Bundeena Beach House / By Sam Crawford Architects

Bundeena Beach, New South Wales, Australia

Sam Crawford Architects

Post By:Kitticoon Poopong

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--The Guest bedroom and office are accessed via a covered walkway

The house is sited on the dune fronting Horderns Beach, at Bundeena, on the northern edge of the Royal National Park, on Sydney’s southern edge. It is a fragile place, commanding particular sensitivity from an architect.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--When viewed from the beach, the house modest in scale, the upper level bedroom setback for privacy. An outdoor ‘breezeway’ living room is shielded from the glare of the ocean and beachgoers by retractable timber blinds

The house is raised off the ground, set on steel posts driven into the dune, braced against a north-easterly sea swell that can, at times, send a surge of energy through the dune and into the building fabric. Thus, the house is designed to be both strong, and flexible - built of a composite steel/ timber frame, clad in rough sawn plywood and corrugated iron.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--The main bedroom crouches like an insect over the main body of the house. Legs are made from a composite of steel and recycled timber

Each room provides a framework for a different set of experiences.
The living rooms are positioned on the dune ridge to make the most of the stunning view. On the beach side a breezeway room sits protected from the morning glare of the water by operable timber louvered walls - and on the bush side, an open deck sits protected from a sometimes bracing breeze.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--On approach - a glimpse of the ocean can be seen beneath the living room

The main bedroom is perched above the living rooms, well back from the beach for privacy, commanding 360 degree views, of the beach, the bay, the bush and the hamlet of Bundeena. Another bedroom and an office on the ground floor are accessed via an open, roofed timber walkway – gently forcing visitors and occupants to experience the elements.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--The upper level bedroom commands 360 degree views of the beach, the surrounding bush land and the hamlet of Bundeena

For the client, a naturopath, it is at once a beach house, a home, a place of work, and a threshold to the surrounding environment.
The building is a reflection of the client’s personal relationship to the site. Her brief was fairly straight-forward. Design me a simple, unpretentious beach house that will shelter me from the weather, but otherwise allow me to experience the surrounding environment. The site - the shifting meeting place of land and sea - is the key to this project. An authentic built form emerges from it – as well as the client’s brief and budget. The elemental use of steel and timber, and a clear expression of surface and junction, echo the immediate natural and historic built environment.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Environmentally Sustainable Design:
It is important to recognise that whilst some headway has been made with this project in dealing with issues of environmental sustainability, there is always more that can be done. Some planned measures have not yet been instituted. Others were considered but abandoned for budgetary or other reasons.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

The most obvious measures that have been implemented include natural cross-ventilation to each room, orientation of spaces and protection of openings to maximise winter solar gain and minimise summer solar gain, use of gas space and water heating in lieu of electrical, use of ceiling fans for summer cooling in lieu of air-conditioning, provision of water storage tanks to reduce town water consumption, and use of renewable and recycled materials where possible.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Other measures have been implemented as much in response to the site as for environmental reasons. They form part of the environmental strategy, and yet in another project on a different site, would not be appropriate. For instance, lightweight construction was chosen, allowing the building to sit off the ground, minimise disturbance to the site and obstruction of natural sand, water and fauna movements. On another site, in different circumstances, a slab on ground might have been more appropriate – allowing for thermal mass and passive solar heating.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--The guest bathroom doubles as internal access to the guest

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman

The house is of modest dimensions (160sqm, 2 bedrooms + office) by today’s standards, and a single car garage only has been provided. The site has no hard-paved areas. The driveway, built of sleepers laid directly into the sand is 100% porous. The site plan incorporates a vegetable garden and chook run, reducing resource consumption and waste by a small measure.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--Outdoor living spaces can be adjusted to the weather and the time of day

Other measures such as grid connected solar panels and a grey water treatment system have been planned, and may yet be implemented. There are also areas where we could have done better. Though recycled, and plantation timbers have been used extensively, the method of fixing many timber elements (gluing) means that they will be difficult to recycle in the future. Some natural protective coatings, such as tung oil, have been used. However, many of protective coatings used were of relatively high toxicity.
Working towards sustainability is complex. There is much yet to be learned.

Photo © Courtesy of Brett Boardman--The house is designed to be both strong and flexible - built of a composite steel/timber frame, clad in rough sawn plywood and corrugated iron

Structure, materials and construction:
The choice of materials for the house was driven directly by a response to the fragile and sensitive site, and a desire to reduce the house’s ecological footprint. Lifting the overall structure off the ground, via steel posts driven into the dune, means that the building could be braced from the movements of the ocean swell and inclement weather, while at the same time allowing the dune to shift and flow freely beneath it. Flexibility in the bracing and structure, achieved externally from composite steel and timber framing elements and a cladding of rough-sawn plywood and Custom Orb® Zincalume® steel, and internally from Miniorb® Zincalume® and rotary cut plywood lining makes the building responsive to the site conditions. The choice of materials was considered in terms of lifecycle cost. It should be acknowledged that the client contributed to and supported the architects’ endeavor by her encouragement (especially at the initial design stages) to incorporate sustainable design elements and techniques.
Description from the Architects:

Project Data
Project name: Bundeena Beach House
Location: New South Wales, Australia
Program: Single family house
Site Area: 794 m2

Built-up Area: 160 m2
Project start: March 2002

Completion: November 2004

Awards: 

• 2006, Royal Australian Institute of Architects, Colorbond® Steel Award for the Bundeena Beach House
• 2006, Royal Australian Institute of ArchitectsCommendation - Single Housing New
• for the Bundeena Beach House
• 2005, Australian Timber Design AwardsHighly Commended, Major Award for the Bundeena Beach House
• 2005, Australian Timber Design AwardsWinner, Residential Class 1 - Open, for the Bundeena Beach House

The people

Architect: Sam Crawford Architects

Design Team: Sam Crawford, Jonathan Moore, Jane Silcock, Jolyon Sykes

Contractor: Premier Waterproofing

Photographs: © Brett Boardman

Note>>Location in this map, It could indicate city/country but not exact address.

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