Scotland’s Housing Expo
Inverness, 2010

THE FLOWER HOUSE

Based on the Finnish example of model communities, Scotland’s Housing Expo showcases innovative sustainable housing. The houses are designed to demonstrate sustainable techniques and act as exemplars for future housing in Scotland.

Architects for the project were selected through a design competition in 2007. The winning proposal a+j burridge developed was for a detached house on a prominent site facing the village green with a bold identity and a simple solution to a challenging brief.

The 2-storey building is organised with living accommodation at first floor level giving the benefits of both good day lighting from the roof lights and panoramic views to the north and the Moray Firth. Bedrooms are situated on the ground floor taking advantage of the south-east aspect whilst storage wall and circulation are located on the cooler north-west side. The house is entered through a bright and welcoming two storey sun space. This south-west facing space works hard. As well as being a flexible extension to the living room that the occupants can expand into, to enjoy on bright but less clement days, the space can equally be closed down and used as a buffer to the outside in the winter. It also acts as a solar collector allowing the house to take advantage of the sun’s energy. The design of the space has been refined since the outset through computer thermal modeling. The area, aspect and specification of the glass have all been modified and the original louvres omitted to optimise the benefits of solar gain and heat loss throughout the year.

The house has an innovative under-floor heating system with water supplied by a wood-burning stove. Solar panels on south-east facing roof provide the energy for the domestic hot water requirements topped up by heat from the stove during the coldest part of the year. Using wood from managed sources the system does not deplete the limited supply of fossil fuels and does not add to the carbon in the eco-system. Triple-glazed windows and prefabricated solid timber panel construction, providing good air-tightness, energy efficient light fittings and whole house ventilation system with heat recovery all work to minimise energy losses.

The shell of the house is formed using a cross-laminated timber panel system. Panels are fabricated to precise tolerances in the factory allowing the house to be constructed quickly and accurately on site. This reduces site waste and the unnecessary burning of fossil fuel used to transport unwanted raw materials and produces a house free from energy sapping draughts. The CLT is highly insulated with Pavatherm wood fibre insulation achieving a U value of 0.18 to the walls and 0.13 to the roof. The wall insulation has a laytex impregnated breathable outer layer whilst the roof has a waterproof membrane.

The house is clad with horizontal timber boarding, turned at 120° to form the large daisy motifs. An extensive selection process was carried out with close consultation from Edinburgh Napier University Centre for Timber Engineering and timber suppliers, to specify the timber, which satisfied the various, and conflicting, demands of durability, sustainability and price.  The roof had more demanding technical requirements needing to be more resistant to both moisture and fire. This lead to an alternative timber selection for the walls and roof – respectively, biocide treated Sots larch and fire retardant treated Platowood, a thermally modified timber. The cladding has open joints allowing moisture to pass through the timber rainscreen but also air to circulate freely and allow the construction to dry more readily.

SHE Site Developer: Highland Housing Alliance
Structural Engineer: W.A.Fairhurst & Partners
Environmental Modelling: Buro Happold
Contractor: O’Brien Homes

A consortium of agencies including The Highland Council, Scottish Executive, Communities Scotland, Highland & Islands Enterprise and the Forestry Commission supports Scotland’s Housing Expo