Riverslea Homes was engaged to build a modern home in East Gippsland by the McEntee family who had a clear vision of what they wanted in the new build.
The brief was for a contemporary, stylish home that captured spectacular views of East Gippsland’s Ninety Mile Beach, Lake Tyers and the surrounding mountains, while achieving a mandatory 6 Star energy rating and Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) building requirements. The home also had to capitalise as much as possible on the sweeping waterfront views of the beach.
The cladding not only needed to complement and enhance the architecture but also offer high bushfire attack resistance, given that the region faced a high risk of bushfire attacks. Additionally, water tightness and weatherproof cladding performance were important factors due to the home’s exposed coastal location.
Achieving the 6 Star energy rating is always an accomplishment with the region’s southern coastline inviting south-facing view windows. The 426m² architectural double storey home comprised four bedrooms, two bathrooms, expansive living areas and structurally challenging rooflines.
“The homeowners, the McEntee family, bought their own initial design to the table; from there we did some serious design refinement work, followed by intense engineering,” Riverslea Homes owner Peter Grundy said.
“This is where Bondor’s LuxeWall cladding really came into its own, especially in the upper storey areas. Achieving the 6 Star energy rating with the expanse of south-facing glass was always going to be a process; every incremental performance gain was going to be critically important.
“Of the five individual claddings selected by the owners, LuxeWall offered the highest thermal performance-rating gain by a considerable margin.”
LuxeWall’s bushfire attack resistance was particularly important, considering that this region had lived through the New Year bushfires. Additionally, LuxeWall’s concealed fixing method combined with its unique sealed jointing system and window trim system met the dual objectives for water tightness and weatherproof performance.
Describing LuxeWall’s speed of installation, particularly on the home’s upper levels, as a game-changer, Grundy said, “We were able to achieve that ever desirable weatherproof lockup in a single process, with no multiple trades required with this system. The support and advice from Bondor prior to installation really made me wonder why other cladding manufacturers don’t offer the same around their products.”
LuxeWall is a high-performance lightweight walling product with architectural finishes that raise the bar for upmarket exterior finishes on modern Australian homes. With multiple qualities including bushfire resistance, thermal performance, watertight weather resistance, and ease and speed of installation, Bondor LuxeWall delivers a complete cladding system to all new homebuyers.
