Necessities and different preferences between Thai and Japanese homes

Japan comprises many islands and most of its geography is mountainous, which is not conducive to the construction of buildings. Thailand is large and most of its vast river basins remain empty and have enough space for the construction of big houses and buildings. 

Japan’s limitations of space and size have resulted in the building of small utility spaces and rooms. Each Japanese home is designed to maximise the limited utility space and is strongly influenced by the Japanese culture and way of life.

Thais enjoy the liberty of using space. This is because of their casual and easy lifestyle compared with the Japanese. Thais need a specific space for each activity and emphasise convenience and comfort in each use of space.

Most Japanese observe Zen, a Mahayana Buddhism sect that believes in peace, stillness and minimalism and emphasises reaching out to nature over indulging in extravagance. This belief is reflected through their way of life and expressed in the design of their homes and environment. 

In Thailand, the religious concept may be the same as that of Zen but a home is a symbol of status, which is manifested by massive space and strong and expensive decorative materials, which at times are exaggerated and unnecessarily strong and expensive. In general, Thais like to use natural materials but sometimes their choices have more to do with fashion or foreign brands to show off their affluence.

Japanese are known for their craftsmanship. Their handicrafts are detailed and meticulous. Craftsmen are proud of their work and profession. Each piece is filled with ideas and calculated. Although Thais pride themselves for their art and their craftsmanship is also world-acclaimed, their art is limited to serving temples and palaces. In construction work, most of the workers come from the agricultural sector and lack skills. 

Thailand is a tropical country usually visited by rain several months a year. To build a house on a river basin, dwellers have to cope with floods several months a year and need to elevate the house to protect against inundation. Thais can use the space under their house for several activities during the year such as recreation, resting, storing used stuff or farm tools, or raising livestock.

A Japanese home is raised only slightly and has no crawlspace underneath. Most are built on mountainsides or hillsides, leaving enough space underneath to allow water to pass through quickly, thus helping to reduce flooding.

Thailand is in a tropical monsoon zone with heavy rains. Roofs need to be steep to let the water flow fast. 

Roofing materials are not efficient enough to withstand the precipitation, so a roof must be designed to pass the water as fast as possible. A Thai house’s roof is generally connected to eaves to protect against direct exposure to sunlight and rainfall.

The sides of a Japanese house have small outlets like small windows, which are permanently installed to protect against wind and cold weather.

A Thai house has more and bigger windows but they are tall rather than wide. The walls have many ventilation outlets to level the airflow, such as gables for ventilation (jua), gaps under the traditional open-deck platform (chong maew lod) and perforations below the windowpane (yong).

Japanese view natural gardens or Zen gardens as soothing and serene, so they want the garden to become part of the house. Dwellers can feel the touch of the garden as they walk along the terraces from one room to another. A Thai house is a clustered house. It is connected by a central terrace and enclosed with a wooden wall similar to a fence to give occupants a sense of privacy.

Each part of the house can be detached and moved with the owners and rebuilt later. Each house is modular, detached from all the other ones and can be reassembled to make a clustered house connected by a central terrace.

Home-builders need to understand the characteristics of Japanese homes for owners who like this style so they can adjust it to suit the nature of Thais and the country’s geography.