Sustainable Barn Conversion
Amongst existing and working farm buildings, this small barn has been converted into a sustainable 2-bedroom dwelling.
What appears from the outside as a traditional barn conversion is, in fact, an unusual home on the inside.
With sustainability in mind, the project aimed to retain as much of the original materials as possible and the design team and contractor have skilfully married up the old and the new. Construction materials were, where possible, re-used or locally sourced. Interesting features, nooks and existing imperfections which formed part of the character of the barn were retained, whilst new products were selected for their green and environmental credentials.
The scheme uses local materials such as blue lias stone, hydraulic lime render and mortar, oak, blended with modern, innovative, green materials such as high grade, self finished Oriented Strand Board (OSB) tongue & groove selected for its green credentials and wherever possible, recycled materials. The kitchen worktops, for example, are made of recycled floor timbers, whilst the flooring throughout is a recycled oak gymnasium floor (rescued from an old school sport shall). Even the bathroom fittings were recycled from the owner’s previous home.
New conservation roof lights were fitted to flood the open plan sitting room and kitchen/diner with light. The barn is kept open plan (with the exception of one bedroom and the wet room). The staircase leading to the first floor is made of anodised scaffolding poles. The original roof trusses are exposed, whilst one gable end wall remains exposed blue lias. Some of the walls and ceiling are clad with (Smart Ply) OSB, specifically selected because it is FSC certified, manufactured from sustainable fast-growing renewable timbers, energy-efficient and carbon negative. The OSB was treated with water-based flame retardant before being decorated by a young team of artists.
During the build, waste was kept to a minimum with the reuse of this dilapidated building, recycled roof tiles, timbers, and stones on site, renewable timber and OSB, using low grade wood chips for high quality wall linings. The clean up of the site was also taken into consideration by ensuring recycled/recyclable materials were used and the site was cleared of rubble and debris, building stones recovered and waste was used in the infill of the disused slurry pit.
Outside the barn remains extremely simple. No coloured paints are used and the overall appearance of the dwelling is modest and muted. However on the inside it is a very different story. Once the internal fit out was completed, a small team of young artists were allowed to carry out their painting.
The open countryside location means that external air quality is high and great care was taken to specify finishes that would not “off gas”, such as the water based fire protection coatings and paint required for the OSB wall and ceiling linings. The artists used water based spray paints, recycled wall paper samples and wool threads to cover the interior of the cottage.
The flat areas of paintwork used water-based eco friendly paints, compliant with the latest EU environmental legislation regarding the VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) content of paints. They were low in odour and classified as either low or minimal VOC.
The barn was finished in September 2011.
