Recent projects:

102, St Andrew’s Road, Exmouth

– EnerPHit (PassivHaus standard for existing buildings and retrofit) refurbishment of an Edwardian terraced house.

Award-winning, ultra-low energy, social housing scheme comprising 5 to 6 ensuite rooms in a communal house with shared sitting/ dining room and kitchen facilities.

Lead consultant architect and sole inspirational driver for the EnerPHit refurbishment approach adopted for this local authority social housing project.  Housing Department managers needed to be convinced about the benefits to the tenants as, beyond the existence of the term “fuel poverty”, there was no discussion about low energy living, energy efficiency, or of other ways in which to achieve these goals.

Rooms are intended to be tenanted by single persons whose lives were at a point where they needed stability to rebuild them.  This need went hand-in-hand with financial predictability and low out-goings.

Further impetus for a low energy approach was provided by tightening standards, imposed by central government upon all landlords, requiring that Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) for their buildings should meet Grade E, or above by 2018.

Hence the adoption of the highest achievable energy standard to deliver the twin benefits of climate-sympathetic, very low energy consumption as well as stable, draught-free indoor temperatures and the lowest associated running costs.

The greater expenditure to achieve the EnerPHit standard is offset by the fact that this standard would leap-frog over ever-tightening minimum EPC standards, thereby cancelling out the repeated costs of successive minimal refurbishments in order to chase these reducing EPC standards.

Professional Team credits:

WARM Low Energy Building Practice, Plymouth (Low Energy and building services consultants)

Natural Building Technologies Ltd, Oakley, Buckinghamshire (Sustainable building materials)

BSW Consulting Ltd., Exeter (Consulting structural engineers)

Croft Surveyors Ltd., Taunton: (Contract administration)

 

Coach House conversion, Exeter

Sympathetic historic building conversion of an 1850s brick coach house into a single dwelling; a building which was part of the original Poltimore House estate.

This project design left as much of the original fabric of the building intact as possible. However, a new timber clad, low level extension was incorporated to the original stable end building where a failed wall was beyond repair and the half storey hay loft over the coach house end, was raised by half a storey but timber clad to demonstrate the change.  This ensured that the building’s history and origin was still legible after conversion.  Re-use of historic materials was a priority, wherever practical.

Principles of Feng Shui were used throughout the design, layout and construction to ensure a harmonious feeling in and around the completed house.

This has repaid the design intentions and integrity many times over, as without exception, visitors are spontaneously positive about this living environment when they visit.

Through its construction and careful attention to the level of technology, the house also demonstrates a low level of ambient EMFs inside the building.