Japanese housing developer Ichijo Komuten recently unveiled a “flood-resistant house” that can not only remain waterproof during floods, but also float off the ground.

Whether you believe in climate change or not, the loss of housing due to floods is an undeniable issue all over the world, and while engineers and architects have been trying to find solutions, few have actually proven effective. Now, a record-setting Japanese housing developer claims to have come up with an answer to keep people’s homes from getting flooded as well as swept away by floods. Their new “flood-resistant house” was recently featured on a popular Japanese TV show and it has been getting a lot of attention online ever since.

Japan’s TBS TV station recently visited one of Ichijo’s test sites where the company’s new flood-resistant house was being put through a simulated flood. Although it looked just like an ordinary house when the test began, by the time that water started rising around it, viewers could see the structure leave the ground and eventually float a few inches above it.

We’ve all seen floating houses being swept away in severe floods, but Ichijo’s newest invention features a system that prevents just that. The house is connected to a number of thick iron rods sticking out of the ground with thick cables that ensure it stays in place as the water floods past. When the waters recede, the floating house comes back down in its original position.

The “flood-resistant house” also features special vents that close up in the event of flooding, and the plumbing also has special valves that prevent water from getting into the home. Electrical equipment like air conditioning is positioned on the upper half of the building to ensure that water doesn’t reach it.

According to engineers at Ichijo Komuten, most homes flood when water reaches the window level, but because their flood-resistant house can float up to five meters above ground, water is unlikely to reach the windows and everything else is sealed shut.

Japanese media reports that clients looking to have a new house built with Ichijo Komuten can opt to have this flood-resistant system built in with an additional cost of just 770,000 yen ($5,700), which sounds really cheap, especially if it actually works as advertised. Don’t quote us on this though, Google Translate has been hit-and-miss with Japanese in the past.

 

Ichijo Komuten is one of Japan’s largest housing developers and prides itself on setting three Guinness records in the last two years, including for the largest factory of prefabricated housing materials and for the most successful custom home company.