Business North November 2021

94 | Waikato Build BUILDING House of the Year Award winners shine T Sue Russell The team created an additional sheltered living area outside, adjacent to the living spaces. R eceiving regional gold and national Top 100 awards in this year’s Waikato Master Builders House of the Year Awards in the builders own home category was icing on the cake for Gavin Brown, owner/operator of Waikato Build, established in February 2017. It’s always something to put your own home up for judging in such events and especially when it is your first time entering the prestig- ious competition but Gavin was convinced the inspirational design and choice of materials, coupled with the quality of build, gave his home a good chance of being recognised. “My attitude was very much to enjoy the experience and sort of hope for the best. I didn’t have an expectation of receiving a par- ticular award, so that’s been a really wonderful experience for us.” Sitting behind the home’s unique layout and U-shaped floorplan was the vision of an outdoor lounge area, taking centre stage. “We always wanted there to be a strong connection between inside and out so the idea of creating an additional sheltered living area outside, adjacent to the living spaces inside was central to our thinking,” Gavin explains. Inside the 350sqm, four-bedroom home there’s been a respectful nod to the qualities of timber, with macrocarpa chosen for walls and ceilings in the outdoor lounge while inside 4mm negative detail in the open-plan kitchen, living area, additional lounge and hallways. Underfoot, macrocarpa is again the material of choice on the floor and bricks are brought inside to add a sense of cosiness. “My wife wanted a living wall in one of the bathrooms, so we devised a way to recycle the water from the vanity to water the plants. It’s a really neat feature in the home and some- thing very special.” One of the best elements to the home is the availability of the outside for the children to easily access to play in, on the substantial section in Pirongia. The home’s outdoor lounge can be fully enclosed, with a louvred ceiling and is home to a fire-place at one end. “We wanted this home to have a warm and relaxed feel to it and I think the use of wood and brick has achieved this.” Asked what other features really stand out in their home Gavin says the choice of bricks, an aged red brick, was the perfect choice. “We decided to do bricks to make it less labour intensive in the build. We really like the rustic face of the brick with the creamed mortar – it just goes together well.” When Business North spoke with Gavin the company was engaged in a 350m2 home on Cambridge Road. Measuring 55 metres in length and a straight 8 metre width the owners wanted to achieve the look and feel of an old wool shed. The use of a combination of macrocarpa weather-boards and rusty corrugated iron from an old barn has certainly achieved this look. A milled Totara wall is a special feature inside. Asked what advice he would give to young builders coming through aspiring to run their own businesses Gavin has two comments. First, while acknowledging there are always risks attached to going out on your own, he says the current demand for housing is huge and there’s plenty of work to be found. “Probably the biggest single issue though at this time is the logistics of supply and making the company run profitably with the degree of uncertainty there is on supply and price.” The supply issue, in particular, is one he says is really starting to come into effect. “There’s a backlog building with frame and truss companies for supplies. “It’s necessary to have the plans signed off by Council so that you can get a space in the waiting list. It means you’re starting a job four or five months later than you normally would which pushes everything else out.” Having said this, Gavin says his decision to be his own boss was the best one he ever made. “We’re excited about our achievements with the House of the Year Award and can’t wait to see how we get on at the national event later this year.” Phone 022 097 8983 Email tilingcosmic@gmail.com PROUDLY SUPPORTINGWAIKATO BUILD Residential/Commercial Brick and Blocklayers Proud to work with Waikato Build KITCHENS / BATHROOMS / LAUNDRIES WARDROBES & STORAGE / CUSTOM FURNITURE Email: office@huisjoinery.co.nz • www.huisjoinery.co.nz • Phone: 021 184 3338 Creating High Quality, Functional and Original Spaces