Amphibious House Zinc Roofing and Cladding #PerfectRoof
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Presentation by Robert Pattison of Baca Architects at the 2015 #PerfectRoof seminar at The Building Centre in London 1st October 2015. More at: http://www.singleply.co.uk/live-blog-8-steps-to-the-perfectroof-ribaj-morning-seminar-2015/
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Amphibious House Zinc Roofing and Cladding #PerfectRoof
- 1. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com Robert Pattison, Baca Architects Architecture and Resilience, AJ 2015 Awards RIBA presidents research (UK) awarded – Winner 2014 MIPIM Masterplanning – Winner 2014 Technology Strategy Board – Design for future Climate 2012 World Architecture Best Young Practices – Top 21, 2012 Green Dot Award (US) – Bronze Winner 2010 Evening Standard New Homes – Highly Commended 2010 International Urban Landscape Award (DL) – Bronze Winner 2010 RIBA presidents research (UK) awarded – Winner 2009 RIBA Sustainable Living by Design - Winner 2006 Evening Standard New Homes – Commendation 2010 Docklands Barges – Winner 2009
- 2. Robert Pattison> Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com Publications
- 3. Is this the only solution? Long-termInitiativesfor Flood-riskEnvironments
- 4. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com The LifE Project
- 6. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com Formosa > The Thames Amphibious House
- 8. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com The Pre-Amphibious House
- 9. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com The Amphibious House Previous House Resting Position Flood Event Maximum height permitted
- 12. Robert Pattison> Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com Issues / obstacles • PLANNING - Conservation area, character and height - PPS 25 (at the time) - Maintenance • ENVIRONMENT AGENCY - Proven technology? - Detailed calculations - Flood defence consent • CONSTRUCTION, BUILDING REGS & WARRANTIES - Waterproofing & Guarantees - Access
- 13. Robert Pattison> Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com Components of Amphibious Construction 1.Wetdock and debris control 2.Can-float base and dwelling 3.Guide posts and running gear 4.Flexible utility connections 11 44 22 33
- 14. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com How it works
- 15. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com Cross section through the base
- 16. Robert Pattison > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rpattison@baca.uk.com The Thames Amphibious House Robert Barker > Baca Architects > www.baca.uk.com > rbarker@baca.uk.com
Editor's Notes
- These research projects have led to several important publications, culminating with our own imminent book, titled Aquatecture.
- As the predicted flood levels increases through rising sea levels and increased river flows, traditional defences need to rise too. This may not only become increasingly expensive, but if the predictions are wrong then flood defences may be overtopped. Alternatively, management of flood-risk to reduce the effects of flooding rather than just reducing the exposure and vulnerability to flooding may be more sustainable.
- In 2009 we developed the Long-term Initiatives for flood-risk environments (LifE) approach to explore how building could help to reduce flood-risk and at the same time mitigate climate change. It was funded by Defra and involved an expert team including the Building Research Establishment. Fundamental to the approach was a shift away from traditional flood-prevention towards a more non-defensive approach to flood-risk management.
- Formosa, The Thames Amphibious House is the 1st amphibious house to be built in the UK.
- It is located on an island in the middle catchment of the River Thames in Marlow. It is downstream of a weir and the flood flows alongside the main flow of the river. The island is only accessible by foot across a lock, or by shallow bottomed boats.
- The site is entirely located in Flood Zone 3b and the Annual Estimated Probability of flooding is approximately 1 in 5, ie a 20% chance of flooding in any given year. The 1 in 100 year flood level was approximately 1.8m above ground level, rising to approximately 2.1m above ground level with climate change.
- The neighbouring properties are generally one storey houses, some with rooms in the roof and most are raised on stilts. The existing (now previous) property on the site was also one storey, but like other houses it was only raised some 600mm off the ground. The elegance of the amphibious solution is that so long as the integrity of the can-float base is maintained it is a failsafe solution, in which the building will always rise buoyed by the water.
- The diagram on the left shows that the previous house had it still existed in 2014 would have been flooded to a depth of about 0.8m. Local planning rules prohibited the building to be any taller than neighbouring properties, nor any larger in footprint. This would have meant that after raising the building above the current projected flood level it could only have been one storey. However, the client was keen to increase the size of the house, therefore an alternative flood protection strategy was required – Amphibious Construction. This enabled a three storey 225 sqm house to be built on the site of a former 85 sqm house.
- The local Environment Agency was not familiar with floating construction let alone amphibious. We therefore presented various options and examples of other amphibious buildings around the world to demonstrate that this was a proven technology.
- There are limited examples of floating and amphibious construction and those that exist are relatively recent with limited experience in real test scenarios, particularly those similar to conditions on the Thames.
- There were a number of issues or obstacles to overcome in construction the 1st amphibious house in the UK. The building needed to respect the local planning regulations. The height was limited, the building style and materials should complement the local vernacular and the building must meet the Environment Agency guidelines. The Environment Agency required detailed calculations to demonstrate how the structure designed for this particular location would work and the Local Authority required details to show how it would be maintained over the properties lifetime. Due to proximity of the watercourse, the nature of the construction and the risk of contamination there were a number of other consents required and licenses for various parts of the work. The most difficult challenge was the construction and warranties. Because there was no vehicular access and the pedestrian access is only about 1m wide, a dedicated chain ferry needed to be used to ferry materials and goods from the opposite side of the river onto the island. This also required an area of field to be hired from the farmer to use for the access. The chain ferry restricted the weight of materials that could be brought onto the island and due to pollution controls restricted the type of vehicles that could be brought across. This meant that prefabricating the hull (which was the preferred method) was not possible, nor was it possible to use pre-mixed pumped waterproof concrete. This meant that the most important part of the build, the base had to be mixed by hand. Finally this type of building has not been built before in the UK and therefore there was no precedent for providing a warranty. A building warranty is a 10 year one-off insurance used to provide cover for new buildings against items such as structural damage or drainage failures rather than annual insurance.
- There are four key components to the amphibious house Wetdock and debris control Can-float base and dwelling Guide posts and running gear Flexible utility connections
- The can-float base and dwelling sit within the wetdock. This is an excavated area, which retains the surrounding land with sheet piling and a permeable concrete base, which controls the rate of water inundation. The wet dock is hydraulically linked with the river and the water within the dock rises at the same rate as the river level. This results in the housing rising gradually as the water table rises, rather than being subject to potential rapid inundation when the river overtops. This is one of the key inventions that most likely differentiates it from other amphibious technology.
- 49 The cross section through the base illustrates the most critical component of the calculation of the house. The weight of the house during live and unlive loading is used to calculate the variation in buoyancy level. This in turn is used to determine the depth of excavation and overlap in the structures that prevents debris ingress.
- This video illustrates some of the principles and the initial float test in the summer of 2014.
- During construction the site flooded. The photograph shows the extent and depth of flooding in January 2014. This shows the adjacent properties flooded upto the floor boards. The flood water continued to rise another 0.5m in the following few weeks.
- The house has been designed to allow both visual inspection of the key parts and physical testing. During construction the house was tested twice. The first time after the can float base had been completed to test the integrity of the hull, watertightness, balancing and the running gear. The second time was once the upper frame and fit out was completed to rebalance the system. Jan 2051
- The amphibious construction enabled a large south facing double height façade to be created, maximizing the views over the river. The slightly raised ground floor level allows views over the garden but maintains the connection with the land and the water.
- A profiled landscape was used to raise the ground up to meet the living floor level and reduce the ground level to create a high level clerestory window into the basement level dining space.
- The lightweight timber frame shell is clad in a zinc shingle tile. This is a modern interpretation of the neighbouring tiled buildings and zinc has an elegant maritime comparison, being the sacrificial material used to protect steel from rusting. The guideposts are rebated into the façade as part of the control mechanism to prevent the house from crabbing or twisting and to ensure that it rises and falls in the same location.
- Aquatecture outlines new ways of ‘designing for water,’ using examples from around the world to illustrate methods of utilizing water innovatively, efficiently and safely. This is a comprehensive review of the role of water in architecture, examining how we can integrated water into planning, architecture, landscape and engineering.