South Coast Bush House
Site Details
Location: Southern Tasmania
Context: Bush
BAL Rating: 29
Project Details
Completion Date: 2025
Floor Area: 146m2
Materials: Ironbark timber cladding externally. Blackbutt window frames made by Andrew Otto Woodworks, exposed concrete slab, Tasmanian hardwood plywood for walls and ceiling.
Joinery: Tasmanian hardwood, concrete and brass.
Consultants and Contractors
Joiner: Andrew Otto Woodworks
Builder: Hobart Building Company
Windows: Andrew Otto Woodworks
Brass: Andrew Otto Woodworks
Engineer: Jarred Allan
Energy Assessor: Building eValuate
Photographer: Anjie Blair
The property sits on a gentle slope in Mellukerdee Country in the South East Nation of Lutruwita amidst dense tea tree and banksia scrub and towering Silver Gums, noteworthy on this site for growing from sediment. As the area experiences low rainfall and the property is not connected to a water supply, this vegetation carries the threat of bushfire as well as the joy of biodiversity. These basic conditions were the key design drivers for South Coast Bush House.
Great care was taken to establish a footprint that respected the endemic vegetation, and extensive collaboration with Tas Fire ensured we kept as much of it as possible within the bushfire protection envelope. A slender linear form was set, its long open side facing north-east also allowing maximal solar access.
Early calculations determined a roof area of 300m² was needed to meet the client's expected water use and bushfire requirements. This area significantly exceeded the brief for a house of approximately 150m². The oversized roof and gently sloping ground informed the design concept: an unlined roof covering two highly insulated modules: the larger module forms the everyday living space – the kitchen, living, dining, main bedroom, and bathroom – and the second module houses supplementary spaces – a workshop, art studio, and guest wing.
Material and experiential design decisions reinforce this primary diagram. The house is clad in bushfire-rated Ironbark cladding stained black to help it recede into the bush. Large format Blackbutt timber windows and external sliding doors made locally by Andrew Otto Woodworks help connect inside and outside, and locally sourced Tasmanian plywood marry the rooms with the bush.