm water, so ‘minimizing site disturbance’ doesn’t really come into play here.
I’ll also point out that B allows for somewhat equal cut and fill on the site, whereas D is purely a cutting operation. You’d need to dispose of that soil somewhere, so depending on your definition of ‘disturbing the site’ D might actually disturb it more.
