March House: A flood resistant home on the Thames
KnoxBhavan Architects were commissioned to design a house that would serve as a long-term primary residence on the banks of the Thames. The project presented an opportunity to create a beautiful, flood-resistant, and energy-efficient home tailored to the client’s current and future needs.
The house is a single-storey, timber-clad building designed to seamlessly integrate into the landscape while appearing to hover above the ground. Raised on a table of slim galvanized steel supporting legs, the structure allows floodwaters to flow underneath, giving the effect of floating during high water levels.
Enduring structure
Minimal footprint
Natural weathered aesthetic
Flood prone site
The house is composed of insulated timber-framed cassettes supported by a steel chassis, ensuring structural integrity. The exterior is clad with stained larch, featuring a contrast between narrow planed boards for window and shutter zones and wider sawn boards in between. This variation in board width accommodates necessary tolerances while adding visual interest through the differing finishes of stain on the planed and sawn surfaces.
adaptability and design
Flood resilience and material selection
Given the site’s susceptibility to flooding, special considerations were made:
- Elevated Design: The house is raised well above the ground, meeting the 100-year climate change-enhanced predicted flood level.
- Parking & Access: Cars are parked on higher ground, and waders are essential during high water events.
- External Walkways & Decking: Constructed using galvanized steel and hardwood timber, these elements provide durability and withstand repeated exposure to floodwaters.
- Boathouse & Shed: These auxiliary structures use galvanized sinusoidal sheeting and oak-framed openings to allow water to pass through during floods.
Galvanized steel components
Galvanized steel plays a crucial role in the house’s construction:
- Structural Support: The lightweight galvanized steel stilts and chassis provide stability while ensuring the house remains above flood levels.
- Staircases: Three elegantly designed galvanized steel staircases lead to the house. Featuring vertical balusters welded to the outer face of steel stringers, they offer robustness in flood conditions. The handrails incorporate a warm-to-the-touch timber half-round detail.
- Window Stays: Small custom window stays, inspired by riverboat rudders, secure the shutters in place on windy days.
- Garden Structures: The boat house and garden shed, situated within the flood zone, utilize galvanized steel frames and sinusoidal cladding, taking design cues from local agricultural and boathouse architecture.
- Fruit & Vegetable Cage: A practical addition to the garden, fabricated from standardized galvanized key clamp components wrapped in mesh to match the overall aesthetic.
Perfectly in place
March House is a testament to resilient and thoughtful design. Nestled within a mature garden which has been cultivated over the years, the house quickly became an integral part of the natural landscape. Combining flood-resistant engineering with meticulous detailing, it offers a sustainable, adaptable, and beautiful living environment that will endure for generations to come.
All images courtesy KnoxBhavan Architects
©Edmund Sumner.
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