Coastal Calm: A Refined eHaus Build Framed in Pacific White

They were also very interested in the principles of sustainability in house design. To accommodate this, they chose to build a home with eHaus Manawatū.

Anna Wilson, owner of eHaus Manawatū, says that her company aims to design and build Manawatū and Horowhenua's most sustainable homes. “Sustainability is at the core of everything we do; it's not just an add-on,” she says. “This ensures our homes perform significantly better than those built to the minimum building code, and they consume less energy and reduce carbon output. We believe that our homes should have a big impact on the way we live, but little impact on the land. So we create healthy, comfy, high-performing homes that don't cost the earth.

While this home is not a tiny home, it has been designed with a small footprint – around 150 square metres – and it sets out to fully utilise every inch of space.

From the outside, the gable design creates a strong visual impact for a home, which otherwise is very clean and simple in appearance. 

Internally, the high-pitched roof enables the house to incorporate a mezzanine level, and it also features many clever and functional storage ideas, from its study nook to a staircase that can be pulled out when required or put away, then converted into a bench seat and storage unit. Its combination of white-washed plywood ceilings and polished concrete floors creates a minimalist backdrop ideal for modern living. Aesthetic cues were drawn from Scandinavian and Japanese architecture, such as the custom Shoji door, negative detailing, and a mezzanine floor – while practical elements, such as window placement and built-in seating, were factored into the design to maximise efficiency and comfort.

To create a sharp exterior look, Palmerston North Roofing Services has applied the same product for both the cladding and the roofing – ColorCote MagnaFlow in the colour Pacific White.

Initially, the owners were considering a black roof colour. Through the design process, however, eHaus provided information that showed a white roof is better for the environment, acting like a polar ice cap and reflecting rather than absorbing the sun’s rays, so the decision was made to go with the Pacific White colour.

“This colour was chosen to minimise heat stress on the building (LVR) by reflecting rather than absorbing the sun's heat, which supports the performance of the home, keeping it cooler in the summer. Pacific White was also chosen to complement the vertical cedar features and was aligned with the clients' Japanese/Scandinavian design cues,” says Anna.

Additionally, the client wanted the main cladding to be an easy-wash product that wouldn’t require labour-intensive maintenance such as re-staining, and MagnaFlow fits this brief.

In addition to the product's low maintenance and durability, the owners wanted a roof and cladding that did not have the appearance of standard corrugate.