Selfbuilder_and_Homemaker_-_September_-_October_2019

SECRETS OF SUCCESS

W

hen the Jaffrey family set about
building their own home near
the village of Insch,
Aberdeenshire, there were a few items
on their wish list. They wanted a home
that would look modern and beautiful,
take advantage of the views out over the
surrounding countryside, would be
future-proof by being flexible enough to
meet their needs as a family for years to
come, would be as eco-friendly and
energy efficient as possible, and which
could be built quickly.

They appointed local architecture firm

Annie Kenyon Architects, who regularly

design homes in the area, and builders

Cairnrowan Custom Homes, who

suggested using a timber kit as the basis

for their build. “When our builder

explained how well insulated timber

frame is, we decided that was definitely

the route we wanted to go down,”

explains owner Iain.

Before work could begin onsite,

considerable clearance work had to be

undertaken. The house has been built on

sloping ground on the site of an old

quarry, and could only be accessed from

one side. The house’s height – six metres

• also meant major scaffolding was
  required. Luckily, these factors didn’t
  impact hugely on the build’s timescale.
  The Jaffreys’ desire for a high-quality,
  energy-efficient, green home that could
  be built quickly meant timber frame was
  the right choice. They settled on using a
  Val-U-Therm Plus closed panel system
  from Scotframe for the roof and walls,
  choosing 140 mm wall panels as they
  offered the best solution for thermal
  performance and cost effectiveness
  without having any detrimental effect on
  the size of the overall footprint.
  The house was built efficiently and very
  quickly – it was wind and watertight
  within just six days and complete in just
  14 weeks. “We were blown away by how
  quickly we were able to get into our new
  home,” Iain says. The pre-manufactured
  roof and wall cassettes helped with the
  speed of build, thus allowing quicker
  access for follow-on trades. An open
  panel timber frame house being built by
  the same labour force would have taken
  around 20 weeks, and a brick and block
  house significantly longer. In addition,
  the costs of fitting the insulation onsite
  would have been thousands of pounds
  extra.

The Jaffreys wanted a home that would look

good, be energy efficient, was future-proofed

and importantly, could be built quickly, and a

timber kit was the answer

Fast and

fabulous

22www.sbhonline.co.uk september/october 2019