A DIY Eco Self Build

On a hilltop, overlooking the small market town of Penistone in Yorkshire, stands a brand new addition to the landscape which has been causing quite a stir. With very little modern architecture in the area, passers-by often stop to gape at Roger and Linda Brown’s newly completed house.

Its walls may be of traditional local stone, but this is the only similarity between ‘Highfield’ and its more conventional neighbours — for vertical redcedar cladding and grey aluminium-framed windows shelter beneath a distinctive curved roof planted with colourful sedum.

The unusual new building manages to span three generations: self-built by the Browns as a home for their retirement, it was designed by the couple’s architect son, Andrew, and built on the one-acre site of a 1940s bungalow which previously belonged to Roger’s father, who lived there for 45 years.

“I also lived there myself until I married,” explains Roger, now 62, “and when I recently inherited the bungalow we decided to extend and renovate the property for our own retirement.”

However, failing foundations meant that demolition was inevitable and the project became a new build instead. The unique form of the replacement house was generated from the footprint of the original bungalow, with the addition of side and first floor extensions which enlarge the overall property and garage to 200m2.

A sweeping double-curved roof knits together these various elements, and its form has been continued throughout the building in details such as the curving stainless steel door handles and staircase balustrade.

“We asked Andrew to come up with a design and, other than listing the rooms we wanted, gave him a free hand,” says Linda. “The site is on the edge of a Conservation Area, and we were concerned that the planners might not approve a modern house, but they were very open to the idea.”

One of the only changes made to Andrew’s original design involved using locally quarried Yorkshire stone instead of the proposed white-rendered blockwork. This inevitably impacted on the final budget, particularly as the stone slabs, which form the outer leaf of the house, are of fine polished ashlar.

A generous insulated cavity and an inner skin of dense concrete blockwork complete the extremely thick external walls, and their high thermal mass helps to regulate the temperature of the rooms.

Internally, the layout has been inverted so that the three bedrooms are positioned on the ground floor with the main living space upstairs — taking full advantage of wonderful views over the town through a large picture window. This living space also gives access to a decked south-facing terrace above the garage, opening the entire first floor to the outside when the folding sliding doors are open.

The open plan layout fully expresses the sweep of the roof, with its exposed glulam beams, and permits views down into the double-height kitchen/diner from the first floor study space, behind which a delicately suspended oak and sycamore staircase rises up to form the centrepiece of the house.

“I knew from the start that this would be a hands-on project,” says Roger, an engineer by trade who had never previously undertaken a new build. Helped by Linda and several good friends, he was responsible for virtually every aspect of the build — from pouring the foundations to laying the sedum on the roof.

“We sold our old farmhouse on the other side of town and moved into a caravan on site,” Linda recalls. “It was difficult to keep warm in winter, and cost a fortune in gas and electricity, but we managed there for two years during the build.”

Demolishing his father’s old bungalow proved to be a rather uncomfortable process for Roger, but with the rubble carted away and new standard strip foundations in place, the building work began in earnest.

Once the substantial blockwork and stone walls had been constructed, the 9.5-metre-long glulam beams for the roof structure were craned into position — which caused passing traffic to slow to a virtual standstill.

“One of the most difficult jobs was laying the sedum, because the roof is such an unusual angle and it was extremely windy in February,” recalls Roger, “but the colours are incredible — a mixture of green, yellow and pink hues which tie the house into the landscape.” The house also boasts a rainwater recycling system which stores water from hard standing, the roof and terrace, to be used in the garden.

The double curve of the super-insulated roof falls away to the north elevation – reducing heat loss to the cold face and opening out the southern elevation to make the most of solar gain – and the south-facing glazing is shaded from high-summer sun by a large overhang of translucent sheet, which also creates an all-weather outside area on the upper terrace.

High levels of insulation and thermal mass, combined with a heat recovery ventilation system and an airtight fabric, help to combat rising fuel bills and dwindling fossil fuel supplies. In fact, the house has proved so easy to keep warm that the couple have only needed to turn on their underfloor heating once since moving in, and also have a pre-heat hot-water system designed to minimise water wastage.

The couple chose locally sourced oak floors, doors and mouldings with European whitewood roof beams and redcedar external cladding from sustainable forests. “We researched eco-friendly products and prices online and bought everything as locally as possible,” Roger says. Linda and Roger’s new home was designed with the future in mind, to reduce the carbon footprint and reliance on traditional energy sources, and is beginning to change the way people think about the sustainability of homes in the area — becoming a talking point and grabbing the attention of the local press. Building an eco-friendly house hasn’t prevented the couple from adding some fun and frivolous touches, however. For 20 years they ran their own business making copper lights for gardens, and lighting inevitably plays an important role in the overall design of their new home. Strips of blue LEDs illuminate the oak and sycamore treads of the feature staircase, with red LED lights positioned behind an opaque acrylic sheet beneath the oak breakfast bar in the kitchen. “Building this house has been a once in a lifetime adventure,” says Linda, “and a self-build project was the perfect way to ease us into retirement. We’ve both developed muscles from so much hard physical labour, but now that the house is finished we’re definitely planning to have a much more relaxed pace of life.”

THE MECHANICS OF MODERN STAIRS

Roger and Linda’s staircase appears to be held up by fine steel wires, practically floating in the air. However, this is just an illusion, as the treads are actually completely supported at the other end by the wall. This is known as cantilevering. In order for the wall to be able to safely hold the weight of the treads, supporting steelwork is built into the wall. The treads span several inches in depth internally. Roger constructed the staircase using sycamore sandwiched between oak for the treads, with stainless steel handrails. Due to Building Regulations, staircases cannot be open-sided, although the issue of disrupted vision is dealt with here by using fine wires which do not impact on the view of the stairs.

WHY IT WON

Roger and Linda’s new home was impressive not just for the level of DIY involvement by its owners but also for its strong design credentials. Mixing the two makes it incredibly special — almost all projects that encompass a similar level of DIY involvement tend to operate at a pretty basic design point, meaning that they are easier to build. In this instance, Roger and Linda were not afraid to tackle the difficult design and specification issues head-on — an experienced builder would have struggled with the complicated roof structure, never mind a novice (although Roger is trained as an engineer). It was, therefore, not just the amount of work that Roger and Linda undertook but the fact that it was combined with such a high level of design and, just as importantly, high quality of finish, that impressed the judges. Commendation should also go to Roger and Linda’s son, Andrew, who has designed a spectacular new home for his parents.

Further reading:

• A DIY self-build
• A self-built eco home in Worcestershire
• A look at the pros and cons of green roofs

Find out more about the Homebuilding & Renovating Awards

Find out more about how to build an eco home in The Homebuilding & Renovating Book of Green Homes