Casement windows surround circular home in the Channel Islands
A circular coastal dwelling in timber and stone on a historical fort site overlooks the Atlantic coast, sympathetically built and designed with local materials and thermally efficient casement windows and doors with a large structural circular roof light to the centre of the ceiling, flooding the interiors with natural light.
The circular coastal dwelling built in an exposed coastal location in Alderney, Channel Islands was designed by SOUP Architects to emulate a lookout fortress towards the Atlantic Ocean with an expansive structural frameless circular rooflight connecting the building to its marine environment.
The architects wanted to develop a high-spec scheme that nods to Fort Corblets’s history, resulting in an equally impressive architectural endeavour sympathetic to its vernacular. Local salvaged granite was used in this new build with other insulating materials including stone and marine grade glass. The new build needed to provide shelter and protection from the rugged coastal environment, so it was crucial that the large circular frameless structural roof and casement windows and doors were fit for purpose.
More than 15 casement doors and 20 casement windows were installed into this new build of varying widths with some windows measuring from just under 5 metres wide to just over 9m wide to maximise the coastal views. The technical team at IQ needed to ensure that the glass could align and install securely in the curved wall configuration.
The casement windows and doors were tested to wind loads of 2.5kn/m2 due to the coastal location in Alderney facing the wild Atlantic. The frameless effect circular rooflight has a diameter of 2280mm enabling ample light into the space throughout the day time.
All casement windows and doors were also treated with heavy duty marine grade anodised aluminium frames to withstand the corrosive salty environment.
The casement windows and doors were tested to wind loads of 2.5kn/m2 due to the location. Despite the circular shape of the dwelling, some of the casement windows and doors are functioning opening windows and doors, not fixed, therefore, a high-performance outward opening system was crucial to the specification.
The other salient part of the brief was that the expansive amount of glazing installed throughout the circular new build needed to be thermally efficient in accordance with Building Regulations Part L . Solar control glass was used in this coastal application which actively reduces solar gain reducing energy consumption for cooling.
In addition to the conservation of energy with solar glass, the large circular frameless-effect structural rooflight (2280mm diameter) The new circular dwelling circular frameless rooflight and casement windows and doors fitted significantly increase the amount of natural light within the dwelling, removing the requirement of artificial lighting during daylight hours.
The installation of the circular rooflight and marine grading glazing on this cliff edge new build in Alderney required specialist lifting equipment and access within the realms of its restrictive site.
With the project successfully completed and the occupants in, The Northern Ramparts is nestled in its wild Atlantic setting as though it had always been there.
The circular rooflight provides an additional focal point to the nucleus of the dwelling where the living spaces are defined and branch out from the centre within this circular design.
This unique timber, stone, and glazed new build oozes character in its style and functionality with a well considered internal living layout wrapped around the entire perimeter of the façade with glazing elements that offer uninterrupted 360 degree magnificent sea views.
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