Laingholm: Down to earth

An earth block home in the west Auckland bush has hidden practical benefits, but its ambience is what its creators will miss the most.
3A Laingrange Place, Laingholm.

Maria Hayward has to smile when her refugee students tell her their houses back in Africa were made from earth, expecting her to be amazed.

"I reply that my house is made from earth blocks too, and that I think it's a wonderful material to build a house with," says the teacher, who helps refugee immigrants learn the skills they need to adapt to life in New Zealand.

She and her husband Malcolm built their house from the ground up 10 years ago. It was one of the first houses in New Zealand to be built with earth blocks, which are made by mixing three parts sand to one part earth, plus a tiny bit of cement. The blocks are then tightly compressed. Malcolm says the finished product has a feel close to natural sandstone. Once constructed, the walls are covered with a slurry of sand and earth, then painted.

"We had been living in a pole house in Titirangi, but it was on a steep slope and built over lots of levels and when our first child came along we realised it wasn't much good for a family," says Malcolm.

"An American friend showed us some photos of adobe houses," continues Maria. "We thought they looked unique, and so rich and, well, earthy."

They asked the architect of the Mud Brick Restaurant on Waiheke Island, Richard Lambourne, to design a house for them, and then spent several months looking for a flat and sunny site in their beloved Waitakere bush.

"These houses work by absorbing the sun and then releasing it slowly, which makes them so warm in winter," says Maria.

Wide eaves, lots of ventilation and thoughtful design keeps the house blissfully cool in summer. It is narrow through the middle, so doors can be opened at opposite ends to let the breeze blow through. Windows high in the apex of the hallway can be opened to release heat. The handmade Mexican tiles in the hallway and living areas also help cool the house in summer, but hold their heat in winter.

The Waitakere City Council was cautious about letting a house be built of earth blocks, with which it had little, if any, experience, so demanded that the house contain something extra to the African homes of Maria's students - a steel cage.

Beneath the floor is a steel grid, hidden within the earth walls is steel framing, and securing the roofline are steel beams.

All this, combined with a design that included a curved wall in the family room and a second curved roofline in the lounge to add to the house's organic feel, meant it was nine months before the family could move into part of it. It wasn't finished until about 18 months later.

But the family has loved it, as much for its practicality as for its ambience. It's laid out in two wings: to the right off the hallway is the kitchen and family living room, off which is a second little hallway leading to the master bedroom, daughter Lydia's bedroom and a bathroom. Straight on from the front door is the dining area beneath a conservatory roof of glass. This is shaded in the summer, but left open in winter to channel light and warmth into the house. The dining area flows out through bifold doors to a courtyard shielded by a curved earth block wall and shaded by trees.

To the left of the dining room is a second lounge, kept cool by its wide eaves. Up a curved earth block staircase is son Elliot's room, a guest bedroom and another bathroom.

"Another advantage of earth block houses that I discovered only after we'd finished building this one is how quiet they are," says Maria. "Elliot can be playing his stereo upstairs and we downstairs can't hear a thing."

The house sits just above the tops of the trees in front of it so that you can see the view of the hills through ponga fronds and Melia branches. Behind the house, however, is a swathe of native bush - home to a multitude of birds, and a children's adventure playground.

"Elliot and his friends used to disappear into there and build forts when they were younger," says Maria.

The family is moving only because Maria's job is now in South Auckland, and Elliot will soon be studying in the city. They've decided to try to find a house halfway between those two points, but know leaving will be a wrench.

"We just have to be realistic at this stage of our lives, but I wouldn't be surprised if we come back out here again one day," says Maria, who's not sure how she'll cope without lots of trees around her.

"And I would be quite happy to live in an earth block house again."

Vital Statistics

BEDROOMS: 4

BATHROOMS: 2

GARAGE: 2

SIZE: Land 4000sq m, house 261sq m.

PRICE INDICATION: Properties of similar size and quality in this area are selling for $600,000 to $800,000. Auction February 15.

INSPECT: Sat/Sun 2-2.40pm.

CONTACT: Carol Hatton, Barfoot & Thompson, ph 0275 743 758, 817 4375 a/h.

FEATURES: Earth brick home on sunny site with north-facing views of Waitakeres and native bush at the rear. Two living areas with a woodburner in each. Dining area flows to courtyard. In-built insulation and sound-proof qualities. Partially finished earth brick "castle" in the yard.