SOUTHERN SUPREME
This winner was designed for beauty, strength & sufficiency
More than 200 tonnes of stone quarried from the Jacks Point site was used in the home’s cladding, access road and retaining walls. A massive rock, weighing nearly 20 tonnes, greets visitors at the entry, while a 15-tonne stone is used to hem in the outdoor area to the north.
DCD Ltd owner Dennis Dowling says building the home was a “huge amount of fun” because it tested his team’s ability to deliver to the highest standard they were capable of.
Te Toka (The Rock) was named Supreme House of the Year and the Best New Home Over $2 Million at the Master Builders’ House of the Year southern regional awards. It was also recognised for its craftsmanship, sustainability, bathrooms and interior design.
Designed by Rafe Maclean Architects, the home sits on 4.8ha of land above Lake Wakatipu and is used as a parttime residence by its international owners.
Those owners wanted a home that was “anchored, strong, earthquakeresilient and able to be completely off grid”, Dennis explains.
“It was just as much about building something that was going to last as creating something beautiful.”
Spread over 820sqm, the property includes a “great room”, four en suite bedrooms, a gym and an indooroutdoor room with an open fire.
Steel-framed, timber sun shades roll across the outside of the west-facing windows, and a wide cantilevered opening allows the owners to open up the entire southwest corner of the home.
Serving as a family hub, the “great room” has space for dining, socialising at the pool table and lounging in front of the television. Coffered and recessed ceilings made of engineered European oak create zones within this large space and hide access to air conditioning units located above the ceiling.
An expanse of glass, 3m tall and nearly 10m long, offers stunning views of Lake Wakatipu and Cecil Peak.
The property was modelled in the same way as a passive house, with 60cm external walls providing significant thermal performance and earthquake resilience. Triple-glazing and spruce window frames were used throughout, and the internal insulation is wool.
A timber roof reduced the use of concrete and steel while also eliminating thermal bridging.
A 25kW solar array feeds a 20kWh battery bank and in an average year, the property generates nearly the same amount of energy that it consumes, Dennis says. With its own generator, water supply and stormwater treatment, it can also be completely self-sufficient.