The corrugated steel farm shed has long been an inspiration for architects. This simple structure not only provides a model for homes in rural areas, but also in urban areas, where there’s a need for robust buildings, both domestic and commercial. A growing number of Australian architects have found such inspiration for their home designs.
Architect Reg Lark’s family home in Cronulla, Sydney is one example. “Using steel allowed me to design a three-level home on a relatively small site (180 square metres),” says Lark.
Only 100 metres from the beach, his property and the beach are separated by a row of two-storey apartment buildings. “We had to go vertical to obtain a view of the Pacific Ocean, at least from the third level,” says Lark.
Lark used a steel frame to construct the house, selecting ‘RSJ’ (H-Section) steel beams and columns. Apart from the ground floor, which is rendered brick, the two upper levels and roof are externally clad in corrugated Colorbond®. “The walls continue to form the roof and the curvature of the roof was designed to deflect the south-west winds,” says Lark. “Using steel allowed me the open up the spaces. Internal walls didn’t have to take the load,” he adds.
As well as featuring on the exterior, all joinery in the home includes steel T-sections. The frames of the glass sliding doors are also made from T-sections. “I used steel rather than aluminum to create a finer resolution that had strength,” says Lark. Steel also appears in the splashback in the kitchen. Rather than being permanently fixed, the splashback folds back to expunge fumes from the kitchen.
Hopkinson Team Architects also regularly use steel in both domestic and commercial projects. One of their steel designs is located at Bethels Beach, on the west coast of Auckland. The owners of this beach house had been camping on the site for a few years with only rudimentary facilities. A water tank and camping table were the only permanent fixtures. As a consequence, the open camp site became the focal point for the design.
The resulting house is modest in scale. An open-plan kitchen and living area form the core of the design, with the main (and only) bedroom and bathroom treated as a separate wing. The two pavilions are connected by a breezeway. To compensate for scale, Hopkinson Team Architects included generous decks, accessible from both living and sleeping wings. “Auckland enjoys a warm humid summer climate. You can live outdoors for at least six months of the year,” says Architect Gary Hopkinson, director of the practice.
Hopkinson Team Architects used steel to clad the Bethels Beach house. The charcoal grey steel not only allows the house to recede in its environment, but also captures the large black iron sand dunes, famous in the region. “Steel is evocative of the wool and shearing sheds dotted throughout New Zealand. It’s a rugged material and incredibly durable. Steel sheds that were built more than a century ago, are still used,” says Hopkinson.
One of the problems facing many homes in New Zealand is what Hopkinson refers to as the ‘leaky building syndrome’. “Most houses need another cavity behind the cladding to ensure adequate drainage and ventilation. But running the corrugated steel vertically eliminates a secondary drainage channel,” says Hopkinson. “Steel allows use to remove an additional layer,” he adds.
Arkhefield also used steel in a house at Stanthorpe, Queensland. A three hours drive from Brisbane, the house is located in a wine growing region. “The house started as a weekender, but it’s now used as a permanent home,” says Architect Andrew Gutteridge, Director of Arkhefield.
The form of the Stanthorpe house is akin to an extruded box, with the roof, along with the eastern and western facades, clad in Zincalume with a custom orb profile. These extremities also provide protection for car parking at both ends of the house. The entry to the house is also flanked in steel in the form of two large galvanized steel tanks, containing 5,000 litres of water. “We wanted to express the collection of water. It’s a precious resource that should be clearly visible,” says Gutteridge.
To maximise cross-ventilation, Arkhefield designed most of the rooms to be no more than eight metres in width. Simply conceived, the kitchen and living areas are located at the centre of the house, with the main bedroom at one end, and accommodation for friends and family at the other. “It’s quite a straightforward design. It strongly references the steel shearing sheds in the area,” says Gutteridge, who used steel for its low maintenance and slightly raw finish. “It’s an appropriate response in this landscape,” says Gutteridge, pointing out the large granite boulders strewn across the property.
Antanas Procuta Architects also turned to steel when designing a house on the outskirts of Cambridge, on the plains of New Zealand’s prime dairying countryside. The linear house turns its back to the prevailing cold south westerly wind. In contrast, the main living areas wrap around a light-filled deck. On the ‘chilly’ side of the house are two bedrooms, bathroom, laundry and a study. And on the northern side is the main bedroom at one end and at the other, the open-plan living areas.
The Cambridge house is constructed of corrugated steel and painted oxide red. The roof is also made from steel. “Steel is already a familiar vernacular material in the rural landscape,” says Architect Antanas Procuta, director of the practice. “We wanted to use materials that were unpretentious, as well as staying within budget,” he adds.
Contact Numbers
| Architect Reg Lark can be contacted on |
02 9527 2598 |
| Hopkinson Team Architects can be reached on |
64 3768 4141 |
| Arkhefield can be contacted on |
07 383 18150 |
| Antanas Procuta Architects can be contacted on |
64 7839 6521 |
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