Tapu, Coromandel, New Zealand

Architectural Team - Darryl Sang, Janice Au

Design Concept - Charles Webster

High Performance House

Watch Grand Designs New Zealand episode here

Tapu House is sited on a prominent Coromandel headland, taking full advantage of the spectacular coastal views.  This High Performance home has been formed with geometrical precision to produce a unique curving design, inspired by the shape of windswept sand dunes.

Access to the site is by crossing a river ford and continuing up a steep winding drive.  Then the drive divides into two with the main house and front entry to the right and the cavernous basement workshop down to the left.

The front door leads you into the breath taking kitchen and dining area and the adjoining lounge that opens out to the extensive views.

The elliptical crescent shaped footprint of the house results in an internal room layout with minimal walls, nestled below a sculptural, sweeping ceiling, poetically spanning the ring beam and guiding your journey through the house.  Up-cycled demolition, native timber slats create an incredible volume and tie all the interior spaces together while expressing the exterior form.  

Curved timber ring beams, buttresses and scissor trusses were handcrafted in the workshop below.  Each section of the ring beam has its own curvature and is dovetailed together to form one long sinuous beam with impressively beautiful transitions.  A ring beam marks the point where the roof becomes the walls and the walls the roof.

This unique form also gives rise to several external courtyards that can be used for outdoor living sheltered from the ever-changing weather conditions of the headland and the Thames Estuary.

Design and construction team members worked together to produce a High Performance building while robust materials, building systems and products were chosen to withstand the rigours of the exposed headland site.

Architects - Sang Architects

Geometric Design - Globex Engineering

Basement Workshop Engineer - Hampton Jones Ltd

Main House Engineer - Enovate Ltd, Cirtex Ltd

Geotechnical Engineering & Ground Reinforcement - Cirtex Ltd

Geotechnical Consultant - Thames Civil Engineers

Main Contractors - Rudolf Turk, Shaun Bentley Builders, CSB Builders

Hydronic Underfloor Heating - Renewable Energy Consultancy Ltd

Balanced Heat Recovery Ventilation - Renovates Ltd

High Performance Window Joinery - Eco Windows

Heat Pump and Heat Storage - Stiebel Eltron

Electrical Trades - Adams Electricals

Plumbing - Pete the Plumber

Wastewater Treatment - Natural Flow