Sustainable Homes

An Off-Grid Family Home Settled Into Victoria’s High Country

Victoria’s High Country is host to beautiful natural landscapes and extreme temperatures ranging from freezing to the mid 40s.

Little Granite House, designed and built by BRD Studio, respects and responds to this environment by placing sustainability and the area’s existing architectural vernacular at the forefront.

At just 100 square metres, the house covers less than half the average floor area of a new Australian home and operates off grid with a 13.2kW solar system.

Written
by
Amelia Barnes
|
Photography
by

Little Granite House is a compact 100 square metre rural family home that responds to its High Country environment.

BRD Studio designed and built the home in reference to the surrounding agricultural infrastructure.

Materials were selected to rescede into the landscape while taking into account their local availability, bushfire protection, shading, maintenance requirements, and ability to patina.

Cypress macrocarpa on the facade sourced from CERES Fair Wood in Melbourne

Galvanised steel cladding was selected to provide durability and coherence with the environment.

Local granite aggregate features in the polished concrete slab in reverence to the granite boulders found across the property.

Little Granite House has a deliberately compact 100 square metre floor plan (smaller than half the average floor area of a new Australian home) for the clients who appreciate the beauty of simplicity.

The property’s environmental credentials are enhanced by passive design features.

The home achieves a 7.3 NatHERS rating and operates off grid powered by a 13.2kW solar system and 28kWh of battery storage.

The rural home shelters its inhabitants from the extremes of the weather (with temperatures ranging from -5°C to 45°C), while allowing them to connect with the surrounding environment and its seasonal patterns.

Shining gum timber on the bedroom, hallway and entrance floors was grown 40 kilometres from the site on a sustainably managed plantation.

Victoria’s High Country is host to beautiful natural landscapes.

Over time, the external galvanised metal and local timber cladding will patina to further settle the home within the natural rhythms of the site.

Rainwater harvesting ensures the property is completely self-sufficient.

Writer
Amelia Barnes
Photography
19th of May 2023
Architect + Builder
Energy Rating Consultant

Little Granite House was designed from the outset to sit within its Wooragee environment in Victoria’s High Country.

The rural home needed to shelter its inhabitants (a family of five) from the extremes of the weather (with temperatures ranging from -5°C to 45°C), while allowing them to connect with the surrounding environment and its seasonal patterns.

BRD Studio designed and built the home in reference to the surrounding agricultural infrastructure ‘so as to not take precedence over its environment, instead forming a homologous relationship with the preexisting structures,’ says Tim Smith, architect and director of BRD Studio. ‘This was achieved through composition of a simple gable shape with extraction of elements to create apertures for outdoor life.’

Materials were selected to rescede into the landscape while taking into account their local availability, bushfire protection, shading, maintenance requirements, and ability to patina over time.

Galvanised steel cladding was chosen to provide durability and coherence with the environment, complemented by cypress macrocarpa accents sourced from CERES Fair Wood in Melbourne. Over time, the external galvanised metal and local timber cladding will patina to further settle the home within the natural rhythms of the site.

Internally, the shining gum timber on the bedroom, hallway and entrance floors was grown 40 kilometres from the site on a sustainably managed plantation. Local granite aggregate also features in the polished concrete slab in reverence to the granite boulders found across the property.

Little Granite House has a deliberately compact 100 square metre floor plan (smaller than half the average floor area of a new Australian home) for the clients who appreciate the beauty of simplicity.

The property’s environmental credentials are enhanced by passive design features such as double-glazed windows, efficient appliances, deep wall frames for increased insulation, and appropriate thermal breaks between the thermal mass elements to minimise heat loss in the depths of winter.

The home achieves a 7.3 NatHERS rating and operates off grid powered by a 13.2kW solar system and 28kWh of battery storage. Rainwater harvesting ensures the property is completely self-sufficient.

Little Granite House was completed in 2022 and the clients say the home has far exceeded their expectations.

‘Despite the home being “small” compared to current mainstream building trends, it by no means feels small,’ say the owners. ‘Our favourite aspect of our new home is the feeling of being part of our environment.’

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