Eco-friendly countryside home, with a timber frame, minimal use of concrete and integration of renewable energy sources.
2022 Structural Timber Award Award — Low Carbon Project of the Year
2021 RIBA Award
2020 Structural Timber Award — Finalist
Located in picturesque countryside, Tarn Moor is a two-storey home that has been designed to minimise its environmental impact. The sloping site allows the building to sit within the landscape. Eckersley O’Callaghan provided structural design and below ground drainage design for the project, coordinating with several suppliers to integrate mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR), solar panels, insulation and low carbon materials throughout.
The first floor of the property features the main living spaces, with an open plan kitchen, lounge and dining space benefitting from views out through large south-facing windows and access to a balcony that runs the length of the building.
A strong desire to lower embodied carbon and achieve high thermal performance has influenced every aspect of the design. The team has carried out extensive exploration of environmentally sustainable structural solutions. Use of cement has been minimised wherever possible, with ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) replacement concrete used in all elements. The foundations have been reduced to pad foundations, with unbound fill strip foundations between.
The primary structure is a glulam timber frame, with an exposed gull-wing glulam roof and tapered main beams. The roof features a sedum covering and integrated solar panels. Our team collaborated closely with the timber fabricator to ensure all connection details achieved the architectural intent.