Up-Cycle House
By Alexander Symes Architect
Up-Cycle House is a site for experimentation and pushing the limits of what is possible with recycled materials. The existing home was at the end of its life cycle, no longer meeting the functional, thermal, or comfort needs of the residents. Instead of demolishing and rebuilding the house, it has been up-cycled to create a sustainable, functional, and comfortable home. The closed-loop zero-waste ethos meant that as much as possible of the original fabric of the house was retained and with new work constructed from recycled and salvaged materials.
The 104 sqm house features three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a generous open-plan living/dining/kitchen area. The entry to the house is via a ‘solar pergola’ that provides shelter and generates 1kw of energy from its photovoltaic cells. Internally, the house uses salvaged tiles, recycled windows, and reclaimed timber to create a unified aesthetic that is playful and practical at the same time. Externally the large garden has been crafted into a sequence of usable spaces with the use of recycled railway sleepers and recycled bricks.
Project Team
Alexander Symes
Builder
Alexander Symes
Consultants
Ascent Engineering
Photography
Barton Taylor
Professionals used in
Up-Cycle House
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Alexander Symes Architect
About the
Professional
Alexander Symes Architect was founded in 2014 with a mission to advance sustainable architecture. The world’s climate is changing and we believe that architecture must lead the way in changing how we utilise resources to contribute to a sustainable future.
This vision for sustainable architecture is layered through all aspects of our practice and through all the stages of a project. This starts with the examination of a project brief to ensure the grounding principles of a project support a sustainable way of life. As the project takes shape, Alex deploys his depth of technical expertise to realise the project to its full potential.
Alex’s technical expertise in building physics and facade system design is built on the experience he gained working in Arup’s Building Physics and Facade Engineer teams from 2010-2014. He has hands-on experience with construction and design for manufacturing assembly (DFMA) and a passion for how buildings are put together.
Alex has specialist training in the design and delivery of passive houses which we believe offer a pathway towards exceptionally comfortable and healthy homes. Alex loves collaborating with like-minded individuals and testing the boundaries of how we can challenge the status quo to advance sustainable architecture.
- Year founded2014
- ArchiPro Member since2023
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