Freshwater Springs

This house was designed to be a modest, yet comfortable house for a single retiree. Low maintenance and low running costs were priority outcomes for the realisation of this building. Zincalume was used to clad the roof and walls to the south which are not readily visible, and the painted weatherboards are well protected from the elements on all sides.

The client’s desire to have a timber floor meant that thermal mass needed to be introduced into the building in the form of internal walls. A curved mudbrick wall forms a feature wall to screen off the bathroom and laundry from thte dining room. The painted, bagged brick chimney for the slow combustion wood heater also acts as a room divider between lounge and dining. These two rustic thermal mass elements successfully integrate with the clean, streamlined interior to create a contemporary look.

While the interior of the house reveals a few surprises, the exterior form perpetuates the typical ‘Daylesford Style’, of the gabled roof, timber cottage. Not so typical however is the high level of energy efficiency acheived by this modest addition to the streetscape.