While this house is a memorable spectacle, it’s also imminently liveable. ‘This one-bedroom home features 250m2 liveable upstairs area, with 250m2 carport/entertaining area and boat port downstairs, accommodating the boat while maximising views and natural light,’ begins Robbi Burdett, Managing Director, KR Installations. ‘The steel frame construction, with lightweight timber and plaster walls, make glazing the focus.’
The window systems’ heft required care and ingenuity. ‘We had a specialised trolley for moving large panels through the lower doorways,’ says Robbi. ‘For this challenging site, Schüco’s internally glazed system was the natural choice. When the clients saw one of our previous Schüco projects, the quality finish, superior thermal performance and engineering were evident.’
‘The special features of the Schüco windows include the massive panels’ look, feel, and watertight characteristics,’ Robbi continues. ‘The thermal properties of these windows are also superb. Meeting the tight energy requirements with such a large expanse of glass in such a small house requires an extremely high-performance product.’
This challenge was met in spades by Schüco. ‘The Schüco windows are thermally broken with a very low air infiltration rate, leaking less air and insulating more effectively,’ Robbi says.
The large expanse of roof glazing situated at the house’s central point took full advantage of Schüco’s unique capacities. ‘These large panels were the most challenging, in part due to their mass,’ Robbi confirms. ‘While most double-glazed systems available in Australia are 25–28mm thick, Schüco is a hefty 42mm. (The panels are 12mm internal and 10mm external, with a 20mm argon gap.) These roof units had to keep the glass panels apart, consistently maintaining the pressure difference with generous separation.’
This extra thickness, of course, adds up. ‘With the panels reaching 450kg, we had to use cranes and manoeuvring devices to get them in,’ Robbi remembers. ‘Fortunately, Schüco’s glazing system allowed us to glaze internally; as the windows overhang the water, installing them from outside would have been logistically difficult. On a site continually buffeted by high winds, this rock-solid window system provides residents with a feeling of safety.’
Matt Prior, CEO of Prior Builders, agrees wholeheartedly with Robbi on the project’s success. ‘Our favourite place is the kitchen lounge area, where the surrounding views become part of the house,’ he says. ‘Evening sunsets viewed outside from the deck – or inside through the large expanse of Schüco windows – are simply stunning. While the construction was challenging, we achieved a seamless result from inside to outside.’
The photos of this innovatively glazed seafront jewel display the skills of all involved with this technically demanding, aesthetically rewarding project.
Builder: Prior Builders
Fabricator: KR Installations
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Schüco ASS 39 PD.NI
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