OMLOOP
The owners of this nineties 'turnkey' fermette approached hé! architecten with the request to renovate their house in a sustainable way. Both the house and the location have a strong emotional value for the couple. They would like to spend their old age here. Because of the house's location in the hilly surroundings, the connection with nature is lost. The idea was to restore that They want an open house in which a clay stove is the heart. Many family and friends were involved in the building process.
A renovation of a ‘thirteen-in-a-dozen’ Flemish fermette did not initially seem very challenging to Hey! It is a typology that dominates our landscape, neither meets today's energy standards nor is considered valuable architecture. But they were soon intrigued by the question of what the future of this type of housing might be.
The architects started with a critical analysis of the existing organisation of the house and its connection to its surroundings. The architects cut open the fermette to break the traditional layout. They opt for infill: they make the house more compact. The daughters' old bedrooms give way to a winter garden. This is bordered by a massive log wall. Because of its inertia, it provides a heat buffer; on cooler days the sun heats up the conservatory - via the wall - and on hot days it works the other way round. The existing corridor and office space unfold into a living room adjacent to the winter garden.
The spacious entrance hall becomes a sitting area by the loam stove. This replaces the old fuel boiler and provides central heating. The garage becomes the new entrance hall and the white walls become a red loam plaster. On the ground floor, a spacious bedroom with a small bathroom will be located in the new condition, allowing for lifelong living.
