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The Russet House

How we created a basement with an entrance

SAP Energy Rating improved from F(21) to C(75)
Floor area increased by 31%
Russet colour: RAL 8012 Red Brown
Sustainability is a broad term, and our project to reconfigure a large family home in north London was an opportunity to explore how architecture can bring about both environmental and social sustainability over the longer term.
We worked with the family – Rachel, James and their young children – to create a forward-looking brief for a home that they would never outgrow, adaptable to various patterns of multi-generational living with minimal alterations.
The Victorian mid-terrace house was in poor condition, and later extensions had blocked daylight into the interior and cut off connections with the garden. We removed these additions and created a large basement – with bedroom, gym and cinema room – that can potentially be used as a one-bedroom apartment at some point in the future. While these lower-floor spaces can potentially provide privacy and independence, we also wanted them to feel fully integrated into the main house, so we took out the rear dining room floor, creating a double-height atrium with a russet-coloured steel stair as its focal point.
The whole-house renovation was a rare opportunity to improve the energy performance of the building – a particular challenge in residential buildings of this age. We retrofitted the solid walls and replaced the roof coverings, incorporating high levels of insulation. The existing radiators were replaced with underfloor heating throughout and an MVHR system installed in the basement to provide fresh air. Anticipating the installation of an air source heat pump when the existing gas boiler is replaced, we have added the appropriate infrastructure for this.
‘The best thing about the project was how Mulroy maximised the potential of what was previously a damp, cold and unstructured Victorian house. The property has been transformed into a family home including the newly-created basement level that is flooded with light from skylights over the kitchen shining onto the amazing stairwell below.’ James
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01 Designing the Christmas dinner
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