Sustainable Coastal Retreat – Small Home Thinks Big and Outside the Box

Constructed off site and made with pre-fabricated and recycled materials, this 75sqm 3 bedroom coastal retreat is on a 300m2 site in Coromandel completely transportable and  made of high quality materials. The house is designed to be moved again in the future as it sits on a sand-dune that is slowly eroding. Rather than having to demolish when the time comes, the owner wanted to build a house of high quality, sustainable materials that will age and improve with time and be easily relocated to another site.

s dimensions and light laminated timber structure mean it can easily be picked up by a house moving truck to be relocated to another site in the future.

Green, sustainable materials were selected for the build and do not cost any more than ordinary materials might have. Yet all materials are ‘Red List Free’. This is a list of 10 prohibited toxic chemicals and compounds contained in the materials – a standard requirement of the Living Building Challenge. Standard timber (CCA) used for most house building contains arsenic and chrome and is highly toxic.

Although it is a highly refined design, large, chunky boards of reclaimed timber cladding give the home the feel of a coastal shack or farm shed. Other quality materials included are stainless steel and zinc which are endlessly recyclable.

The footprint is deliberately small at 85m2 but expands out into the garden for summer. Two adjacent dining areas inside and out can pull together to accommodate larger numbers through the selection of similar materials and a seamless level threshold.

A luxurious tent-like structure made from waterproof fabric extends from the living area, doubling the useable space. The family can use this area as an outdoor room without the need to build a larger home. It also gives the sense of camping or living outdoors, an experience that seems lost on many coastal retreats.

Enhancing this experience, an outdoor fire pit in the garden adds a sense of well-being. For the family, it’s just like sitting around the campfire. The whole idea is for a family to reconnect with the great outdoors and soak up the natural climate – the sun, wind and rain. To explain, this family lives on the seventh floor of an apartment in Auckland. Their bach will enrich their lives as they move from an extreme urban environment to immerse themselves in a true coastal environment.

The house is designed around a large Pohutukawa tree on one of the boundaries. It provides shade in summer and a visual filter to the outdoors.

Set on a series of angles, the roof, faces north and is solar capable. It rises vertically to a point then tapers inward, almost like the curve of a wave. While it came about to meet and maximise council boundary regulations, the form adds interest.

Though small in size, this sustainable coastal home thinks big, delivering great, versatile options for a family well into the future.