THE BUILDING OF A HOME FOR COLIN AND MICHELLE PARTONS FAMILY Designed by Pease and Benson, Kinglake, Victoria,

2012. Colin and Michelle Parton work as cabinet maker and jewellery artist respectively. They are re-building in Kinglake after the Black Saturday bushfires, on 7 February 2009, which changed Kinglake forever. The Partons are building their own house as owner builders. They are passionate about sustainable and organic architecture, and commissioned us, Pease and Benson, www.solararchitecture.com.au to design a custom-made residence that they could build themselves. This blog follows the process of the building of the Parton residence from conception, through to design and construction. The post follows, and connects with, different narratives: The process of young owner builders building their house for less than $150,000. The custom design architecture reflects the owners confidence, personality, and their philosophy of sustainability. The design and construction of the building is calculated on overall sustainability rather than the conventional measures by which 6 start energy saving rating is achieved, it therefore reflects greater than 6-star energy saving rating.

View of Kinglake

The Brief To design a residence that would be suitable for building by owner-builders. Design a house that can be built in two stages. The first stage has to be functional so the family could move in as soon as possible and live there while building the second part. The first part of the house has to be suited to both private and social activities. The house has to take in the views of the beautiful landscape of Kinglake. The Design Interior It was decided to design the first stage of the house as an open space, with an interior service module. Surrounding this module are minimum interior walls separating the module from the surrounding area. There is a mobile wall between the module and the social/ multi-use area which allows the service area to be connected with, or closed off from, this family space. Exterior The curved shape of the north facing wall allows the advantage of the sun from morning to evening. The orientation of the windows allows the sunrise and sunset atmospheres to transform the interiors spaces. They also give a 180 degree view of the landscape. The windows were shaped with different but concurrent functions in mind: - To provide ventilation - To frame the overall view - To give a view of the boundary gardens.

www.solarachitecture.com.au Passive Solar Architecture Design, a way to build a sustainable home.

The Parton Project by Pease and Benson.

A miniature model of the house that Colin and Michelle are building for themselves. The model is built with blocks of timber 1cm high.

Making the house sustainable The design is based on solar passive solar design principles and sustainable strategies: North orientation which ensures maximum sunshine reaching the daytime living areas. Thermal mass effect (the floor and walls gain and maintain solar heat in winter) . Good cross ventilation in summer. Avoidance of the use of chemical products. The use of earth brick - Earth walls store the heat from the sun (the cleanest energy) - Stored heat is particularly important in cold climates. - Earth walls are the safest walls for fire prone areas. - Earth walls performed the best in the last bushfire. So we proposed the use of AMCER compressed earth bricks. The use of certified sustainable timber from plantations. The use of timber from the trees that were affected by the 2009 bushfire. - Colin cut the trees that were burned in the Black Saturday fires in order to incorporate in the construction of the house for non-structural things such as doors and window frames and to make the furniture for the family home. The use of off-cut pieces of glass for the different sized windows. All 6mm thick. - The glass was sourced from excess material of a construction company, thus the glass was saved from becoming waste. - Vertical circulation of the heated air which would stagnate under the ceiling.

Installing of: - a rainwater tank. - a water treatment system, and - a solar hot water system.

Kinglake - fire prone area As Kinglake is a fire prone area, the construction materials should NOT be flammable. In other words, the exterior walls and all the construction materials exposed to the exterior should be built with the least flammables materials available. Windows for fire prone area Certificated windows for fire prone areas are made with hardwood which - would make the windows too expensive, and ... - using hardwood, which is mostly not sourced from plantation trees, for window frames is not sustainable. Thus, the vent windows - a window specially designed for bushfire prone constructions were designed by Pease and Benson specifically for the Parton residence. - the vent windows were designed with an automatic system, responding to radiant heat, which will automatically close shutters in case of bushfire.

(The windows posed a challenge for Pease and Benson. In the end their design concept was based on the function of the particular windows in their location, and the different functions and mechanical and physical characteristics of the materials.) For the exterior wall we avoided exposing window frames to the outside. Instead, the windows are set into the wall from the interior. Even though they are not classified as Australian Standard, the builder surveyor accepted the designed windows. (NOTE: We, Pease and Benson, are happy to share the windows project for use by other architects, designers or owners builders.)

Colin cut the trees that were damaged in the 2009 bushfire. He will use the timber to make the fixtures and furniture. Ooooh, we love Colins idea to use this timber for the furniture and fixtures of his new house, especially as the house is in Kinglake.

Miniature model of the interior wall of the house .

The building permit Although the building is not exactly in accordance with the exact requirements for 6-star energy rating, a Building Permit was able to be obtained because the house fits in with the requirements of the Australian Building Codes. For instance the walls and the floors do not have additional insulation as they do not require it, but the house overall it will achieve great sustainability performance and comfort. The Parton residence will be built with sustainable materials while prioritising comfort and sustainability. The thermal mass effect and other passive solutions incorporated in the design will make it a comfortable home. The use of solar energy allows for reduced need for heating in the winter. The use of oldest constructions materials, such as earth brick walls and the use of the sun for heating, have been tested over time and tradition in this area for long time.

Earth moving, foundation laying and preparations for the concrete slab.

We will continue following the construction process of the Partons home in our next posts
By Angel Benzon Beaz, Edited by Monique Decortis www.solararchitecture.com.au and www.voz-otroz.blogspot.com 788 Main Road. Hurstbridge. Vic 3099.

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