Work in Progress / Concept designs.

Work in Progress / Concept Designs

Designs at concept stage

Community

Windmill Hill City Farm, Bristol - office pod

Low energy office pod for Windmill Hill City Farm.  Timber frame, larch cladding, triple glazed windows.

HousingRefurb

Extension #2, Forest Row

Simple kitchen / dining extension with terraced decking and panoramic folding doors.  Zinc roof and larch cladding on a well insultated timber frame.

Community

Coexist Community Kitchen, - 2020

Refurbishment of Victorian industrial unit into thriving community kitchen at Mivart Studios, Bristol.  The brief involved integrating existing units from the kitchens old location into the new design, creating a new street entrance, and a dining space for events.  We tried to maintain the character of the beautiful Victorian structure, leaving the steel columns exposed, exposing some brickwork, and sanding the existing parquet floor. www.coexist.org

CommunityHousingPassive House

Passive Co-op Homes, Bristol - 2019

Passive Co-op Homes, Bristol (completed 2019)

3 flats around a common entrance with shared facilities, these homes are constructed to Passive House specification standards (although un-accredited).  The homes are built from pre-fabricated timber panels, with wood fibre insulation externally, high levels of airtightness and triple glazed windows.  They feature a large 10KW PV array integrated into the south roof, a solar assisted heat pump (SAHP) providing hot water, and an MVHR system for ventilation.  The buildings are clad in scorched larch, standard larch and lime render, and feature an intensive brown roof on the north.  The PV array should provide more renewable power than the residents use over the course of the year, which could make them zero carbon in operation – monitoring is in place to verify this ambition.

HousingRefurb

Eco Extension #1, Forest Row

Eco Extension #1 – Forest Row (completed 2018)

Kitchen / Dining extension to a family home, with super-insulated timber frame construction, triple glazing, scorched larch cladding (shou-sugi-ban, traditional Japanese technique), and an intensive wildflower planted roof.

Housing

Zero Carbon Terrace - Hastings

Zero Carbon Terrace, Hastings, 2016 (whilst working @ZEDfactory)

5 Family homes opposite Hastings castle, with panoramic views across the coast.  Taus was project architect from conception to completion whilst working at ZEDfactory.  The buildings are super-insulated and airtight, timber framed structure with integrated PV rooves and Air Source Heat Pumps (ASHP) for hot water.  The efficient construction and low carbon technologies lead to minimal space heating requirements and very low energy bills.

CommunityRefurb

Brixton Remakery, London

Brixton Remakery, 2011, London (@ Architecture for Humanity UK)

Taus was awarded a 6 month part time ‘Vodaphone world of difference’ placement working with Architecture for Humanity – transforming a derelict underground car park in Brixton into a thriving community hub focused reuse, repair and creative upcycling.  The project was led by local residents from the outset, and the task of delivering a working community space from a car park was  technically as well as spatially very challenging.

HousingRefurb

Retrofit for the Future, London

Retrofit for the Future, 2011 @ZEDfactory

Part of a government funded retrofit trial, looking at solutions to acheive 80% CO2 reductions on existing homes.  We took a semi detached Housing Association property in West London and carried out an innovative whole house refurb.  With a less than ideal orientation for Solar, we devised a ‘solar shed’ structure in the garden, which provided some electricity, but also hot water via flat plate solar thermal panels.  The building was externally insulated, had replacement windows fitted, and underfloor insulation installed.  An MVHR system was also installed for efficient ventilation, and airtightness measures were undertaken throughout the property.  The refurb was carried out without the residents moving out during construction.

Housing

Low Energy Houseboats, 2009 - London

Low Energy Houseboats, London, 2009 (whilst working @ ZEDfactory)

Affordable floating homes on the river Thames, incorporating PV panels, solar thermal and biomass heating.  The 2 houseboats are well insulated and double glazed, and divided into 3 flats each, with communal areas between the flats and on the rooftop.  This concept could be rolled out to provide good quality and affordable low energy homes in areas which cannot otherwise be built on – such as rivers, lakes, marinas and floodplains.

Housing

Yew Tree House

Brighton, 2010 (whilst working @ ZEDfactory)

Half buried into the ground on a tight backland plot in Brighton, Yew Tree House is a hybrid construction of low cement concrete (GGBS) and earth bricks below ground level, and structural laminated timbers (Glulams).above.  The house is super-insulated with high levels of thermal mass, incorporating an MVHR ventilation unit, rainwater harvesting, solar thermal, photovoltaics, sweet chestnut cladding, a sedum roof and low energy appliances throughout.  The project received the National Energy Efficiency Award from the Federation of Master Builders in 2011.

CommunityOff-grid

Othona Community Building - Essex

Othona Solar Building, Essex, 2011 (whilst working @ ZEDfactory)

Off-grid accommodation for visitors, with unusual construction elevated on stilts for flood plain defence.  Walls constructed with non-load bearing rammed earth and straw bale, with an intensive green roof, reclaimed stone floors, biomass heating and MVHR ventilation.

CommunityOff-grid

Earthship Brighton

Earthship Brighton, 2000-2006 (whilst working @ Low Carbon Trust)

Having worked on Earthship construction in New Mexico in 2000, Taus became involved in the inception and completion of Earthship Brighton between 2000 and 2006, and remains a director of the Low Carbon Trust, who built the project.  Earthships are off-grid and autonomous self build dwellings which use large amounts of waste materials in their construction.  Earth bermed retaining walls are built from rammed earth car tyres, and the passive design principles ensure that minimal space heating is required throughout the year.  Rainwater is harvested from the roof, and grey water is recycled after washing, and filtered through south facing planters before being returned to WCs for flushing.  Earthship Brighton was the first Earthship built in England and received numerous awards for sustainability and innovation.