Southdowns House

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The Brief

Design & construction of a four suite house with 4 garages and a home consulting room.

The Challenge

The clients wanted a single storey house with no staircases, air stairs had to be paired in twos. The site was north-faced, but extremely long and narrow.

The Result

The Transvaal Farmhouse vernacular lends itself towards the addition of smaller lean-to roofs to compliment the large simplified pitched roof of the main structure. Adding a reading tower to the entrance hall also helped to break the overall massive roof into smaller volumes.

Each bedroom suite received its own landscaped garden at the back. This will allow the house to later serve as a potential guest house.

The house was also designed around all the existing trees and wherever a tree was removed, another was planted in its place.

All the living areas and bedrooms are linked to the central under floor water heating system. The boiler circulates hot water throughout the house and also supplies hot water to the 5 geysers. The central vacuum cleaner has access points in each room and is serviced in the garage.