Patrick Dangerfield is a household name within Australia’s sporting and fishing communities. Currently playing for the Geelong Cats, Patrick has had an award winning career, including the Brownlow Medal. With an impressive AFL career under his belt, he was looking for a place to call home and spend quality time with his family.

Patrick and wife Mardi purchased a 1980’s house in beautiful Moggs Creek, regional Victoria in 2016. They decided to live in the house first to understand the nuances of the block and how it interacted and functioned within the environment. Collaborating with architects and Salthouse Windows, they started from scratch, to design and build their dream home.

The block posed several design challenges, including howling Southerlies direct from Bass Straight and harsh climate conditions. Thermally broken window and door systems were essential to the build to ensure structural integrity, comfort and the ability to meet energy rating requirements. ThermalHEARTTM was the perfect choice. ‘We chose ThermalHEARTTM because it meant we could have more glass and less wall facing the ocean’, says Patrick. ‘It’s brilliant because we’ll experience summer here where it’s 40-plus degrees, and winter where it’s 5 degrees.’

‘The dining area opens out onto the south-facing deck. It has constant wind blowing sand against the door, which can build up in the track, making the door difficult to open, so it was important to find a product that could be top hung to solve this problem’, says Patrick. The Series 852 Thermally Broken Sliding Door System was chosen specifically for these doors, incorporating top hung technology.

Large expanses of glass were crucial to framing the spectacular views overlooking the ocean from the home’s two wings. ‘We thought it would have to be three panes of glass … but with the right advice and product we were able to have one single pane on each of the wings. It’s literally the largest single pane that we could get’, says Patrick.

The Series 660 FrontGLAZETM double glazed frame was chosen for the home’s two wings due to its ability to go up to 44 mm in thickness. The windows allow for unobstructed views of the surf coast. ‘Why build a house here unless you can see all of the outside and what it has to offer?’ added Patrick.

Other products used throughout the home include the Series 824 Thermally Broken FrontGLAZETM system and Series 731 Thermally Broken Sliding Door. Together, these products allowed Patrick to create a light-filled, comfortable, stylish family home with optimal views without sacrificing the home’s energy rating.

Photographer: Nikole Ramsay