An Energy Efficient Family Home

James Bennett knew his building plot like the back of his hand, having played there as a boy when the orchard formed part of his parents’ large garden. Years later he returned to live next to his childhood home with his wife, Kam, and their three children, Rosie, Ellie and Brendan, when the family outgrew their Victorian terraced house and decided to build a contemporary, energy-efficient new home on the land which would cater for their various needs.

“Our lives revolve around the children and in many ways so does this house,” says Kam, who works as a play leader and was determined that the new build - ing would accommodate all elements of family life. “One of the main reasons for moving from our three bedroom terrace was that the children needed a bedroom each.”

Each child has decorated their room to their own taste (Rosie and Ellie’s are pink and Brendan’s is purple), while James and Kam’s room is a sanctuary which accommodates little more than their bed.

On the ground floor a multi-purpose room stands to one end of the long building, which the children use as a playroom. The main living space is located to the other side of the stunning feature staircase — made to the Bennetts’ own design with oak treads winding up to the first floor on a vertebra of steel. At the base of these stairs runs a long wall of glazing beneath a flat roof, drawing light directly into the kitchen and living/dining room and shaded by blinds during the summer months.

The Bennetts were keen that their new home should be as sustainable and as energy efficient as possible and approached Daren Drage, director of Surrey-based Exedra Architects, who specialises in sustainable and environmentally conscious designs. “We liked Daren’s other houses and the way he incorporates large areas of glass and sections of timber cladding,” says James. “It didn’t actually take that long to design something suitable for our site, with the emphasis on plenty of insulation and lots of south-facing glass.”

From the road the new property is partially concealed behind its entrance gate and a boundary wall, with only a few small window openings in the north façade, giving the building a closed, impenetrable appearance. Once inside, however, the spaces open up to reveal the southerly outlook through a wall of glass, which ensures that the open plan sitting/dining room is flooded with natural light. Glulam timber posts and beams contrast with the oak of the window frames and stair treads and the whole interior has a bright, airy atmosphere.

From the outside, the south façade has a far more upbeat, beach-house look, combining large sections of glazing, white-rendered Durox aircrete blockwork laid using thin layers of mortar, a grey slate roof and timber framed upper elements clad in cedar — all offset by a striking double-height wall of bright terracotta red. Early drawings had depicted this wall finished in a vivid purple, which was rejected by the planners — their only real amendment to the building, which stands on the outskirts of a Bristol Conservation Area.

“I was a boat builder and carpenter before working as a director for a builders’ merchant, so it seemed like an obvious decision that I would manage the build and order materials,” says James, who also tackled much of the physical work himself, including the groundworks and some of the carpentry. “I enjoyed the whole process so much that it convinced me to set up my own business designing and building new homes and extensions for other people, working with Daren Drage and Kam, who helps out by tackling the paperwork for the business. Our whole life has changed and evolved around building this house in ways we had never previously imagined.”

Despite James’ extensive knowledge of building, the project ended up becoming something of an endurance test for the Bennetts — who ultimately gave up on the idea of completing most of the work themselves and doubled their original £120,000 budget by bringing in subcontractors to hurry the process along. “We were working on the house every evening and weekend,” says Kam, who found that looking after a young baby – Brendan – during the build sometimes left her feeling slightly redundant. “We were struggling to complete the work on our own and knew that we needed some extra help to get everything finished. There just weren’t enough hours in the day.

“When we finally moved into our new house, none of our belongings really suited the space and it took time to get used to a more open plan layout with underfloor heating and so much glass,” says Kam. “The triple glazing means that the house is fantastically warm in winter and we can wear T-shirts inside, but it does tend to show up the children’s fingermarks!”

Despite this unforeseen problem the Bennetts are far from precious about their new home and decided to take their time choosing furniture to suit — fitting an oak kitchen designed to withstand the knocks of family life and travertine tiles for much of the ground floor, laid over the underfloor heating to provide a robust and practical finish. “We might build again for ourselves when we retire,” says James, “but for now we’re extremely happy here. The children go to school locally and it’s a great place for them to grow up — something I know from personal experience!”

The Construction System

Much of the lower external structure was built from Durox aircrete thinjoint blockwork. This system combines light - weight, largeformat blocks with a purpose-made thin-layer mortar, and offers a speedier build, as the mortar sets very quickly. The combination of the large blocks and thin-layer mortar also improve the airtightness and U-value of the structure, compared to conventional methods of construction. The house’s upper storey is framed in timber and clad with untreated cedar boards. A grey slate roof and double-height glazing complete the look.

Further reading:

• A Cutting Edge Family Home
• A Contemporary Eco Home
• A Self-built Low Energy Farmhouse