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whananaki residence

A long, low house on timber piles above an estuary shore. Two pavilions, living on one side and three bedrooms on the other, are joined by an open breezeway, so the wind and the water pass straight through the middle.

A deep verandah runs along the water side behind timber shutters that slide on a single track. Open them and the house becomes a verandah. Close them and it is a tight, dark box that can be left alone all winter.

year
2025
location
Whananaki, Northland
type
Holiday house, 130 m²
status
Illustrative placeholder
Render of the house from the road: a dark charred-timber end wall, a pale shuttered verandah and a long low roof above the estuary

The idea

Two pavilions with open air between them: living on the left, bedrooms on the right.

  1. Living pavilion
  2. Breezeway and path
  3. Bedroom pavilion
  4. Estuary edge
  5. Road
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TANKKITCHENLIVINGLOUNGEBATHBUNKSBED 2BED 1HALLVERANDAHBREEZEWAYDINING9600180010200216006000N4 mGROUND FLOOR PLAN
Ground floor planLiving on the left, bedrooms on the right, with the breezeway between and the verandah along the water side.

Section

Cut from the road to the estuary. The dashed lines are the noon sun: 31° in winter, 78° in summer.

  1. Mono-pitch roof
  2. Stove flue
  3. Dining table
  4. Verandah deck
  5. Sliding shutter
  6. Timber piles
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Render from the shore showing the verandah shutters in different positions above the piles

Threshold

Sliding glass over a polished slab, flush with the deck. A 30 mm gap lets water run away.

  1. Slab 150
  2. Aluminium sill
  3. Sliding glazing
  4. Stainless drip
  5. Deck board 140×32
  6. 30 mm gap
  7. Joist 45×140
  8. Under-slab insulation
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NORTH-EAST ELEVATION – WATER SIDE+0.00+3.83SOUTH-WEST ELEVATION – ROAD SIDE5 m
ElevationsThe water side above, the road side below.

Eave

Shutters hang from a beam under the roof edge. Rain leaves the roof along a chain.

  1. Corrugated steel
  2. Ply sarking
  3. Rafter 45×200
  4. Track beam 2/90×190
  5. Roller carriage
  6. Hanger rod
  7. Shutter slat
  8. Rain chain
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Render looking along the living pavilion: a long table beside the glass, a stove at the centre and exposed rafters

Door

A jamb plan, B elevation, C head. The cladding carries on over the leaf, so the door vanishes when shut.

  1. Cladding board
  2. Cavity batten
  3. Building wrap
  4. Stud 45×140
  5. Timber jamb
  6. Leaf 45, boards on ply
  7. Pull handle
  8. Head flashing
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Aerial render of the house on its slope above the estuary, with the water tank and surrounding trees