Tony & Patricia Watling - Ashford, Kent

Originally from London, Tony & Patricia Watling moved to the countryside, to a large Georgian-style house, in the village of Sellindge, 33 years ago.  The house, named Springfield House, was virtually derelict but with plenty of space both indoors and out, they opened a cattery, which they’ve been running for 22 years now.  “Then, about 5 years ago, we really started to think about retirement some time in the future.  We decided we didn’t want to move from the village of Sellindge so began to look into the possibility of building a new house on part of the grounds adjacent to Springfield house.

We did our research – looking on the internet and in lots of self build magazines – and quickly decided to go down the pre-manufactured route.  Initially, we were looking at building 2 bungalows on the site, which is adjacent to our house.  Eventually, deciding that it would be too cramped to provide adequate car parking space, we looked again at building one house.  We met a Hanse Haus representative at one of the self-build exhibitions and it quickly became clear that they were the company for us as they offered what we wanted in terms of a quality build and a flexible system that provided the most cost effective price. 

During our preliminary (feasibility) meeting with our local planning department we discovered that our house and grounds were just within the village planning envelope.  That removed the most potentially difficult obstacle to our proposed planning application.  We prepared and submitted the application ourselves and after a few small compromises it got passed, albeit with 12 conditions! 

We signed the contract with Hanse Haus in July 2008 and our house was delivered 3 months later, in October.  The build went without a hitch and we’re delighted with our finished house.   We’ve had it rented out since March 2010 but one day we intend to retire and we’re looking forward to living in it ourselves”.  Tony Watling.

 

Background

Tony & Patricia worked together with a Hanse Haus architect to finalise the specifications for the house.  “We had already identified our priorities.  We wanted

open-plan living areas with lots of large windows to make it light, bright and airy to live in, warm water underfloor heating backed up with a multi-fuel stove  and a rainwater harvesting system.  We also wanted to have an upstairs sitting area to take advantage of the views of the adjoining farmland and beyond.  We were conscious of the potential expense caused by ‘over design’ so we tried to keep it simple.

We cleared most of the site ourselves in preparation for the arrival of the ground workers, which were recommended by Hanse Haus.  The ground workers dug out and built the foundations, incorporating all the necessary ducting and pipes for the internal electric and water services and they laid the concrete slab on which the house would sit.  They laid the drains and the conduits from the house to the road, for the electricity and water supplies.  They also installed the in-ground 4500 litre water tank and connected the rainwater pipes to it.  The ground workers worked incredibly hard and effectively for the house to be delivered in October 2008.

The very first morning was a sign of how efficient the whole build would turn out to be.  Having travelled overnight from Germany, the 2 huge lorries containing all the components of our house had arrived by 5am.  By daylight, the 10-strong construction team were already at work.  It really was a marvel to watch.  There was nothing for us to do over this time other than to witness the event and try to capture it all on camera and video.  It all happened so quickly we could hardly keep up with the photography.

Neighbours and other local people were obviously amazed by the speed of it all.  Some were stopping and cars were slowing on the main road by the house.  Even people we didn’t know were stopping and asking if they could come in for a closer look because they liked what they’d seen.  By the time the house was completed, at least 100 people had been given The Grand Tour!

 

Specifications

Exterior

Tony & Patricia’s house sits on a 1250 square metre plot of land in Sellindge, near Ashford, Kent.  It’s set 20 metres back from the A20 at the end of it’s own driveway. 

The house has a light cream-coloured render and a pitched tiled roof, and is noticeable for it’s large windows and contemporary design, including a glass and stainless steel canopy over the front door.  At the rear of the house, there is a raised decked area extending the full width of the house with steps down to the garden.  There is parking space for several cars on dedicated block paved areas and on the stone chipped driveway.

The exterior walls are 30 cm thick. 

All of the windows are triple-glazed, argon-filled, white UPVC with natural stone window sills.

 

Interior

The house provides 180 square metres of living space.

Front access is through a double-glazed door into a wide entrance hall, which is open-plan to the lounge/dining/kitchen area, which stretches across the breadth of the property and is fitted with 3 double-glazed, floor to ceiling, double patio doors across the longest wall and 2 floor to ceiling double glazed windows across the side wall. 

To the right, of the entrance hall, is a separate study with windows to the front and side of the property.  To the left is the staircase and beyond that, access to the utility room and downstairs WC and shower room.

The entire ground floor is fitted with large ivory porcelain floor tiles.

The staircase, made from beech, winds up from the entrance hall to the first floor, which comprises of a large gallery landing/second living area with floor to ceiling windows to both the front and side of the house.   Three spacious double bedrooms, and a family bathroom all lead off of the central landing area.  The master bedroom, overlooking the rear of the property also has an en suite bathroom. 

The bedrooms and landing have laminate flooring and the bathrooms have ceramic tiles. 

The entire house benefits from under-floor heating, and downstairs, in the centre of the open plan living space is a large contemporary design multi fuel stove.

The interior walls are 12cm thick and the house also boasts the Hanse Haus solid wall system, which combines the advantages of timber SIP and solid wall construction.  “The walls have a stud every 300mm and they are completely glued on both sides with OSB boards. That makes them loadbearing and the fixing of wall units, including heavy kitchen units for example, is possible everywhere“, says Hanse Haus architect, Bianca Keil.

 

Utilities –

 

Heating -

An exhaust air heat pump provides heat and domestic hot water, which is stored in a buffer tank.  There is no need for any gas or oil. 

Water –

Mains water

Ventilation system (with heat recovery) –

The house has a mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery. This system is used for the demand-based supply of air to and extraction of air from low and ultra low energy houses. Used air, which is often contaminated with pollutants, such as moisture and odours from kitchens, bathrooms, etc, is continuously extracted. This regulated room ventilation increases a sense of well being, as it guarantees room air quality and hygiene and what’s more it leads to a reduction in heating energy requirements. 

Insulation –

Walls, ceilings and roofs are insulated with a GLASSWOOL product, which is produced with 90% natural mineral raw materials, like for example, sand and more than 50% recycled glass. The GLASSWOOL product recently gained recognition as an environmental product due to it’s high content of waste glass and also gained a quality control mark to confirm that it’s harmless to health.  What’s more, the type of insulation ensures low heating demand in the house. 

Energy Efficiency -

The combination of underfloor heating, the ventilation system and the insulation results in excellent energy efficiency.  It allows the ambient room temperature to be around 2 °C lower than with radiator heating, which whilst keeping you warm, also means 8 to 10 % less heating costs.

Living –

So, what are your overall thoughts on building with Hanse Haus?

“The whole process has been incredibly efficient and I wouldn’t hesitate to build with them again in the future if the opportunity arose.” Tony Watling.

Has your new home met your expectations?

“The house has definitely met our expectations.  We’re especially struck by how robust and solid the build is.  For instance, the very large size of the roof  timbers and the European guttering.  You just don’t see that in conventionally built UK houses.  And, of course the number and size of the windows has given us exactly the feel of the house we wanted“.  Tony Watling.

Given your experience, can you offer any tips to other self builders?

“Planning and preparation are paramount.  If you’re not taking the ‘Turnkey’ option and you’re going to do some of the work yourself – draw up priority lists, cost it all then add a big contingency because it always works out more than you think it will.

It can be difficult to envisage what the living space will look and feel like so think really hard and be absolutely sure about lights, switches, power, TV and telephone points – how many and exactly where do you want them?  When you visit the Hanse Haus sample centre, you will find the staff there are excellent at advising you on appropriate fixtures and fittings but they will expect you to have your own ideas as a starting point.  Try to enjoy the experience!” Tony Watling.