New Build - an energy efficient oak frame home

A breath of fresh Ayr

This case study is from SelfBuild & Design February 2022 | Buy this issue | Subscribe

Paul and Moira Bekarma have built a highly energy efficient oak-framed home in Scotland to be close to family, maximising the country views and using every inch of space.

Story: Louise Parkin Pictures: Richard Frew

In Brief

Being closer to family was the driving force that led Moira and Paul Bekarma to embark on a self build in Scotland. With a daughter living in Glasgow and a son living in Durham, the couple decided to uproot from their property of more than 30 years in the Cheshire countryside and build a new oak-framed home in an Ayrshire village.

“Finding a home with good views was our priority as we had stunning views of the Peak District from our previous home. We loved the idea of downsizing and relocating, and had been planning it since our retirement from the health service in 2015,” explains Moira, whose family were originally from Scotland. She and Paul spent two years house hunting in Ayr, and everything changed when they viewed an oak-framed home.

“The location wasn’t right, but that was the moment we fell in love with oak-framed homes,” says Paul, who is originally from Mauritius. “The timing couldn’t have been better, because it was then that three plots on the edge of an Ayrshire village came onto the market, and the landowner had made an agreement with Oakwrights to build oak-framed homes on them.”

Larch cladding, render and brickwork adorn the oak frame of the house, which has dormer windows in the slate roof.

Oakwrights is the only oak-frame company in the UK to have two Passivhaus homes to their name. Energy efficiency is increasingly at the heart of what they do and these eco credentials are evident in the Bekarmas’ home, which achieves energy efficiency levels far surpassing those required by the Building Regulations, both in Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Energy efficiency levels far surpass those required by Building Regulations

The couple went to view another Oakwrights' house nearby during the design stage for their own home, and were given the chance to stay in the company’s Herefordshire showhome, visiting the workshop to witness first hand how the frames and encapsulation systems are made and assembled.

The Bekarmas chose a plot which had outline permission for a home with four bedrooms, as well as views down the valley to the River Doon. A design was already in place, but a number of changes were made to these before a detailed planning application was made. The plot was classed as brownfield because of its historic use as a quarry, but its pastoral nature in the countryside shows few visible scars of its industrial past.

Moira and Paul were introduced to Iain Hendry, Oakwrights’ project manager in Scotland, who oversaw the design, planning and management of the build. He ran the project from start to finish, with Oakwrights’ Architectural Design team in Scotland adapting the existing design.

The Bekarmas made significant changes to the design – they loved the bucolic views through the glazed gable in the master bedroom, but chose to improve the flow of the ground floor by opening up the rooms. “Our old house was really large, and there were lots of rooms that we rarely used – the dining room was only used at Christmas generally. The living room and snug in our new home were separated on the floorplan, but we wanted to use all the space,” says Moira.

Floorplan - the central, double-height hallway and feature staircase has a large dining kitchen to one side and a living area with a snug to the other. A utility room and WC are accessed from the hallway. Upstairs are four vaulted bedrooms with master en suite and a family bathroom.

A proposed galleried landing was adapted to be boarded over, which not only reduced the passage of sound from the ground floor to the bedrooms upstairs, but also formed a quiet corner that is used as a reading room.

Vaulted ceilings here and in the four bedrooms have dormer windows to maximise the space as well as bounce light around the angled shapes.

The Bekarmas wanted a double-height hallway and staircase to create an impact.

“A feature staircase was of particular importance to Moira and Paul, and this was included in the plans from the outset,” says Iain Hendry, who has been leading oak- framing projects for the last eight years as Oakwrights’ project manager in Scotland. “The double-height landing creates a dramatic entrance to the house and the oak staircase makes a strong impact the minute you walk in.”

With the oak frame exposed on the interior, the external walls could be highly insulated, achieving energy efficiency levels of between 1.5 and 2.5 air changes per hour (Passivhaus demands 0.6 ACH).

Extensive views of rolling green tree-lined fields can be enjoyed through large expanses of glazing, while the render and larch weatherboarding, with panels of brick, add interest to the external appearance of the house that sits comfortably in the Scottish landscape. 

A detached double garage, carport and log shed were added to the plan, causing the project to go over budget but contributing space and visual appeal, with cladding to match the house.

Local services were brought down to the site along the line of the newly created lane. A trusted team regularly used by Oakwrights carried out the groundworks and foundations, before the frame and encapsulation systems were erected on site, a process which took around three weeks.

Internally the oak posts and beams are key focal points, framing the various living spaces without an overly heavy appearance. “We refer to this internal style as country contemporary,” explains Iain Hendry. “It’s sleek and clean, without too much traditional detail, but the frame creates a country look.” The frame adds a rich warmth and visible traditional craftsmanship that allows soaring ceiling heights, with breezy neutrals bestowing all the glory onto the oak.

The pale timber is paired with extensive glazing which is particularly striking in the living area, where three glazed walls create a kind of sun room using face glazing to the front elevation. This embeds glass window panes into the front of the post, sealed with a variety of gaskets, sealants and tapes and fitted with a 33mm cover board in larch, to match the timber cladding and hide the fixings. It presents a clean, frameless appearance to the glazing, with no other discernible material between the glass and the oak frame. The addition of a full-length glazed window to each side of the front glazing affords a 180˚ view, and provides a connection between the living room and the garden, and the tree-lined landscape beyond.