Construction of building 1974 (≈ 1974)
First application of the Trombe wall in France.
25 mai 2011
Registration for historical monuments
Registration for historical monuments 25 mai 2011 (≈ 2011)
Front, roof and Tromb wall protection.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The building, i.e. the facades and roofs as well as the system of the Tromb wall (Box AY 51): inscription by order of 25 May 2011
Key figures
Félix Trombe - Engineer
Manufacturer of the Tromb wall system.
Jacques Michel - Architect
Co-designer of the solar building.
Origin and history
The Trombe-Michel solar house building, located in Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via in the Eastern Pyrenees, is a residential building designed in 1974 by architect Jacques Michel and engineer Felix Trombe. It represents the first application in France of the Tromb wall system, a passive solar heating technique integrated with architecture. This wall, exposed to the south behind a glazing, captures, stores and diffuses heat in the housing via specially designed orifices. The building consists of three autonomous but solidary units: the houses Tromb (West), Armas (Central) and Ducarroir (East), anchored on a rocky base in stairs.
The reinforced concrete structure and the Trombe wall system gave the building an inscription to historic monuments on 25 May 2011, recognizing its innovative character. This project is part of the 1970s renewable energy research, a period marked by the oil crisis and an increasing interest in ecological solutions. The building thus illustrates a transition to sustainable habitats, combining energy performance and landscape integration in the Pyrenees.
The official address of the building, 6 rue Cami-del-Sol, and its Insee code (66124) confirm its anchoring in the municipality of Font-Romeu-Odeillo-Via, Occitanie. The façades, roofs and system of the Tromb wall are protected as historical monuments, highlighting their technical and architectural heritage value. This set remains a major testimony of French innovation in passive solar habitat, always studied for its energy efficiency.
