Cottage under the walnut trees

FAST VUT - Faculty of Civil Engineering, Brno University of Technology, Department of Architecture

Project idea

The project consists of surveys and subsequent design of a heritage listed rural homestead in the village of Vranová.

In the first half of the work, extensive research was carried out, including the history of the building and historical owners, its condition, the condition of the land belonging to it, greenery, possible uses, etc.

CONCEPT OF HERITAGE RESTORATION
It is intended to convert what were originally family dwellings and agricultural buildings into buildings for year-round holiday accommodation and their possible easy change of function to short-term accommodation and rentals for small and medium scale social events.

The form and mass of the buildings should remain unchanged on a casual glance and retain the original architectural values that are appreciated.

However, due to the new functional use and the deteriorated state of the buildings, extensive restoration must take place, which will involve internal alterations to the layout, but which should have a minimal or subtle impact on the façade of the building to the surrounding area. They should fit in with the original concept of the building and the impression it gives.

The layout towards the courtyard will be modified more to suit modern housing requirements and the change in the primary function of the buildings. The courtyard will no longer serve as primarily a farm area but rather a recreational area.

Some of the buildings will also be insulated so that they can be used all year round.

The building of small homestead and the cottage are in a very poor condition, so as part of the restoration of the monument it will probably be necessary to dismantle part of the buildings (as has already been done in the cottage) and replace the damaged elements.
The building of the small homestead is in such a poor condition that it will probably have to be gradually dismantled and replaced in its entirety. This does not mean that all the old parts will be replaced. The parts will be analyzed and those that are in good condition can be reused. According to the discarded parts, new parts of the same calibre will be added or upgraded. The building is not of such heritage value that exact copies are necessary, but it is desirable to retain the same character of the structure, most of the characteristic details and technology.

For a more detailed description, see the ‚Building programme and renovation concept chapter‘.

Project description

DEFINITION AND PURPOSE OF THE BUILDINGS
The original purpose of Vranová was housing and related economic functions in the countryside.
The new purpose would be for variable short-term accommodation with the possibility of simple conversion of the building to purely personal use for living accommodation for shorter or longer periods of time. It should allow for weekend and holiday family accommodation as required and also longer term housing with, for example, a small scale farm. The buildings should be adapted to this potential change of function with the minimum cost to change.

The property is divided into the cottage, the small homestead, the shed, the cowshed and the detached barn. There is also a small timbered chicken coop on the property.

The cottage and small homestead would be used for living, cooking and relaxing.
The shed serves as an outdoor space for sitting, working or gathering, with storage space in the loft for materials and belongings that don‘t mind the colder temperatures.
The cowshed should function as a craft workshop (according to the current requirements of the family), a study. In case of rentals as a place for sleeping of multiple people and equipment preparation room.

The barn would also be of economic importance for storing equipment and machinery. In the case of rentals, the space could be adapted for seating and a holiday table and would become a large covered space open through a large gate to the property. It would be possible to hold smaller seminars, training or team building events or smaller weddings. Equipment for these purposes would be stored in the attic.

URBAN DESIGN
There will be no significant changes to the site and building layout. New fencing around the site will be restored and implemented. Landscaping and a second farm entrance will be provided at the northeast corner of the site. An existing timber chicken house with a coop will be relocated to the north-south for storage of work tools and equipment. New greenery will be planted in several locations and dead trees will be removed. One cherry tree will also be felled. In the last phase, a habitat pond will be built in the northern part of the site.
Connection to the utilities will be made.
The development will not have a significant impact on the running of the village. Exceptions will be possible rentals of the buildings for village social purposes and celebrations. However, the village has other sites that can be used. Parking will be accommodated on the site, and in larger numbers parking on the adjacent meadow or in the nearby car park by the reservoir will be accommodated by agreement with the village.

ARCHITECTURAL AND LAYOUT DESIGN
The only change in the volume of the building is the hygiene area adjacent to the small homestead, which retains a similar mass to that of the original timbered chicken coop.
The layout is modified by the addition of new staircases in the cottage, teh small homestead,the cowshed and the barn.
In the cottage, the black kitchen has been replaced by a bathroom area and access to the yard is now in the old passageway from the room. The attic is newly habitable.
In the small homestead the black kitchen is used as a storage room in the basement, access to the basement is hidden under a hatch, and there is a new passageway to the living room. There is a staircase in the original passage. The attic is used for sleeping. A new sanitary facility is connected to the room, also accessible from the courtyard.
In the cowshed, apart from the construction, the layout is not changed much, it is possible to separate the space into two parts of the workshop and the background to the attic with a staircase. In the attic it is possible to place a workroom or a sleeping room.
The shed is not changed in layout.
In the barn, the passage in the space is facilitated. There will be shelving and storage space for storing work equipment. There will be a folding staircase and a pulley for lifting loads into the loft.

DESIGN AND MATERIAL SOLUTION
The most significant structural change is the insulation of the buildings and the addition of floors. Some of the openings have been supplemented with modern full-glass window panes, complemented by historic features to preserve the impression of the site. The timbers have been restored and the original plaster on the buildings has been restored (Except for the replacement building which was never plastered.) The interiors are insulated so the timbers are not visible. The interior colour scheme is natural with light colours, white plaster and in places muted natural rich colour accents in blues and greens.
The floors are wood, stone and carmic. Most of the new construction is wood.
The buildings will be supplemented with rainwater downspouts and a retention tank.

ECOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF THE DESIGN
Most of the materials used will be of natural origin, if possible and the required quality is achieved, produced in the Czech Republic and regional materials (clay, stone, wood, ...) will be used as much as possible.
Secondary water use and rainwater collection for reuse will be designed.
The buildings will be insulated to minimise the energy needed to heat the buildings. To improve the long-term durability and condition of the timbered buildings, the buildings will be tempered over the winter with a geothermal heat pump. This will also be used for low temperature reheating. During the stay it will be possible to use a wood stove using wood supplied from the surrounding forests.
The grounds will be kept as green as possible and areas of meadow will be left mown seasonally after segments. Most trees will be retained and new trees, bushes and plants will be added.

BASIC MESURAMENTS
total area 2725 m2
built-up area 305 m2
total usable area 438 m2

maximum capacity for accommodation and housing 2+6 = 8 persons
maximum capacity for sleeping 16 persons
Estimated capacity with partial overnight stays outside and in the surroundings 50-60 persons

Technical information

INSULATION OF FLOORS AND FOUNDATIONS OF THE BUILDING
The floors will need to be insulated as the original wooden floors were lying loose directly on the dirt and even below the surrounding ground level. The timbers were laid on a low brick base with no foundations. For example, at the small homestead, part of the soffit is even hidden below ground level, the ground has to be lowered to the level of the future soffit.
The original floor and foundations of the building would have a minimal lifetime in the future and the monument would have to be rebuilt soon.
The foundations of the buildings (at least the cellars) are built mainly of limestone and a few sandstone stones. It is therefore possible to consider reusing them to complete the stone plinth under the timbering and laying a new one isolated from the ground.
It will also be necessary to insulate the floors where it is considered to temper the building with underfloor heating.

The ventilation of moisture rising from the ground will be addressed, for example with an IGLU system. It is necessary to discuss with a specialist. Consideration is also being given to the use of foam glass gravel to insulate the floor underneath and to level out the excavated ground that needs to be lowered to lay the insulated floor. Additional layers of flooring would be laid directly on top of the gravel, without a leveling concrete layer, due to the elimination of the wet process.

HEATING
The heating of the buildings will be provided by modern geotermal heat pump technologies directed to the underfloor heating (electric wall heating is also possible? it is necessary to discuss with experts...). At the same time, the buildings will be able to be heated with wood, including for cooking.
Inspiration comes from the reconstruction of the log cabin by Radaarchitekti: „The log cabin must be tempered even in the absence of the inhabitants - for this purpose, a system of electric wall and floor heating is used. Where the floors are made of attic bricks, the heating is in the floor. In rooms with plank floors, the heating is under the plaster in the plinth walls. Each room is controlled by its own thermostat.“

INSULATION OF HORIZONTAL STRUCTURES
Insulation of floors and roof trusses will be carried out. The necessary thickness of soil will be removed to insulate the floors. See description under „floors“.
Insulation of the roofs of the cowshed, the cottage and the small homestead will be done between the rafters and one thin layer of insulation will be laid above the rafters. On top of this will be placed the safety roof waterproofing, battens and roofing material.

INSULATION OF VERTICAL STRUCTURES
The insulation of the walls will be carried out on the inside of the buildings. This is the recommended practice for both historic and new timber-framed buildings. At the same time, it will not damage the facade of the buildings.
Wooden structures need to breathe, so the insulator must be diffusely breathable. All materials used must allow water vapour to pass through. For this reason, lime plaster is chosen or can be changed to clay if the technology requires it.

The buildings of the cottage, small homestead and cowshed will be insulated. Both the cottage and the homestead are timbered and therefore require additional insulation on the interior. The cowshed is made of stone and due to the preservation of the traditional uneven appearance of the façade and the problematic extension of the insulation around the façade, insulation from the inside was also chosen. However, it is necessary to leave a ventilated air gap between the masonry and the insulation to ensure moisture drainage, in case of a dew point between the insulation and the masonry.

OPENINGS
Fillings of openings that have been preserved will be repaired or new elements will be created with insulation requirements but with the greatest possible preservation of the original appearance.
For the cottage, there are three casement windows which will be rebuilt as accurately as possible. The entrance doors will be restored. Today‘s black kitchen door will be reused in the new opening to the hall as a shutter that will be short of the new all-glass door. This will allow sufficient light to enter the room while maintaining the original character of the building.
In the attic, glass panels will be inserted into the attic, partially hinged for ventilation. The covers will be pivotable lamellas, imitating the classic original vertical panelling.

At the shed, the door will be restored and preserved. The missing timbering will be supplemented with lamellas imitating the original timbering, tilted to look like the original timbering from the outside, but allowing light to penetrate into the ‚interior‘ of the wheelhouse. The open wall of the shed faces north.

In the barn, the old small windows with panel glass set into a steel frame will be replaced with larger openings down to the ground, mainly because of the sole light they provide. The windows will be full-glazed timber set into internal insulation. The existing door panels will act as shutters and behind them will be modern full glazed opening panels. The new windows will be covered in the same way

PLASTERS
The plasters will all be diffusion breathable lime plasters. Fills between timbers will be of clay mortar reinforced with pins. The gable end of the cottage will be finished with a traditional blue dye coloured plaster.

FLOOR
All floors will be isolated from the ground. The current ground level will have to be lowered due to this modification. Glass foam gravel will be laid under the thermal insulation backed with waterproofing. The waterproofing will be pulled up to a newly constructed plinth of brick or stone (depending on the building). In addition, depending on the type of flooring, wooden plank flooring on cushions or ceramic tiles with underfloor heating will be laid.
On the exterior, the existing exterior surfaces will be restored and new loose stepping stones will be added. around the buildings, the ground will be sloped away from the building, as will the paving at the facades with entrances.


REPLACAMENT OF HISTORICAL ELEMENTS

STONE
In stone structures, missing stones need to be filled in places. New worked stone will be set into the dropped area with clay mortar or at least without cement binder (same technology as the surrounding construction). The existing stonework will be reinforced with lime milk.
At the location of any cracks at the column pillars, the pillars will be withdrawn and supported with technology as recommended by the specialist.
The stone footings will be restored.

WOOD
All timber structures are to be inspected by a professional to assess their condition and possible wood boring infestation. Damaged pieces will be replaced with new or replaced with other historic removed pieces of wood that are in good condition. The roof timbers should be replaced in their entirety.

METAL
Metal structures are almost non-existent on the property. Fittings for the infill openings should be replicated and used as much as possible. Metal plate glass windows will be removed stored in a dry locked area and retained. One beam from the cow shed vault will also be removed.

RAHABILITATION OF VAULTS
The vaults in the buildings are in good condition. No serious cracks were found in the vaults. The vaults need to be inspected during construction.
The brick vault in the cowshed, laid on steel beams, is also in good condition. One field will be removed to insert a staircase. the vault must not be dismantled all at once. The vault will be supported first. When dismantling, the beams will be split apart with wooden beams as soon as possible. It is also possible to pull the vault together with the adjacent bay, but if spacing is sufficient, it is preferred to omit this option for aesthetic reasons.
Furthermore, the vault can be dismantled up to the centre.

RAHABILITATION OF ROOFS
All roofs should be inspected and double-checked in good light and with a timber expert before work commences. Where there are localised defects it is advisable to carry out replacementwith a traditional carpentry joint designed for this purpose. In the case of more extensive structural damage, a complete replacement of the truss section will be required. It is recommended that the entire truss be replaced. The timber must be dried and impregnated against pests and water by natural methods before use.

RAHABILITATION OF TIMBER WALLS
Since the timbers are severely damaged in many areas, an analysis of the condition of the timbers will be made and the parts that need or should be replaced will be identified. Substitute parts of the timber will be made, following traditional procedures, so that the appearance does not deviate from the original parts of the timber. The truss structure will be lifted and braced. Damaged timber framing shall be dismantled, including the soffit. A new soffit shall be constructed including a new waterproofing layer for the floor. The foundation of the building must be checked with a structural engineer. Openings for wiring and possible floor ventilation will not be overlooked. The partially or completely replaced timbering will be re-laid on the newly constructed, partially raised sub-floor. The joints will be pegged and screeded with clay screed according to traditional practices. In addition, the surface treatment will be carried out according to the object.

RAHABILITATION OF ROOFING
The original roofing material will be used as much as possible. Damaged tiles will be replaced locally with a similar, ideally identical type. If battens have been replaced as part of the roof truss repair, the condition of the battens at the edge of the roof shall be rechecked. New guttering will be made, so the roofing at the roof edges must be dismantled and the guttering fixed, after which the roofing can be put back in place.

SOLUTION TO THE LEAKAGE AROUNF THE CHYMNEYS
Low sheathing will be built around the chimneys with a drainage from the chimney. The colour of the sheathing will be matched to the colour of the roofing. Consideration is being given to creating roofs over the existing chimneys. The chimneys will be relined. Sufficient draft for a tiled stove needs to be consulted with a professional. The chimneys will be plastered and painted with lime.

UNWANTED VEGETATION
Vegetation in the courtyard area (elder, cherry,...) and around the properties will be removed due to increased wetness and obstruction of ventilation at the buildings, the possibility of roots disturbing the buildings and compromising views around and onto the properties.