Grain Barn
Barn conversion in North Somerset
Our client said….
The conversion is stunning. ….. the property is finished to an exceptionally high standard and emphasis is given to low maintenance and high energy…..the contemporary and imaginative new interior blends the traditional with the present.
- Knight Frank - selling agent
The grain barn project gave a new lease of life to an old agricultural building, creating a fine family house in the countryside to the south of Bristol.
The Story
The building which we converted was a former grain barn which had long since ceased its original purpose and was in a very poor state of repair. The timber roof and upper floor had deteriorated beyond repair, and the single storey part had been enclosed by corrugated metal.
However the orientation of the building defined by the stone walls allowed us to create new bright and airy spaces formed where the stone was missing. Removing the single storey corrugated metal addition allowed for the creation of a large green oak framed living room facing south and west, with the retained stone wall giving privacy from the approach laneway. The open end became the entrance to the house through a green oak framed gable.
The construction work coincided with the COVID-19 lockdown and its aftermath, so specification of systems and materials was dictated by what was readily available. Nonetheless an exemplary level of finish and workmanship was achieved.
Our design recreated the paired pitched roofs of the original using exposed green oak trusses to support the rafters. The use of oak extended throughout the house, in the staircase and in the internal joinery.
Internally the spine stone wall was exposed, but all external walls (and the new roofs) were insulated to modern standards. The house is heated by an air source heat pump located a discrete distance away.
Project Team:
Consulting structural & civil engineers: KB2 Consulting Civil Engineers