AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA ALEXANDRIA CplusC Architects 2018 CplusC Architectural Workshop Pty Ltd All rights reserved. No parts may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without the prior written permission of CplusC Architectural Workshop. Registration Nominated Architect Clinton Cole 8688 License 173945c. Photographs by Murray Fredericks & Michael Lassman. For further information, please visit https://www.cplusc.com.au
Introduction Winner of the National Sustainability Awards - AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA is a home tailored to the needs of a modern, environmentally conscious and socially responsible couple. CplusC was approached by the owners of an existing terrace house in an urban area of Sydney to help them realise their vision of a home that would be the embodiment of their commitment to the environment. Located in a former light industrial area, the project reconsiders the terrace typology and provides a site sensitive response to a functional rather than prescriptive brief. With amenities aplenty at their doorstep, such as Sydney Park a short walk away, the clients were keen to experiment with how their site might work harder for them in the realms of energy and food production, utilising every square metre efficiently. Our most sustainable project to date, the home includes an aquaponics system for fish harvesting, rain water storage for use throughout the home, a wicking bed to filter water, compost, a worm farm and chicken coop working in harmony with a productive vegetable garden, an evacuated glass tube solar hot water system and a 3KW photovoltaic power generation system to run the home and charge the couple s electric car. The result is a beautiful, small footprint home which has reinvented terrace living and lifestyle. Vertical circulation is shifted to the front facade and a circular stair is formed by an array of glass and timber battens which doubles as an internal garden. The house combines innovative architectural design with off grid green initiatives. 4 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 5
EXISTING HOUSE LOCATION 6 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 7
Despite its compelling front façade, walking past AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA in the daytime you might not look twice, it s so well concealed by the teeming front garden. At night, it s a different story. The stairwell glows, a beacon for sustainability in the urban centre of Sydney and an unlikely find in these parts. A hint of movement through the timber and glass battens piques your interest. Hours upon hours of painstakingly slow work to form the stair is experienced in this fleeting moment. The owners spend a lot of time talking with curious onlookers, unsure what to make of this new structure on their street. 8 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 9
A primary objective of the design process was to find a way to ensure the design would contribute to the longevity of the building. To this end, a central courtyard provides all internal spaces with superior natural light and access to green spaces despite site restrictions, while planting beds are integrated into the home to improve internal air quality. Seamless integration of green spaces within the home was an key design objective. counterweight open the interior of the house to the courtyard and the kitchen has an unobstructed connection to the rear yard with sliding, stacking doors that disappear from view. The garden includes built-in outdoor seating which accommodates an aquaponics system (for fish harvesting and fertilising the vertical vegetable garden); a wicking bed (for drought resistance); and a compost system. Large planter boxes form a productive vegetable garden. Vertically hung sliding doors operated via a rack and pinion crankwheel paired with a custom concrete 10 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 11
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S T R Q P L I F E D A O J H G C B N M K A B C D E F G H I J K FRONT GARDEN LIVING COURTYARD GUEST BATHROOM LAUNDRY KITCHEN DINING OUTDOOR LIVING AQUAPONICS SYSTEM WICKING BED RAISED GARDEN L M N O P Q R S T CHICKEN COUP POND RAISED GARDEN CAR SPACE / LAWN STORE GUEST BATHROOM STUDY MAIN BEDROOM 0 1 2 3 4 1:100 @ A3 16 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 17
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The brief also called for a versatile primary living space; it should be an entertaining space, a work from home space and should be able to transform into a blank canvas at a moment s notice. The result was a custom, adjustable table which provided the necessary flexibility to change the use of the rear space. The large bench over-arches three smaller tables with adjustable height legs, in different configurations they form a place to sit, eat, stand, converse, work, mill and chat. Essential services are aligned along the party wall and the cabinetry finish subtly increases the ambient light, contrasting warmer brick and timber tones. A custom, folded steel shelf houses a collection of everyday objects and products the owner s delight in. The owner s engaged CplusC not only for our architectural services but also to build AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA. The design fused architectural concepts with permaculture principles inside and out, resulting in a building that was technically demanding to construct. Rather than simply ticking off a check list of sustainable features, the design responded to the clients needs and behaviours, site-specific considerations, the implications of Sydney s climate, balancing environmental outcomes against cost effectiveness and consideration of potential changes in technology or occupant needs for future resilience and adaptability. 20 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 21
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With all its permaculture, aquaponics, near carbon-neutrality and its distinctive street façade, this really is both a beautiful and sustainable response to such a constrained inner-city space. Jury Citation Sustainable Building Awards 30 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 31
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It s alive! This kind of integration of building and edible landscape is what we need to see a lot more of. The shrinking of the new building s GFA relative to the old is a brave move by the client and the floor plan does good things for layout in its terrace context with mixed north orientation. Jury Citation Sustainable Building Awards 38 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 39
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A dreary rainy day is transformed into meditative experience, watching water drip down the rain chain which runs through the centre of the concrete counterweight to be collected for re-use. When the sun returns, the twisting of the crankwheel removes the floor to ceiling glass doors, opening to the outside once again. Family and friends revel in the joy of cooking and entertaining at AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA. Guests venture to the rear garden to select herbs, lettuce, maybe a freshly laid egg before returning to the large bench with a sense of accomplishment. The last thing you d expect to wake you up to in the city is the squawk of chickens, yet here they are happily chirping away. 50 CplusC Architectural Workshop AQUAS PERMA SOLAR FIRMA 51
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