A-frame extension in Hampton

Our project for an A-frame rear extension in Hampton has been completed and is now live. You can have a look at the latest photos by clicking here.

This project dates back from 2016 when our client, a young family of four with two children, got in touch with Square One Architects to design a single storey rear extension for their house, a 1930s semi-detached 2-bedroom property in Hampton.

The existing house was typical and featured a non-original conservatory that used to be too hot in the summer and too cold in winter. The rest of the ground floor was not very spacious and quite dark.

The client’s brief included the demolition of the existing conservatory and creation of a new extension with an open plan solution. The new open plan would include a generous kitchen, dining area and living space.

The client expressed an interest for a very specific type of structure that featured an “A-frame” , including a gable window and a set of bi-fold doors. This is not an unusual configuration; however, it presents its own challenges when built as an extension to an existing period building. The biggest challenge for this project was in fact the integration of the structural solution (designed by our structural engineer) and the existing structure.

The other challenge was planning. In first instance the council deemed the proposed full-width extension to be too large so we had to go through a negotiation process that led to the final solution which includes the rear extension and flat roofed side extension.

Square One architects managed to overcome these difficulties and delivered the project that our client wanted. The result is an incredibly spacious extension that benefits from a generous amount of daylight. As usual daylight was predicted using daylight simulation methods that come from our Director’s background in lighting design.

Project schedule #5 House Extension in Byfleet and New Haw

Project schedule

Year: 2018-2019

Location: Byfleet and New Haw, Runnymede Borough Council

RIBA Design Stages: 0-5

Architect:

Square One Architects

Structural Engineer:

Glencross & Hudson

Building Control:

Assent Building Control

This project was for an extension to a large detached house in Byfleet and New Haw for a family of three with a small child.

When the client got in touch with us in first instance, we visited the site and found that the house needed a renovation. The client was also not satisfied with the ground floor arrangement that was very partitioned and formed rooms that where both small and dark.

At first floor level the layout was more acceptable, however the house lacked the presence of a real master bedroom with a dressing area and an en-suite bathroom, which is something that you would expect from a property of this size.

Our brief was to extend a house with a rear extension and form a new open plan layout including a kitchen, dining area and sitting area. The client also requested a first-floor side extension on top of an existing garage that would provide space for an en-suite bathroom and dressing area linked to an existing bedroom.

We considered two options for the existing garage. The first one was to retain it and build on top of it and the the second one was to demolish and rebuild. As it often happens in these cases the option to replace the existing garage ended up being more cost-effective. It is not unusual to find period structure that are not able to carry any extra load from a structural point of view, especially at foundation level. In these instances, we always suggest our clients to hire a builder for a couple of hours, perform several trial pits and then submit the results to a structural engineer that will decide whether the existing structure is suitable or not. All the details will then need to be confirmed with Building Control.

The ground floor rear extension also features a set of large bi-fold doors that opens towards the rear garden and a window in correspondence of the kitchen sink. A set of two large flat roof lantern skylights also help bringing daylight in the new open plan area.

The first-floor side extension also features rear and front windows and a large skylight that guarantees uniform levels of daylight throughout the whole floor plan.

The clients’ feedback was very positive, and we appreciated hearing that they used their new spaces in a more practical way with their toddler always in sight. That's a big advantage of open plan layouts!

Before and after images

Rear elevation

Kitchen and dining area

Front elevation

A-Frame house in Hampton completed

Our project for an A-Frame house in Hampton is finally completed. It was a challenging project due to the relationship between the new steel structure and the existing house, but we and the clients are very happy with the final result.

Our project for an A-frame extension to a 1930’s semi-detached house in Hampton was completed in late 2019.

During our last site visit we were very impressed by the dramatic internal volume created by the vaulted pitched roof extension and the impressive daylight intake from the gable windows, bifold doors and skylights located in both the pitched portion of the roof and the flat one.

This project presented its challenges on many levels, the first one related to planning and the second one was purely structural.

We discussed about the challenges that we encountered during the planning phase here.

From a structural perspective the project involved interconnecting the original 1930’s masonry structure of the house to the steel structure of the pitched roof extension, while at the same time opening the original rear wall of the property and the non-original rear wall of an existing flat roofed extension.

From our perspective the design of the steel beams that we received from the structural engineer had to be fully integrated within our drawings that had to consider other technical details such as insulation waterproofing etc...

In order to understand precisely how the structure would relate to any other architectural element, we used 3D models and analysed the various interconnections and this helped tremendously in informing our technical details and communicating our design intent to both the client and the contractor.

The result was well worth the effort and we are delighted to have received a very enthusiastic review from the client that can be seen on the project page by clicking here. We would like to thank all the parties involved in the project, but especially the client and the contractor for their effort into achieving this impressive internal space!

Render vs completed photo of our latest house extension in Byfleet & New Haw

It's always interesting to look back at the design and evaluate how the final product compares to the initial intent. In this image a photo realistic render (above) is compared to a final image of a kitchen space.

It is always essential to keep track of the relationship between designed spaces and final build project in order to verify the validity of our vision and take note of what has been improved during construction or what could have been built differently.

In the case of this project for or a rear and side extension to detached house in Byfleet and New Haw we were pleased to see that our 3D model rendering (first image above) looks very similar to what the contractor delivered on site.

First and foremost, the size of the openings and the subsequent amount of daylight received by the internal spaces was correctly predicted by the virtual analysis carried out through the rendering engine. Second, the materials that the client had chosen where confirmed to be a good match for the type of space that we had designed.

This project proves once again that 3D modelling and rendering tools can provide an invaluable help to both the Architect and the client.

By using these tools, the Architect can convey an idea in a very straightforward manner and the client can understand it right away, taking the necessary decisions when requested by the Architect.

We feel that the best stage to provide this type of drawings to a client is detail design where decisions about materials and certain technical details need to be finalised. Although there is a benefit in producing preliminary 3D models at earlier stages of the design, we see little point in generating super realistic images without any decision being made by the client regarding large items such as finishes, kitchen etc…

A-Frame Extension Nearing Completion in Hampton

Our project in Hampton is making great progress on site. This morning we visited to check in on the contractor’s progress and we were very pleased to see the crisp apex window detail installed!

Our project for in A-frame extension to an existing semi-detached house in Hampton is now well under construction.

The bi-fold doors and gable windows, two of the main features of this extension project, have been delivered on site and installed and they look great.

The picture above was taken in a very special moment of the construction process. At this stage it is usually obvious whether what has been designed reflects what has been built and we were very pleased to confirm that the Architects and Clients' vision was successfully delivered.

The configuration of a pitched roof and a vaulted ceiling, along with bi-fold door and gable windows, is optimal to maximize the views whilst retaining the traditional flavor of a sloped roof that relates visually to the existing character of the property.

The large width of this extension (that technically is part rear, part side extension) allows to open the views over the rear garden.

The large bi-fold doors can be fully opened guaranteeing a high degree of ventilation when necessary.

We are very pleased with the results so far and look forward to seeing the project finished.