Elevate aluminium systems create a seamless transition in contemporary home

Elevate aluminium systems were used for the doors and windows at a contemporary home situated in the foothills of Mt Wellington, Tasmania on a steep and spectacular 3.8 hectare ex-quarry property.

According to Building Designer, Mike Cleaver, the clients required a contemporary home with light-filled spaces that integrated sustainable design principles with the ability to be carbon neutral into the future.

Being a former quarry site, the property afforded a number of challenges and opportunities. The design concept was to bunker the home deep into the quarry site, allowing it to seemingly emerge from the hillside and connect with the natural environment.

The rear roof is deliberately pitched just above ground level with dual roof planes reaching up to the northern sun and mountain views. Large eaves control northern solar access during winter and summer. Being earth-bermed, the southern rear walls of the home provide additional thermal efficiency to the battened insulated wall while the strategically positioned dual-pitched roofs allow abundant northern solar gain. Ventilation is further enhanced through the double glazed Low E clerestory windows.

Explaining his choice of Elevate aluminium window and door systems, he said that the use of inclined steel columns and exposed lintels was combined with Elevate aluminium systems to span large openings, creating a seamless transition onto the northern external decks and the view beyond. He also pointed out the ease with which these large openings functioned.

This home has been recognised for excellence in design, winning numerous awards at the 2011 Building Designers Association of Tasmania’s 2011 Awards presentation.