South Mission House

3 bed, 2 bath, low $400's, Mission Beach (2003-4)

This robust, low maintenance tropical home on a sloping site takes full advantage of magnificent views to Dunk Island.

Brief & Context

The clients approached Studio Mango to design their ‘last house’. While not quite retired, they planned to move to South Mission Beach from Tully. They wanted a low maintenance home, that naturally ventilated, and took advantage of the views to Dunk Island from their elevated site.

Design Approach

As the house was on the lower side of the road, achieving the views required building up the site for an elevated flat pad. This enabled a cost effective concrete slab and masonry ground floor. The masonry reached up higher around the core to provide a stiff bracing spine; with the rest of the upper floors timber framed. A retaining wall supports a second pad at road level for access and a bridge connect the two.

The form consists of two very simple rectangles with skillion roofs, skewed away from each other. Between these is a wedge containing the entry, stairwell and bridge. Off the living room are two extra wedges shaped decks. One on the view side, and one on the sheltered side to escape Mission’s sometimes overwhelming wind.

The house recently survived cyclone Larry with some minor leaks.

Materials

Floor: Polished concrete slab to ground floors, engineered timber floor frame with tongue and groove flooring inside, hardwood joists and decking outside

Walls: cement rendered masonry and timber framed walls

Frames: hot dip galvanised roof beams and columns, hardwood purlins

Cladding: 6mm battened cement sheet and colorbond corrugated steel

Linings: Flush finished plasterboard, FC to wet areas,

Roofing: Colorbond corrugated roofing, 150 diameter half round gutters

Windows: aluminium framed windows and aluminium bladed louvres. 3 part aluminium sliding doors.

Sustainability

The house faces east to the views and has wide eaves and various layered shading to protect from the sun. Other windows are aluminium louvres to control heat. This eastern orientation however picks up all the breeze and works with the high level skillion to allows hot air to vent out to the west in a natural chimney effect. Because this is so effective there is no air conditioning in living areas. Walls and roofs and floors are well insulated and windows are well shaded.

Design Team & Builder

Mango team: James Maude, Liam Froggatt
Structural Engineer: CMG
Builder: Mission Beach Constructions