Joan and Barry Van-Nierop

Cheshire  2002   02-117

It took me a few years to persuade Joan that we should build a new house,” says Barry van Nierop, “she loved the location of our old home with its views across the Cheshire Plain towards the Welsh mountains, but the dishwasher and cooker needed replacing, and it’s always been my philosophy that when appliances wear out it’s time to move on.”

Over the years Barry and Joan have built four traditional brick and block houses for themselves and their three children, but this time Barry – a retired builder and developer – was keen to use timber frame and to design a house with the couple’s three young grandchildren in mind.

The van Nierops purchased a rundown 1940s asbestos prefab in Kelsall, the Cheshire village where they have lived since 1978, with the intention of demolishing the existing property and building a brand new house. The long, half acre plot sloped significantly, dictating the width and design of the new house, and the solution was to build over three storeys -maximising the available space by creating two additional bedrooms and a bathroom in the roof served by dormer windows.

Barry and his business partner Dennis had previously built a number of small developments of Potton timber framed houses and was very impressed with the speed of erection, high levels of insulation and quality finishes. He decided to loosely base the design for his own house on the Waterford from Potton’s Shire range, using an architect to add a second storey, completely reorganise the layout and create a totally bespoke design.

The existing bungalow was less than half the size of the proposed 325m2 house, and it took six months before the planners and parish council finally approved the van Nierops’ design and materials. A specialist company was then contracted to demolish and safely remove the asbestos prefab, leaving Barry to prepare the footings, retaining walls and drainage, with extra deep foundations constructed beneath what is now the patio to compensate for the slope of the site.

“Foundations and levels need to be extremely precise for a timber frame,” he explains, “and I was further helped by our daughter, who had just completed her A-Levels and decided to take a year out before university. She tackled everything from mixing concrete and wheeling barrows to building blockwork, and it made the whole thing far more enjoyable being able to work together on site. We bought a temporary house just across the road which we used during the build, and living so close by meant that I could get a very early start and carry on quite late into the night.”

The ground floor is block and beam construction, with 80mm of Styrofoam on a damp-proof membrane covering the beams and topped off with an 18mm chipboard floating floor. This increases the insulative qualities of the property and was one of the reasons Barry converted to building using timber frame.

“A fast build speed was another important factor, because we were going to spend Christmas in the Alps and needed the house to be secure and weather-tight before we left,” he continues. “Potton began erecting the frame at the end of November, so it was a huge undertaking to make sure that the building was roofed, glazed and locked up in just four weeks. I think it was a personal record for the builders, and when we came back in January the dry-liners stayed at our house and worked simultaneously with the bricklayers - which meant that the whole build was completed very quickly.”

Clay tiles were chosen for the roof, with Barry and Joan specifying Eternit’s double- cambered Acme plain tiles in addition to valley tiles, vent adaptors, cockscomb crested ridge tiles and fleur-de-lys finials. Bullnose ornamental tiles have been hung vertically on the dormer windows and gables, with ornamental tiles creating banding and diamond patterns which have also been reproduced on the smaller gable dormers. “We knew that the local planning authority would be taking a keen interest in the property, particularly in view of its prominent position,” Barry says. “Attention to detail was vital and we were keen to use good quality natural products wherever possible.”

With Barry taking charge of the construction work Joan was able to concentrate on the interior and garden design, choosing colour schemes and fixtures and fittings throughout the house and making the curtains and soft furnishings herself. The couple have always worked in this way, and it was Joan who came up with the idea of creating a tiered Mediterranean garden in reinforced blockwork, which forms a supporting structure between the house and the raised road running behind it.

The sloping nature of the site has also dictated some of the room layouts. “The kitchen/ breakfast room was positioned to the rear of the house, with two steps down into the family room to follow the contours of the site and create a split level space,” Joan explains. “We tend to spend the majority of our time there, and it’s ideal when the family visit because you can cook and still remain in contact with everyone.”

The van Nierops decided that the separate lounge and dining room should provide more formal areas intended for adult use, and for safely displaying their collections of porcelain and pottery away from their two Afghan hounds and visiting grandchildren. They have a spacious master bedroom with a dressing room and en-suite bathroom on the first floor, a guest bedroom and en-suite, a sewing room for Joan and a study for Barry. On the second floor two further bedrooms share a bathroom.

“We enjoy open plan living and hate doors, but the drawback of building a three storey house was that fire regulations stipulated we should fit doors virtually everywhere,” says Barry, who would have preferred the dining room to remain open plan to the entrance hall. Despite this fact the couple have drawn on their extensive self-build experience to create a home which has a number of distinctive trademark features.

“Our previous houses incorporated arches, and we were able to introduce them here by specifying arched windows to either side of the lounge fireplace,” says Joan. “These are echoed upstairs by a display niche with lighting and glass shelving on the landing, where the corner of the wall has been cut off to increase the feeling of space. Wherever there was a sharp corner we tried to knock it off to soften the overall effect. Even the bath and shower enclosure in our en-suite are curved, and a corner seat in our bedroom prevents the built-in furniture from appearing too angular.

“Building your own home allows you to specify these sort of details, and it’s such a rewarding experience that I’m sure this won’t be our last timber frame self-build. We will probably down-size and build a house for our retirement next time. When the dishwasher needs replacing Barry will suggest a new project and we’ll be moving on again!”