‘Party Wall House’
Bunyip, West Gippsland
Sited on a sloping north facing block, this 3 bedroom house has been designed to maximise natural light and capture views of nearby trees and the Bunyip State park beyond. Developed to meet the long term needs of the clients, the floor plan has been ‘future proofed’ with corridor widths, doorways and wet areas designed to be fully accessible. Needing to adhere to strict setback and building envelope conditions, this house design employs passive design principles to make the most of its compact site.
Key Passive Design features:
- The floor plan is essentially divided in two, with a thermal dividing wall running through the centre of the house. This facilitates ‘zoning’, with the garage and southern bedroom wing able to be shut off from the main house when not in use, or easily opened up when grandkids or visitors come to stay.
- Highlight windows are incorporated to facilitate passive heating and cooling, as well as ensuring light penetration into the heart of the house.
- The floor plan has been designed to enable a path for cool breezes from the south. Operable windows are positioned on the south and north facades to facilitate cross ventilation. A water feature in the south garden is positioned to act as an evaporative pond, drawing cool air in through low level operable windows. Ceiling fans at high level are positioned to draw up and exhaust warm air through the highlight windows.
- Deciduous planting on the west facing walls is positioned to assist in mitigating summer heat gain whilst enabling views onto gardens from the master bedroom.
- A second door at the entry creates an airlock to maximize retention of heat in winter.
- Deep eaves on the north side are dimensioned to shade glazing and internal areas from summer sun.
